The Yale School of Nursing (YSN) and the Howard University Division of Nursing (HUDON) have once again joined forces -- this time, to encourage research on health disparities among different populations and to increase the number of minority investigators engaged in that work.
The two universities have launched the Yale-Howard Exploratory Research Center on Health Disparities. The project has been awarded over $1.2 million in direct and indirect funding for the next five years by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dean Catherine Gilliss of Yale and her Howard counterpart, Associate Dean Dorothy Powell, are co-directors of the initiative.
The Exploratory Research Center seeks to expand the scientific base of nursing practice by increasing understanding of the impact of self-management interventions in population groups likely to experience health disparities. The program will also encourage collaboration between YSN and HUDON researchers, and facilitate the growth of research infrastructures at the two institutions.
The center is launching four pilot studies that will build on the current work of YSN and HUDON faculty. At Yale, for example, researchers have focused on self-management and health disparities through the Exploratory Center for Self-Management Interventions for Populations at Risk, directed by Margaret Grey, the Independence Foundation Professor and associate dean for research affairs at YSN.
"The newly launched Exploratory Research Center offers promise for an even greater focus on the health care needs of diverse populations," says Gilliss.
Powell adds, "HUDON is just as committed to the development and dissemination of knowledge that addresses the elimination of health disparities. ... With a strong focus on health disparities in its educational, service and research purposes, HUDON has an evolving record of self and family management studies related to cancer, incontinence, diabetes and environmental health."
Another important goal of the center is to encourage investigators from underrepresented minority and ethnic groups to pursue research in health disparities. This is already an important mission at HUDON, which "has created an environment that fosters the development of minority nurse scientists from the ranks of faculty and students," notes Powell.
Through the initiative, YSN and HUDON are reaching out to minority nurses studying at local community colleges. YSN has begun discussions with administrators at Gateway Community College in New Haven about incorporating students from Gateway's new Associate Degree in Nursing program into the Yale school's summer offerings. In addition, the center is working with minority high school students who are considering nursing careers through Howard University's Socialization to Success Nursing Project, and building on the successful relationship between YSN and the Health Occupations Program at Regional Career High School in New Haven.
"The need to increase the number of minority nurse scholars who will conduct relevant research is considerable," says Gilliss. "Dean Powell and I share the vision and dedication of our colleagues at Yale and Howard universities to cultivate a diverse and well-qualified cadre of investigators who can address disparities in health."
YSN and HUDON previously joined forces in 2000 to create the Yale-Howard Scholars Program, an initiative to encourage undergraduate students of color to seek careers in nursing research.
The program -- which combines hands-on research, seminars and shadowing of advanced practice nurses -- began as a six-week summer internship and became a year-round initiative with additional funding from the NIH, which has also identified the initiative as a model partnership program. Nearly 75% of participants have gone on to pursue graduate education in nursing research, and the program has inspired similar initiatives throughout the country.
T H I S
W E E K ' SS T O R I E S
Designer Lee wins National Medal of Arts
Keil wins NIH MERIT Award
A new kind of coffee break: Dining Halls to serve only . . .
Geochemist Karl Turekian named to Sterling Professorship
Accounting expert Rick Antle appointed Beinecke Professor
In Focus: Yale Cancer Center
Service provides information about cancer and its treatment
'Jeopardy!' tests contestants' knowledge of drama alumni
Roof of Yale Field to undergo repairs
SCHOOL OF NURSING NEWSCenter promotes study of health disparities
Program will prepare nurses to investigate . . .
YSN hosting ENRS conference
Melkus honored for diabetes research
Ament wins fellowship to study health care policy
A fair to remember
Scholar discusses 'worldliness' of DuBois' views on racial divide
Center for the Study of Globalization to host talks . . .
'Bitter Bierce' looks at life and times of author of 'The Devil's Dictionary'
Undergraduate group staging Handel's opera . . .
Yale Rep symposium to look at international theatrical collaborations
Advances in treatment of mental illness is topic of . . .
Event focuses on legal scholarship of Owen Fiss
Chapel sponsoring conference on issues in the Catholic Church
Event to explore neurotransmitter's role in cognitive disorders
Yale projects featured in AIA exhibit
OBITUARIESHeart surgeon Dr. William Glenn, creator of early pacemaker
Former dean Judith Brandenburg, launched women's studies
Dr. Arnold Welch, pioneer in biochemical pharmacology
Memorial service for Georges May
Campus Notes
Bulletin Home|Visiting on Campus|Calendar of Events|In the News
Bulletin Board|Yale Scoreboard|Classified Ads|Search Archives|Deadlines
Bulletin Staff|Public Affairs Home|News Releases|
E-Mail Us|Yale Home Page