The National Institute of Health awarded a $1.2 million grant to East Tennessee State University’s College of Nursing in an effort to eliminate health disparities among disadvantaged people in the region.
The three-year grant will be used to develop the Center for Translational Research for Appalachian Populations, a team of ETSU health care providers finding ways to address health problems among African-Americans, Hispanics and people who are disadvantaged because of socioeconomic circumstances.
“The idea is to put together a research infrastructure to help make a difference in health disparities,” said Dr. Fred Tudiver, director of primary care research for the Division of Health Sciences and mentoring team leader for the center.
The center will focus on reducing the major health problems in disadvantaged communities, including diabetes, heart disease, cancer and access to mental health resources.
While research is the main component of the center, the ETSU team will also partner with Hispanic, blacks and rural groups to learn more about their health-related concerns; train and mentor health care providers to better serve disadvantaged people; and distribute culturally-sensitive health information to these groups.
Along with the opportunity to voice their concerns, members of disadvantaged communities will also benefit from by getting better access to health care experts and funding for health care programs. Additionally, they will have an opportunity to improve the cultural sensitivity of research.
“If we want to address health concerns within a specific population, we must have members from the community involved from the very start,” Dr. Joellen Edwards, director of the Center for Nursing Research at ETSU’s college of nursing and coordinator of the grant. “They will have a strong voice in guiding research in a direction that will be meaningful to everyone.”
Members of the ETSU research leadership team will be helped along by experts in the field of health disparities among disadvantaged people, Edwards said. Faculty from Yale University, the University of Texas, Tennessee State University and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey will consult for the project.
In addition to Edwards and Tudiver, ETSU team members include Dr. Mary Kay Anderson, associate professor of Family and Community Nursing; Bruce Behringer, assistant vice president for Community Health and Community Partnerships; and Dr. Judith Hammond, assistant vice president for Community Outreach and Family Services.
The group will have its first meeting with consultants in early December, though internal meetings for the center will begin immediately.

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