

Biography
Evelyn Y. Ho is a professor of communication studies, Asian Pacific American studies, and critical diversity studies, and a faculty chair of the Honors College at the University of San Francisco. Beginning with an understanding that communication is a cultural activity and that health care systems and beliefs are profoundly cultural, Professor Ho's teaching and research focus broadly on the intersections of health, culture, and communication, with a specific focus on the use and cultural meanings of acupuncture and Chinese medicine in marginalized populations. She has led and participated in grant-funded projects examining Chinese American dietary practices and health beliefs and patient education that integrates Chinese medicine and biomedicine. You can find that work at www.INCguide.org
Dr. Ho is currently co-editing the Wiley International Encyclopedia of Health Communication and has previously chaired both the Health Communication Division and the Language and Social Interaction Division of the International Communication Association (ICA).
- Appointments
- Faculty Chair, USF Honors College
- Education
- PhD/MA, Communication Studies, University of Iowa
- BA, Speech Communication, University of Washington
- Expertise
- Qualitative research
- Patient education
- Asian American studies
- Research
- Health communication
- Cultural communication
- Language and social interaction
- Complementary and integrative health
- Asian Pacific American studies
- Patient health education
- Selected Publications
Ho, E. Y., Leung, G., Chao, M. T., Pritzker, S. E., Hsieh, E., Chi, H.-L., Chan, D., Huang, S., Ruan, Q., & Seligman, H. K. (in press). A pilot study of integrative nutritional counseling combining Chinese medicine and biomedicine for Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes: A mixed-methods study. Health Equity.
Ho, E. Y., Acquah, J., Chao, C., Leung, G., Ng, D., Chao, M. T., Wang, A., Ku, S., Chen, W., Yu., C. K., Xu, S., Chen, M., & Jih, J. (2018). Heart healthy integrative nutritional counseling (H2INC): Creating a Chinese medicine + Western medicine patient education curriculum for Chinese Americans with heart disease. Patient Education & Counseling, 101, 2202-2208.
Leung, G., Ho, E. Y., Chi, H.-L., Huang, S., Ting, I., Chan, D., Chen, Y., Zhang, H., Pritzker, S., Hsieh, E., & Seligman, H. (2018). “We (Tang) Chinese”: Contemporary health management and identity positioning among Cantonese Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 11, 271-285.
Ho, E. Y., Lie, S., Luk, P. P. L., & Dutta, M. J. (2018). Speaking of health in Singapore using the Singlish term heaty. In M. Scollo & T. Milburn (Eds.). Cultural discourse analysis in situated contexts: A tribute to Donal Carbaugh. (3-19). Fairleigh Dickinson University Press.
Koenig, C. J., Ho, E. Y., Trupin, L., & Dohan, D. (2015). An exploratory typology of provider responses that encourage and discourage conversation about complementary and integrative medicine during routine oncology visits. Patient Education & Counseling, 98, 857-863.
- Awards & Distinctions
Research Innovation Award, Integrative Medicine for the Underserved, 2019
USF MA in Asia Pacific Studies Service Award for Faculty, 2018
USF College of Arts and Sciences Collective Achievement Award, 2017 (awarded to the Critical Diversity Studies Program)
USF University Faculty Service Learning Award, 2012