PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE - Noble A-W Maseru of BCHS and director of the Center for Health Equity, noted the life expectancy difference between mostly white Highland Park (84 years) and nearby, mostly black Larimer (62 years). Dara D. Mendez, EPI, added that racism weathers the body, accelerating aging, and sapping the strength of society through a waste of community resources. Likely coming later this month: votes on a trio of bills that would de...
On a wet Wednesday night, December 4, Pitt Public Health student advocates Sarah Sanders (BCHS ’22), Sarah Bigelow (BCHS ’20), Paris Ekeke (EPI ’20), and Amy Raslevich (HPM ’22) joined peers from the schools of law and nursing for a Health Justice Night at Pitt's Community Empowerment Center in Homewood. The evening was powered by PechaKucha, aimed to spark community level engagement and inter-professional collaboration by offering a unique look...
Russell E. Morgan Jr (HSADM ’70) received the Carl E. Taylor Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his outstanding lifetime achievements in international health from the International Health Section of the American Public Health Association. Morgan was presented with the award during the 2019 APHA annual meeting in Philadelphia in November.
IMPACT - Evan Facher (HUGEN '97) notes that one of the important ways that the Innovation Institute powers invention and ignites progress is by connecting Pitt faculty with the resources they need to accelerate the translation of their research from the lab to the market. LifeX Labs, the life sciences accelerator launched by the University last year, is one of those resources. LifeX is hosting two opportunities this week for innovators to be con...
UPMC - People in rural areas of the U.S. who receive subsidies to buy health insurance pay less in premiums than their counterparts in urban areas, a flip that occurred in 2018 and has been widening since. “There’s this narrative that, until recently, was correct: Rural populations did not enjoy the same improved health plan affordability under the ACA as people living in cities, now we’re finding that, at least for subsidized enrollees, that’s ...
BCHS’s Jessie Burke and Sara Baumann (BCHS '19) received a Hewlett Award from the University Center for International Studies for their project entitled, “Painting a way forward: Investigating the role of community art on mental health outcomes in the aftermath of the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal.” The work extends ongoing research efforts in Nepal.
AIDS AND BEHAVIOR - O’Malley TL, Hawk ME, Egan JE, Krier SE, and Burke JG's findings indicate a dearth of research on women’s PrEP use and IPV and highlight the urgency for research, public heath practice, and policy attention around the HIV risk context and needs of women who experience IPV.
PITTWIRE - EPI’s Lisa Bodnar has been named a full member on the National Academy of Medicine's “Committee on Scoping Existing Guidelines for Feeding Recommendations for Infants and Young Children Under Age 2.” Bodnar’s research focuses on discovering the healthiest weight and dietary patterns for pregnant women and their children.
BIOST's Ying Ding has been promoted to the rank of associate professor (tenured). Ding started as an assistant professor with the Department of Biostatistics in 2013.
BIOST's Andriy Bandos has been promoted to the rank of associate professor with tenure. Bandos has made outstanding contributions to graduate teaching and research programs.
The International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers will honor one of its outstanding technical leaders at its next Annual General Assembly. BIOST's Gary Marsh will receive the prestigious Institute Technical Award, which will be presented during the 61st AGM of the IISRP in Bangkok, Thailand, May 12, 2020. Marsh is a leading researcher recognized globally in biostatistics, occupational/environmental epidemiology, quantitative risk assessm...
IDM's Moses Turkle Bility spoke at CanCure in Montreal, where he presented a talk entitled "The role of macrophages in HIV persistence and human immunity in the BLTS-humaized mouse model." Bility's talk addressed the role of macrophages in HIV cure and presented a novel animal model developed in his lab for evaluating therapeutics gear towards eradicating the HIV reservoir.
The Grand Council Deputy Outstanding Achievement Award was given to Karen Hoang (MMPH '21) at the Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity, Inc. Grand Council Convention in Washington, D.C. in July 2019. This award is given to the #1 chapter advisor in the organization. Hoang was nominated by the Beta Kappa Chapter at Pitt.
The Pitt Public Health family had a great tiem and a great turnout at the school-wide reception we threw in Philly during #APHA2019 last week. Thanks for coming out! Congratulations to our alumni, faculty, and student presenters. See you in San Francisco in 2020!
Xiao Zhang (EPI '23) won this award for outstanding epidemiology students conducting nutrient-related research. Zhang was honored for her contribution to exploring the effect of high-dose marine omega-3 fatty acids on atherosclerosis. This work was published in the journal Nutrients in November 2019 with Zhang as senior author.
Caitlin Russell (HUGEN '19) was awarded the New Presenter Award during the Genomics Forum at this year's American Public Health Association conference for her poster titled, "Assessment of Hemoglobinopathy trait notification in Pennsylvania Newborn Screening". Additional authors on teh poster included HUGEN's Andrea Durst, Cheryl Hillary, and Elena Kessler.
"This award meant a lot to me in terms of having a bit more financial stability, which has allowed me to focus more n my studies and work," said Marilyn Ngo (HUGEN '20) of being named one of this year's scholars. "Research in this field can go towards helping so many people in new and innovative ways."
WJET-TV - To show the seriousness of the disease, Pitt Public Health launched an outbreak simulation know as Fred, named after Fred Rogers, because the spread of the disease all comes down to neighborhoods. There were over 1,200 measles cases reported in the nation as of November. Visit https://bit.ly/2KW35zy to watch the simulation.
JUNIATA MAGAZINE - Pitt Public Health alumni are leaders in their fields. Congratulations to Jen Jones (BCHS '11) for her spotlight feature!
SALON - The tobacco industry may have been the first to recognize that requiring transparency in scientific research could serve as a weapon to defend a dangerous product, but it appears that, in the face of opposition from virtually the entire scientific community, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler will soon issue regulation that will make it national policy. "Unless he is stopped, the EPA’s ability to protect t...