Department News

II Binational Health Week Summit

The second Binational Health Week summit held on October 13, 2010 was sponsored by KUMC Preventive Medicine, Alianzas, Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics, and the Mexican Consulate.  Binational Health Week is one of the largest mobilization efforts of federal and state government agencies, community-based organizations, and volunteers in the Americas to improve the health and well-being of the underserved Latino population living in the United States and Canada. It encompasses an annual week-long series of health promotion and health education activities that include workshops, insurance referrals, and medical screenings.

The goal of these summits is to create a platform where researchers, community members, key stakeholders, and healthcare providers can discuss issues that impact the health of Latinos.  This year local, national, and international speakers were invited to present on topics related to the implications of the U.S. health care reform on Latinos, data and policy issues in immigration and immigrants in our region, Mexico initiatives on immigrant health, and challenges in providing health care to the local Latino population.

Celebrating Healthy Families Health Fair

The mission of the “Celebrating Healthy Families” partnership is to increase awareness and access to health care for the uninsured/underserved Hispanic/Latino community in the Kansas City metropolitan area.  Currently the partnership is comprised of eight community-based and health care organizations who work to plan and implement the annual event, in an area with high concentration of Latinos.  The partnership also oversees and staffs the subsequent case management of event participants that require additional follow up and referral. For the past five years, the “Celebrating Healthy Families” partnership has brought together community organizations across the region to run annual screening and education events and has provided health care access and education to approximately 4,000 underserved and uninsured Latinos.  These health events have screened blood sugar, blood pressure, cholesterol, depression, dental, vision and have promoted smoking cessation and healthy lifestyles (physical activity and healthy nutrition). The most recent health fair was held on October 9, 2010 at Heart to Heart International’s global distribution center.

 

Kim Richter Receives Achievement Award

Kim Richter was  presented the prestigious "Achievement Award for Mentoring Post-Docs " on September 17th, 2010 at the Faculty Retreat.

The SOM Executive Dean's Achievement Award for Mentoring Post-Docs is earned by assistant, associate and full professor members of the faculty and is based upon the number of post-docs mentored and the outcomes or examples of their efforts as identified by those submitting letters. The award is designed to allow post-docs and post-doc alumni a way to honor those faculty Mentors who embody both the letter and spirit of mentoring during their post-doc programs. This prestigious award acknowledges the time, sacrifice, and commitments of faculty members to ensure our post-docs achieve their full academic or research potential by developing skills and attaining advancement in the research and teaching areas required for success in their chosen career path.

Cary Savage and Christie Befort Receive Funding for R56 Grant

Congratulations to Christie Befort and Cary Savage who received notice of funding for their R56. Christie and Cary teamed up together as Co-PIs to study the "Biological Signals of Weight Loss in African-American Women."

Allen Greiner, Kim Engelman and Paula Cupertino Receive Funding for U54 Grant

Congratulations to Allen Greiner, who just received notice of award for his NCI U54 grant designed to create the "Kansas Community Cancer Health Disparities Network."  Allen's leadership in the crafting and submission of this grant was truly impressive.  In putting this grant together, Allen received support from an impressive, multidisciplinary research team, so we should also extend our congratulations to Christine Daley, Won Choi, David Cook, and Kim Kimminau, and especially to Kim Engelman and Paula Cupertino, the two research project PIs.

Laura Martin Receives Funding for R03 Grant

Congratulations to Laura Martin who just received notice of funding for her R03 entitled "Neural Mechanisms Associated with Nicotine Addiction and Obesity Comorbidities."  Dr. Martin continues to advance our understanding of cancer-related addictions. 

Chris Daley Receives Kemper Fellowship Award

Chris Daley received a William T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence Award in August. The Kemper Award recognizes outstanding teachers and advisors and are determined by a seven-member selection committee. Recipients are also given $7,500 jointly from the William T. Kemper Foundation and KU Endowment.

