Rodney Perkins, PhD, MPH, APRN, CNM

Clinical Associate Professor

Rodney Perkins

Phone: 253-535-7682

Email: perkins@plu.edu

Office Location: Ramstad Hall - 303

  • Professional
  • Biography

Education

  • PhD, Nursing Science, University of Washington, 2023
  • MPH, Public Health - Epidemiology, George Washington University, 2013
  • MSN, Nursing, University of Maryland, Baltimore, 2006
  • BSN, Nursing, University of Maryland, Baltimore, 2000

Areas of Emphasis or Expertise

  • Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • Qualitative Methods

Selected Presentations

  • STI & HIV 2023 World Congress, Health provider perspectives of prescribing post-exposure prophylaxis with doxycycline (doxy-PEP) to prevent STIs among men who have sex with men in the United States., Chicago, IL USA
  • HIV RP4 Virtual, Evaluation of doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis to reduce sexually transmitted infections in men who have sex with men and transgender women living with HIV or using HIV PrEP: the pre-COVID cohort., Virtual

Peer Reviewed Journals

  • Perkins, R, Fredericksen, Rob J, Christopoulos, K, Beima-Sofie, K Cohen, S, Dombrowski, JC, Dright, A, Gardner, S, A, Kohler, P, Luetkemeyer, A, Pintye, J, Celum, C. (2025). "Sexually Transmitted Diseases." It’s been a very liberating experience: doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (doxy-PEP) for STI prevention and experiences with sexual pleasure by men who have sex with men (MSM),
  • Perkins, R, Beima-Sofie, K, Christopoulos, K, Cohen, S, Dombrowski, JC, Dright, A, Gougougui, A, Kohler, P, Luetkemeyer, A, Pintye, J, Celum, C. (2025). "Sexually Transmitted Diseases." Another tool for the sexual health toolkit: U.S. health care provider knowledge and attitudes about doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (doxy-PEP) to prevent bacterial sexually transmitted infections among men who have sex with men,
  • Fredericksen RJ, Perkins R, Brown CE, Cannon C, Lopez C, Cohee A, Dombrowski JC, Cohen S, Malinski C, Powell M, Luetkemeyer AF, Celum C, Christopoulos K. (2024). "AIDS Patient Care STDS." Doxycycline as Postsexual Exposure Prophylaxis: Use, Acceptability, and Associated Sexual Health Behaviors Among a Multi-Site Sample of Clinical Trial Participants,

Professional Memberships/Organizations

Biography

Dr. Perkins is a newly certified nurse-midwife with extensive experience in sexual and reproductive health, including HIV/STI prevention and care for sexual and gender minority populations. His work focuses on developing and implementing evidence-based interventions to improve health outcomes for underserved communities. His doctoral dissertation was embedded in the Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (DoxyPEP) clinical trial, where he examined participants’ experiences with DoxyPEP and healthcare providers’ knowledge and perspectives on the use of DoxyPEP for STI prevention. His research identified benefits of biomedical prevention beyond STI and HIV mitigation, including improved quality of life, enhanced sexual pleasure, and better partner communication.