NIH awards $1.2 million for ETSU study
of health disparities in Appalachia
 |
| Joellen Edwards | Edwards
Higher
morbidity and mortality rates
are well documented among Appalachian
residents of all races and ethnicity. But
that which is not very well known
are the combined health disparity
effects of being a minority and living
in a disadvantaged area.
East Tennessee State University and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) want to bridge
this gap.
Dr.
Joellen Edwards, director of
the ETSU College of Nursing Center
for Nursing Research, and a team
of researchers have received
a $1.2 million grant from NIH
to develop the Center for
Translational Research for Appalachian
Populations. The major
goal of the center will be to
conduct research that takes knowledge
about health promotion and disease
prevention and develops and tests
interventions that are culturally
appropriate to these populations. Partnering
organizations in the effort include Oak Ridge Associated Universities, a local Hispanic health coalition,
the Northeast Tennessee Minority
Health-Community Development
Coalition, and the Northeast
Tennessee Regional Health Office.
“This
center will give us the infrastructure
and resources to address health
disparities in three targeted
groups – Hispanics, African-Americans,
and rural people,” said
Edwards, a professor of family
and community nursing at ETSU.
Faculty
from Yale University, the University
of Texas, Tennessee State University,
and the University of Medicine and
Dentistry of New Jersey are serving
as consultants for the project,
along with a consortium of institutions
affiliated with Oak Ridge Associated
Universities that will provide
access to mentors and advisors.
Four
major agendas have been set for
the center. The researchers
will be partnering with community
members representing the Hispanic,
African-American, and rural populations
to educate and empower citizens
to address health disparities.
Edwards
said ETSU will model this “participatory
action” approach from a
similar project the tCollege of Nursing,
Department of Family Medicine,
and members of an Hispanic community
advisory board are currently
conducting with the Hispanic
community to address diabetes.
“If
we want to address health concerns
within a specific population,
we must have members of the community
involved from the very start,” she
said. “They will
have a strong voice in guiding
our research in a direction that
will be meaningful to everyone. The
new center will also be developing
culturally sensitive health information
and disseminating it to target
population groups.”
Research
will be a strong component of
the grant.
“Our
goal is to develop a cohesive
research agenda that incorporates
important components of health
disparities research,” Edwards
said. “Faculty
members from ETSU with an interest
in this field of scholarly study
will be mentored and trained
to conduct projects that have
a ‘community-driven’ focus.”
In
addition to Edwards, the ETSU
research leadership team includes
Dr. Fred Tudiver, director of
primary care research for the
Division of Health Sciences;
Dr. Mary Kay Anderson, associate
professor of family and community
nursing; Bruce Behringer, assistant
vice president for rural and
community health and community
partnerships; and Dr. Judith
Hammond, assistant vice president
for community outreach and family
services.
For
more information, call (423)
439-4078.
