Faculty and Staff Profile

Rachel Mayo

Educational Background

PhD Health Promotion and Education
University of South Carolina, Arnold School of Public Health 1997

MA Microbiology
University of Arkansas 1993

BS Natural Science
University of Arkansas 1991

Courses Taught

HLTH 8130: Population Health
HLTH 8220: Mixed Methods Research
HLTH 8090: Epidemiologic Research
HLTH 3800: Epidemiology
HLTH 4700: Global Health
HLTH 3100: Womens Health
HLTH 4900: Research Methods
HLTH 2020: Introduction to Public Health

Profile

Dr. Rachel Mayo is a Professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at Clemson University. She has been the principal or co-investigator on more than $4 million in grants and contracts to support this work. She is currently the PI for the SC Opiod Recovery Fund grant, Expanding Treatment and Services for Mothers with Opiod Use Disorder and Infants with NAS: Pickens County. She recently served the site PI for the DHHS-funded MAiN Project, an intervention for babies born to opiod-dependent mothers. Her research interests include cancer prevention and control and health disparities among minority and underserved, particularly African American and Latino populations. She served as co-PI on a National Institutes of Health grant to examine medical and nursing students’ readiness to treat Latino patients. She was the site PI of a National Cancer Institute grant collaboration with the University of South Carolina to train breast and cervical cancer survivors to “witness” about their experience with cancer in African American churches to increase participation in breast and cervical cancer screenings. She has studied the health problems of substance use, breast and cervical cancer, diabetes and other chronic diseases among Latino, African American and underserved communities for the past 25+ years. She has served on a number of state and national boards including: CDC Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer in Young Women; AcademyHealth, Health Disparities Interest group; SC Maternal and Child Health Task Force; SC Central Cancer Registry Surveillance Committee; SC Cancer Alliance Board; Cervical Cancer Free South Carolina, Executive committee; Alliance for a Healthier South Carolina, Health Disparities Task Force

Research Interests

Substance use, cancer prevention and control, chronic disease and health disparities among minority and underserved populations, particularly African American and Latino populations.

