Sleep societies announce 2023 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Award recipient

Rollins School of Public Health researcher, Dayna A. Johnson, is the recipient of the 2023 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Award from the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, a joint initiative of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society.

The award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to sleep medicine or sleep and circadian science through their work to increase the diversity, equity, and inclusion of sleep medicine providers, or to develop educational programs, research, or clinical work aimed at reducing disparities. The award presentation occurred Monday, June 5, during the plenary session of the SLEEP 2023 annual meeting of the APSS in Indianapolis.

“Being a recipient of this award is a testimony to my dedication and commitment to advancing the study of sleep health disparities and elimination of sleep inequities,” said Johnson, who has a doctorate in epidemiologic science. “My motivation to conduct this work is shaped by my family and loved ones who have been disproportionately affected by structural injustices that have created barriers to deny them of a basic component of life — sleep.”

Johnson is a sleep epidemiologist and assistant professor in the department of epidemiology for the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta. Her research is aimed at understanding the determinants and health consequences of sleep health disparities by addressing the social and environmental determinants of sleep disorders and insufficient sleep and investigating the influence of modifiable factors such as sleep disorders and disturbances on various health outcomes.