The School’s deep commitment to practice-based research has inspired significant growth in its community-based research activities – and the development of an impressive body of knowledge that addresses a broad range of practical public health issues. Appendix 3.1.c. Template E lists all current research activities and indicates those that are community based. The following section provides an overview of several key areas of community-based inquiry led by School faculty:
Eliminating health disparities in Minnesota and beyond
Minnesota has long been rated one of the nation’s healthiest states. But many communities in the state experience much worse health than Minnesotans in general. In fact, some of these health disparities rank among the worst in the nation. School researchers have partnered with community leaders and citizens in the Latino, African-American, Somali, Hmong and American Indian communities to learn more about the factors behind these disparities – and interventions that may successfully address them. Among the many community-based research efforts conducted by the School to help close the health disparity gap are the following:
Barriers to preventive care. School researchers teamed with leaders of the Latino, Somali, Hmong and Native American communities to conduct surveys and focus groups in order to identify barriers to preventive care faced by members of their communities. Together, the collaborators created a list of barriers – and developed recommendations for overcoming them in order to increase the use of preventive care services, considered an important factor in reducing health disparities.
Native American teen pregnancy. To identify the factors behind the high pregnancy rates of Native American teen girls, School researchers worked with the Native American community to design, implement and analyze the Native Teen Voice Study. The study aimed to learn more about the attitudes of adolescent Native Americans on pregnancy prevention and birth control. Data revealed that Native American youth trust their elders, parents, schools and Indian youth service agencies to provide accurate information on contraceptives, pregnancy prevention and education relating to sexual behavior – and that they are eager to talk with parents and elders about these topics.
Health insurance disparities. For nearly a decade, School researchers have teamed with the State Health Access Data Assistance Center to examine racial and ethnic health care coverage and access to care. Among their findings: Immigrants covered by state health insurance programs reported the highest barriers to care. Among the barriers were difficulty in getting translators, mistrust of health care providers and discrimination from providers based on income, type of insurance, race and ethnicity. In a separate project that studied health care access among Latino communities in the rural Midwest, School researchers found significant barriers (no insurance, limited income and language) despite free or low-cost care provided through community clinics and connections to the health care system through schools, government agencies and religious organizations.
Preventing childhood obesity
A second major focus of community-based research has taken aim at understanding more about preventing childhood obesity. Among the projects are:
Seeking to prevent childhood obesity and diabetes among American Indian children. With diabetes occurring at epidemic proportions within the American Indian population, School faculty teamed with colleagues at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota on a childhood obesity prevention project, called Bright Start. The partnership, endorsed by the Pine Ridge Tribal Council and funded by the National Institutes of Health, aims to promote physical activity and healthy eating at home and school.
Interventions to help young girls avoid obesity. After a six-year School study that engaged local high school physical education teachers and students in developing interventions to help young girls prevent obesity, several Twin Cities high schools made the study’s centerpiece a permanent part of the curriculum. “New Moves” is a girls-only physical education class designed to help girls increase physical activity, improve eating habits and bolster self image. During the study, girls were asked what they would include in such a program. They listed “fun,” “interactive activities,” a “supportive environment” and “sessions for talking and listening.” “New Moves” incorporates the girls’ wishes, offering four days per week of physical activity and one day focused on nutrition, body image and self-esteem.
Effort to increase consumption of low-fat foods among high school students. A School researcher conducted a study in partnership with 20 Twin Cities high schools aimed at encouraging schools to offer more low-fat food options in their cafeterias.
Programs for 7th and 8th grade girls to become more physically active. Currently, a School researcher is working with 36 schools and communities to create opportunities for increased exercise.
Global public health
School researchers ascribe to the philosophy that public health challenges must be met by both developed and developing countries – and that they share the responsibility of finding solutions to these challenges. For that reason, a significant number of faculty research projects engage faculty and practitioners from host communities in research aimed at meeting public health needs of developing nations. The projects below are representative:
Reduce tobacco and alcohol use in India: The director of the School’s widely recognized community-and school-based intervention programs to combat youth tobacco and alcohol use has taken her tested theories to India, where wide availability of these products and relentless marketing have made their use an emerging public health crisis.