Dr. Atkinson Announces Proposal to Form School of Public Health

KU has begun the formal process to reorganize the Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Biostatistics, and Health Policy and Management Departments at KU Medical Center into a School of Public Health. A proposal for the new School has been submitted to the Kansas Board of Regents. We believe the reorganization would support and strengthen the public health workforce in Kansas in both the private and public sectors. You can read more about the proposed School of Public Health on the Public Policy area of the KUMC website.

KUMC Research Team Receives $7.5 million Grant

Chris Daley and Allen Greiner are Co-PIs of a $7.5 million, 5-year grant to study and address health disparities facing American Indians. The grant will be used to start the Center for American Indian Community Health.

Won Choi, Kim Engelman and Brian Gajewski will be Co-Investigators on projects within the grant. Major studies will be done on diet, exercise and tobacco use among tribal college students, and on why American Indian women fail to get repeat mammograms. The grant also supports educational outreach with the goal of increasing the numbers of Native people entering the health professions and conducting health research.

American Indians have the lowest five-year survival rates for all major cancers and the lowest screening rates for breast and colorectal cancers. They also have the highest rates of smoking, obesity and diabetes of all ethnic groups. They are also more likely to die from alcoholism, tuberculosis, accidents, pneumonia or influenza than other ethnic populations.

An important aspect of the grant is that the center will avoid having non-American Indians telling American Indians how to live their lives, focusing on native people determining what they consider the needs of the Native American community. Most of the center's research staff are members of midwestern tribes.

 

PKD Walk

Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) is one of the most common life threatening genetic diseases, affecting more than 600,000 Americans and 12.5 million worldwide. Dr. Atkinson designated this as the 2010 KUMC flagship fundraising event. On Saturday, September 11, 2010 people from all parts of the KUMC community joined the Kansas City Walk for PKD.

Our department team was dubbed the Prev Med Shuffling Tarsals. We hosted several events leading up to the walk, including a performance by the Ukesters, a ukelele band that includes Leslie Sullivan and her husband Rick. 12 walkers participated in the walk and nearly everyone in the department made a donation, raising 125% of the team goal of $1000.

Chris Daley Receives Training Grant from Komen Foundation

Congratulations to Chris Daley who received notice of award for a major training grant from the Komen Foundation.  This grant will provide $405,000 over the next three years to create a track within the MPH program that addresses health disparities related to breast cancer among American Indians.  The grant will also support training for three American Indian students pursuing their MPH.  These students will be able to combine their MPH training with real world field experience. This grant is a testament to the strong work that Chris Daley and her staff have done to address health disparities in the American Indian community.  It is also a reflection of the tremendous work done within the department to create a top-notch MPH program that boasts a diverse student body prepared to address issues related to health disparities — so kudos must also go to Won and all of the MPH faculty.

Lexie's Law Passed

In 2004, Kim and Bryan Engelman lost their one-year-old daughter Lexie in a terrible day care accident.  Since then they have worked to educate the public and create stricter regulation for day care providers in Kansas.  This work finally came to fruition this year with a law that went into effect July 1, 2010.  In recognition of their efforts to safeguard children, Kim and Bryan were recognized with several awards.

Kim was honored on August 26th as part of Fearless Women Day. The event was held to mark the 90th anniversary of ratification of the 19th amendment and was sponsored by the eWomenNetwork. Kim was recognized for her work as an educator and researcher at the School of Medicine and for the key role she played in getting Lexie's Law passed in Kansas.

The Kansas Public Health Association awarded Kim their Special Service Award, given to individuals who have rendered outstanding service to Kansas in the interest of public health and/or environmental improvement.

Finally, the Kansas Association for the Education of Young Children (KAEYC) presents a Community Service Award to a person that has made a visible contribution to the public sector and has made an impact on the early childhood community. Kim and Bryan Engelman have been named as recipients of the KAEYC 2010 Community Service Award.