School of Community Health Sciences
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Josh Garn, Ph.D., M.S.

Assistant Professor

Contact Information

Biography

Dr. Garn's current research is in understanding and quantifying the impacts of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions on infectious disease and educational outcomes, such as diarrhea, the gut microbiome, soil-transmitted helminths, trachoma, stunting, school absence, school enrollment, and cognitive development. He is currently working on experimental and epidemiologic studies that span throughout Africa, and South Asia.

Publications

Gloria D. Sclar, Joshua V. Garn, Gauthami Penakalapati, Kelly Alexander, Julia Krauss, Matthew C. Freeman, Sophie Boisson, Kate O. Medlicott, Thomas F. Clasen. Effects of sanitation on cognitive development and school absence: a systematic review. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2017; 220(6): 917-927. 

Matthew C. Freeman, Joshua V. Garn, Gloria D. Sclar, Sophie Boisson, Kate Medlicott, Kelly T. Alexander, Gauthami Penakalapati, Darcy Anderson, Amrita G. Mahtani, Jack E. T. Grimes, Eva A. Rehfuess, Thomas F. Clasen. The impact of sanitation on infectious disease and nutritional status: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2017; 220(6): 928-949. 

Joshua V. Garn, Victoria Trinies (co-first author), Jérémie Toubkiss, Matthew C. Freeman. The role of adherence on the impact of a school-based water, sanitation, and hygiene intervention in Mali. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2017; 96(4): 984-993. 

Joshua V. Garn, Gloria D. Sclar, Matthew C. Freeman, Gauthami Penakalapati, Kelly T. Alexander, Patrick Brooks, Eva A. Rehfuess, Sophie Boisson, Kate O. Medlicott, Thomas F. Clasen. The impact of sanitation interventions on latrine coverage and latrine use: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2017; 220(2): 329-340. 

Gloria D. Sclar, Gauthami Penakalapati, Heather Amato, Joshua V. Garn, Kelly Alexander, Matthew C. Freeman, Sophie Boisson, Kate O. Medlicott, Thomas F. Clasen. Assessing the impact of sanitation on indicators of fecal exposure along principal transmission pathways: a systematic review. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2018; 219(8): 709-723. 

Joshua V. Garn, Babette A. Brumback, Carolyn D. Drews-Botsch, Timothy L. Lash, Michael R. Kramer, Matthew C. Freeman. Estimating the effect of school water, sanitation, and hygiene improvements on pupil health outcomes. Epidemiology. 2016; 27(5): 752-760. 

Collins Okoyo, Birgit Nikolay, Jimmy Kihara, Elses Simiyu, Joshua V. Garn, Mathew C. Freeman, Mariam T. Mwanje, Dunstan A. Mukoko, Simon J. Brooker, Rachel L. Pullan, Sammy M. Njenga, and Charles S. Mwandawiro. Monitoring the impact of a national school based deworming programme on soil-transmitted helminths in Kenya: the first three years, 2012-2014. Parasites and Vectors. 2016; 9(408): 1-13. 
Victoria Trinies, Joshua V. Garn, Howard Chang, Matthew C. Freeman. The impact of a comprehensive school WASH program on absenteeism, diarrhea, and respiratory infection symptoms: a matched-control trial in Mali. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2016; 94: 1418-1425. 

Joshua V. Garn, Charles S. Mwandawiro, Birgit Nikolay, Carolyn D. Drews-Botsch, Jimmy H. Kihara, Simon J. Brooker, Elses W. Simiyu, Collins Okoyo, Matthew C. Freeman. Ascaris lumbricoides infection following school based deworming in Western Kenya: assessing the role of pupils' school and home water, sanitation and hygiene exposures. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2016; 94(5): 1045-1054.  

Birgit Nikolay, Charles S. Mwandawiro, Jimmy H. Kihara, Collins Okoyo, Jorge Cano, Mariam T. Mwanje, Hadley Sultani, Dorcas Alusala, Hugo C. Turner, Caroline Teti, Josh Garn, Matthew C. Freeman, Elizabeth Allen, Roy M. Anderson, Rachel L. Pullan, Sammy M. Njenga, Simon J. Brooker. Understanding heterogeneity in the impact of national neglected tropical disease control programmes: evidence from school-based deworming in Kenya. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 2015; 9(9): e0004108. 

Matthew C. Freeman, Anna Chard, Birgit Nikolay, Joshua V. Garn, Collins Okoyo, Jimmy H. Kihara, Sammy M. Njenga, Rachel L. Pullan, Simon J. Brooker, Charles S. Mwandawiro. Associations between school- and household-level water, sanitation and hygiene conditions and soil-transmitted helminths infection among Kenyan school children. Parasites and Vectors. 2015; 8(412): 1-13. 

Joshua V. Garn, Tharsiya Nagulesapillai, Amy Metcalfe, Suzanne C. Tough, Michael R. Kramer. International comparison of common risk factors of preterm birth between the U.S. and Canada, using PRAMS and MES (2005-2006). Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2015; 19(4): 811-818. 

Joshua V. Garn, Bethany A. Caruso, Carey D. Drews-Botsch, Michael R. Kramer, Babette A. Brumback, Richard D. Rheingans, Matthew C. Freeman. Factors associated with pupil toilet use in Kenyan primary schools. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2014; 11(9): 9694-9711. 

Bethany Caruso, Matthew C. Freeman, Joshua V. Garn, Shadi Saboori, Robert Dreibelbis, Richard Muga, Richard D. Rheingans. Assessing the impact of a school-based latrine cleaning and handwashing program on pupil absence in Nyanza Province, Kenya: A cluster-randomized trial. Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2014; 19(10): 1185-1197. 

Joshua V. Garn, Leslie E. Greene, Robert Dreibelbis, Shadi Saboori, Richard D. Rheingans, Matthew C. Freeman. A cluster-randomized trial assessing the impact of school water, sanitation and hygiene improvements on pupil enrolment and gender parity in enrolment. Journal of WASH for Development. 2013; 3(4): 592-601.