HIV screening and treatment protocols in South Africa: A faculty member is working with investigators in Pretoria, at the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Defense to organize a statistical and data management center to coordinate large HIV treatment trials in South Africa.
Tobacco cessation: A School faculty member is the principal investigator on a project to promote tobacco cessation in India and Indonesia, both hard hit by the damaging health effects of tobacco use.
Air pollution and health implications in the Philippines: A faculty researcher is investigating the health impact on public utility drivers of exposures to vehicle-related air pollution.
Indoor air pollution and its health and economic consequences in India: School researchers are assessing the health and economic impact of exposure to indoor air pollution from burning fuels, such as wood or kerosene, in poorly ventilated homes.
Gastric bypass surgery: A School faculty member is participating in the design and planning of a clinical trial in India of gastric bypass surgery to reduce cardiovascular risks of obese people who have Type 2 diabetes.
3.1.c. Current research activity of all primary and secondary faculty
Please see Appendix 3.1.c. Template E: Research Activity of Primary and Secondary Faculty for Each of the Last 3 Years.
3.1.d. Measures by which the School may evaluate the success of its research activities.
Table 24: Outcome Measure by which the School May Evaluate Success of Research Activities
Target
Year 2003/4
Year 2004/5
Year 2005/6
Objective 5.a.: Amount of sponsored grant dollars per full-time faculty member.
400,000
759,567
679,913
589,322
Faculty have consistently exceeded target based on national norms. However national trends suggest outcomes may be challenged thus target has not been adjusted.
3.1.e. Student involvement in research
Students are involved in many aspects of faculty research and benefit directly from the opportunities to work with faculty, many of whom are renowned nationally and internationally in their respective fields. Often student research builds on the research efforts of faculty advisers, especially in the academic programs.
Rapidly rising costs (fringe rates and health care costs, in particular) are resulting in fewer available graduate assistantships (154 available in 2005-2006), a trend that is driving the School to seek alternative forms of student support through scholarships, paid internships and practice arrangements that support research activities. One example of alternative support is the School’s ability to place more than 50 students in research positions with the Minnesota Department of Health each year in such activities as “Team Diarrhea,” an infectious disease surveillance initiative. Faculty advisers also actively support student research endeavors with practical advice and training, with the challenge of intellectual rigor and through reinforcement of principles of ethical research.
All master’s-level students are required to complete a project or formal thesis, and doctoral candidates are required to present and defend a formal dissertation. The nature of student research projects is determined by Major faculty.
In addition to research conducted as part of their degree requirements, students have additional opportunities as paid or unpaid research assistants to be involved in faculty research projects. These opportunities provide important experience in data collection and analysis as well as learning that comes with close interaction with faculty and research staff.
Several funding sources are also available to support student research at the School, including the:
Fogarty International Center research grants for international scientists;
National Research Service Awards that provide financial support for student research and specifically train students as future researchers;
CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) Dissertation Awards in Health Care Policy and Finance; and
Traineeships, Fellowships and Graduate Assistantships.
3.1. f. This criterion is met.
Strengths
All tenured and tenure-track faculty are involved in research.
Faculty members are highly productive competitors for research funding. The average amount of sponsored grant dollars per full-time faculty is $589,322 (2005-2006), one of the highest amounts among public university schools of public health in the nation.
Faculty members conduct important research that translates discovery to impact across a broad range of public health issues of growing importance.
Faculty members are building a significant body of knowledge based on community-based, participatory protocols. In addition, the faculty is involved in research collaborations within the School and across the University, state, nation and world.
Faculty research is respected and frequently cited in peer-reviewed journals and other public health contexts.
Faculty are involved in a growing number of international research efforts.
Students are involved in faculty research as part of faculty grants and research assistantships and master’s projects.
Weaknesses
More students could benefit from increased research assistantships.
Recommendations
Continue to seek new sources of support for student research assistantships.
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