Research Publications

1. *Holcomb, L., Mayo, R. M., Barkin, J., Cartmell, K., Rennert, L., Dickes, L., &
Eichelberger, K. (2026). Strengthening the standard of care for perinatal substance use disorders:
Reproductive health provider perspectives on training, integration, and system improvements.
Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, 21, Article 5.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13011-025-00692-4 Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.2
2. *Holcomb, L., Mayo, R. M., Barkin, J., Cartmell, K., Rennert, L., Dickes, L., & Eichelberger, K.
(2025). Reproductive healthcare professionals’ comfort to treat postpartum patients with substance
use disorders. Patient Education and Counseling, 140, 109276.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2025.109276
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.1
3. *Tahsin, F., Holcomb, L., Charron, E., Dickes, L. A., Mayo, R. M., Sherrill, W. W., Hudson, J.,
& Bedi, J. (2025). Well-child visits and immunization encounters in South Carolina Medicaid: A
3-year retrospective comparison between rural and urban children with a history of neonatal opioid
withdrawal syndrome, 2006–2014. Healthcare, 13(13), 1539.
https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13131539
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 2.7
4. *Holcomb, L., Treado, B., Mayo, R. M., Cartmell, K. B., Dickes, L. A., Barkin, J., Eichelberger,
K., & Rennert, L. (2025). If we didn’t have our babies, we wouldn’t be here right now: A
qualitative exploration of new motherhood while navigating substance use disorder recovery.
Substance Use & Addiction Journal, 46(4), 888–900. https://doi.org/10.1177/29767342251331398
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 2.4
5. *Tahsin, F., Henderson, W., Dickes, L. A., Holcomb, L. A., Charron, E., Mayo, R. M., Sherrill,
W. W., & Hudson, J. (2025). How social media stigmatizes substance use: A trend analysis examining
a politicized visit to a pediatric hospital unit. Journal of Drug Issues.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00220426241311005
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 1.2
6. *Holcomb, L., Coob, C., Treado, B., Mayo, R. M., Cartmell, K., Dickes, L., Barkin, J.,
Eichelberger, K., & Rennert, L. (2025). Recovering together: The socioecological impact of social
networks on postpartum substance use disorder recovery. Community Mental Health Journal, 61,
1471–1480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-025-01482-9
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 1.7
7. *Holcomb, L. A., Mayo, R. M., Treado, B., Barkin, J., Cartmell, K. B., Dickes, L. A., & Rennert,
L. (2024). Navigating recovery while postpartum: Examining the relationship between maternal
functioning and substance use disorders. Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, 45(1),
Article 2424417.
https://doi.org/10.1080/0167482X.2023.2424417
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 2.0
8. *Witrick, B., Kalbaugh, C. A., Mayo, R. M., Hendricks, B., & Shi, L. (2023). Disparities in
healthcare utilization by insurance status among patients with symptomatic peripheral artery
disease. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 913. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-09913-3
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.0
9. *Melikam, E. S., Simmons, V., Masoomkhah, E., Franco, R., Cartmell, K. B., Mayo, R. M., et al.
(2023). The association of urbanicity and travel time with lung cancer screening utilization.
Cancer Epidemiology, 85, 102396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canep.2023.102396
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 2.3
10. *Holcomb, L., Koob, C., Mayo, R. M., Charron, E., Dickes, L., Sherrill, W. W., & Hudson, J.
(2023). It’s a proactive intervention instead of a reactive one: Measuring facilitators and
barriers regarding readiness to implement a treatment program for infants with neonatal opioid
withdrawal syndrome. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 754.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-09854-x
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.0
11. *Heavner, S. F., Stuenkel, M., Sellers, R. R., McCallus, R., Dean, K. D., Wilson, C., et al.
(2023). I don’t want to go to work: A mixed-methods analysis of healthcare worker experiences from
the front- and sidelines of COVID-19. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public
Health, 20(11), 5953. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20115953
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.1
12. Balto, R., Brooks, J. H., Mayo, R. M., Eichelberger, K. Y., & Charron, E. (2023). It just
depends on their stability: A qualitative examination of patient factors influencing providers’
contraceptive counseling approaches for persons with substance use. Journal of Addiction Medicine,
17(1), 89–94. https://doi.org/10.1097/ADM.0000000000001011
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.2
13. *Witrick, B., Shi, L., Mayo, R. M., Hendricks, B., & Kalbaugh, C. A. (2022). The association
between socioeconomic distress communities index and amputation among patients with peripheral
artery disease. Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, 9, 1021692.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fcvm.2022.1021692
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 5.8
14. *Rolke, L. J., Griffin, S. F., Hamilton, J., Mayo, R. M., Williams, J. E., Rennert, L., et al.
(2022). Parent/guardian experiences with the healthcare system and community supports for pediatric
asthma management. Journal of Patient Experience, 9, 23743735221089458.
https://doi.org/10.1177/23743735221089458
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 1.5
15. *Charron, E., Tahsin, F., Balto, R., Eichelberger, K. Y., Dickes, L., Simonsen, S. E., & Mayo,
R. M. (2022). Provider perspectives of barriers to contraceptive access and use among women with
substance use disorders. Women’s Health Issues, 32(2), 165–172.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2021.12.002
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 2.4
16. *Witrick, B., Kalbaugh, C. A., Shi, L., Mayo, R. M., & Hendricks, B. (2021). Geographic
disparities in readmissions for peripheral artery disease in South Carolina. International Journal
of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(1), 285. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010285
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.1
17. *Neroda, P., Hsieh, M. C., Wu, X. C., Cartmell, K. B., Mayo, R. M., Wu, J., et al. (2021).
Racial disparity and social determinants in receiving timely surgery among stage I–IIIA non-small
cell lung cancer patients in a U.S. southern state. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 662876.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.662876 Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 4.0
18. *Francis, E. C., Charron, E., Li, M., Chen, L., Mayo, R. M., Butler, L. S., & Rennert, L.
(2021). Third-trimester maternal vitamin D and early childhood socioemotional development.
Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, 35(3), 350–358. https://doi.org/10.1111/ppe.12736
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.4
19. *Charron, E., Rennert, L., Mayo, R. M., Eichelberger, K. Y., Dickes, L., & Truong,
K. D. (2021). Contraceptive initiation after delivery among women with and without opioid use
disorders: A retrospective cohort study in a statewide Medicaid population, 2005–2016. Drug and
Alcohol Dependence, 220, 108533. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.108533
Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 3.6
20. *Neroda, P., Hsieh, M. C., Wu, X. C., Cartmell, K. B., Mayo, R. M., Wu, J., & Zhang, L. (2021).
Racial disparity in the timely treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. Journal of Thoracic
Oncology, 16(1), S49. Impact Factor (JCR 2024): 20.1
Manuscripts (Accepted)
1. *Mayo, R. M., Edgar, M., Sutton, J., Holcomb, L., Dickes, L. A., Sherrill, W. W., Charron, E.,
Hudson, J., & Boyd, J. Heightened sympathetic arousal among NOWS infants demonstrated by skin
conductance responsivity to physical stimuli in a small cohort of neonates with opiate withdrawal.
BMC Pediatrics Impact Factor: N/A (accepted July 6, 2026) Impact Factor (JCR 2025): 2.3

Honors and Awards

Distinguished Doctoral Mentoring Award, Clemson University Graduate School, May, 2026
SC Voice of Public Health Award, Research Team award, SC Public Health Association, May, 2026
Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer in Young Women (ACBCYW), Member
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018-2023.
Wallace R. Roy Distinguished Professorship, Clemson University Named Professorship, 2017-2021.
Delta Omega, Mu Chapter, Public Health Honorary Society, 1997-present.
Award of Distinction, National Scholars Program, Clemson University, 2008.
Visiting Professor, Summer, 2009. Global Health, Universidad de San Ramón, San
Ramón, Costa Rica.
Award of Excellence in Advising, College of HEHD, Clemson University, 2010.
Outstanding Faculty Member, President’s Commission on the Status of Women,
Clemson University, 2011.
Visiting Professor, Spring semester, 2012. Global Health, Women’s Health, Universidad
de San Ramón, San Ramón, Costa Rica.
Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer in Young Women (ACBCYW),
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018-2020
Institute for the Advancement of Health Care Scholar, Greenville Health
System Greenville, SC, 2012-Present
Wallace R. Roy Distinguished Professorship, Clemson University, 2017-2020

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