Professor Katy Kozhimannil’s work is driving policy change to reduce rising maternal mortality rates in rural populations and address structural racism in healthcare.
Faculty
Switching to a plant-centered diet linked to reduced diabetes risk for young adults as they age
PhD student Yuni Choi found that study participants with the greatest increase in plant-centered diet quality scores had a 48% lower risk of Type 2 diabetes compared to those who did not alter their diet.
U of MN School of Public Health Dean John Finnegan Jr. to retire
Finnegan has served as dean for 16 years and maintained SPH’s top 10 national school ranking, increased student enrolled by 65 percent, and led initiatives to prevent sexual misconduct and gun deaths.
Female primary care physicians spending more time with patients may contribute to gender pay gap
The study, co-led by senior author and Assistant Professor Hannah Neprash, found that female primary care physicians earn less revenue for the care they provide, but spend more time with patients than their male colleagues.
School of Public Health launches Center for Healthy Aging and Innovation
The center is led by Professor Joseph Gaugler and seeks to foster interdisciplinary, community-engaged approaches to support students, researchers, and the community when addressing critical issues related to aging.
School of Public Health to establish the Public Health Center of Excellence on Dementia Caregiving
The center is led by Professor Joseph Gaugler and will focus on identifying and disseminating promising research findings and best practices for addressing social determinants of health to support family members, friends, and other unpaid individuals who care for people living with dementia.
Nguyen creates distance public health course for people in prison
Associate Professor Ruby Nguyen created an introductory public health class for the Minnesota state prison system that will teach incarcerated residents how to understand the issues of today, and possibly, open the door to a future career in the field.
Black newborns die less when cared for by Black doctors
A study co-authored by Associate Professor Rachel Hardeman found that the in-hospital death rate of Black newborns is a third lower when they are cared for by Black physicians rather than white physicians.
Gum disease raises the risk of developing dementia
Associate Professor Ryan Demmer studied a large group of people with varying levels of gum disease and found 19% of them developed dementia.
Children eat healthier school meals following Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act
The study by recent graduate Aaron Berger (PhD ’20) found that kids ate a regular amount of the improved meals, which sets them up for healthier lives.
Measuring SARS-CoV-2 infection among a sample of symptom-free Twin Cities health care workers
The results of the study led by Associate Professor Ryan Demmer suggest that the prevalence of active infection at any single point in time is potentially low among health care workers without symptoms.
Rural areas have higher individual health insurance premiums and fewer plan choices
Professor Jean Abraham led the study and believes that undetermined need and cost for health care during the COVID-19 pandemic will only add to the uncertainty surrounding plan choices and pricing in rural and other markets.
