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Latest news and updates

Latest news and updates

Testing healthy living strategies in public housing

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New research from a University of Washington faculty member indicates that health promotion interventions in public housing communities have the potential to reduce obesity among residents. This one-year study, which looked at the diets and physical activity of people living in 10 public housing developments in Boston, was led by Deborah Bowen, professor of bioethics and humanities at the UW School of Medicine and adjunct professor of health services at the UW School of Public Health. Over the course of…

New population health concurrent degree program launched by School of Nursing

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The University of Washington’s School of Nursing has launched a new concurrent Doctorate in Nursing Practice in Population Health and Master of Public Health in Global Health Degree. This three- to four-year program will expand the multi-disciplinary skills of public health nurses and nurse scholars to better support them in working in partnership with populations and health systems. The doctorate component of the program will prepare registered nurses for advanced practice roles, nursing leadership and the application of evidence-informed decision-making…

IHME study finds 250,000-plus died from firearm-related injuries in 2016

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The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation recently completed the most extensive study ever conducted on global firearm-related deaths, discovering that more than 250,000 people died from firearm-related injuries in 2016. The study, which is a part of the Global Burden of Disease, found that half of those deaths occurred in only six countries in the Americas: Brazil, the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela and Guatemala. The study also revealed that 87% of global firearm-related deaths were…

Initiative supports launch of Pacific Rim Clinical Emergency Preparedness Research Network

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Dr. Kyle Pohl of ANTHC A group of researchers and practitioners from Kathmandu University (Nepal), Tohoku University (Japan), the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the University of Washington gathered at the UW on October 16 and 17, 2018 to convene the Pacific Rim Clinical Emergency Preparedness Research Network. The network’s goal is to support health systems and providers to better link with communities to effectively prepare for and respond to emergencies. The event addressed this goal through the development…

UW hosting global mental health and sustainable development event on Oct. 19

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A special University of Washington and The Lancet event on October 19, 2018 in Seattle will explore sustainable development and global mental health. The event will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. in Kane Hall 225. This event is part of a new Lancet Commission on Global Mental Health and Sustainable Development, which discusses how countries can take action to address mental health equity and justice. The Lancet has assembled leaders from around the world to prepare this commission, which…

Initiative-funded project addressing health disparities in local agricultural communities

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A team of University of Washington researchers in medicine, public health and social work are collaborating with agricultural workers in Whatcom and Skagit counties to assess and, ultimately, address health disparities related to occupational, environmental, socioeconomic and biological stressors faced by that region’s rural, underserved agricultural communities. Through a partnership with a local promotorx (community health educator) program, the researchers evaluate the health and living conditions of farmworkers through surveys and in-depth home assessments. This community-driven process, which is paired…

Understanding why eastern U.S. air pollution levels are more stagnant in winter

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New research led by the University of Washington shows why winter air pollution levels in the Eastern United States have remained high, despite overall lower levels of harmful emissions from power plants and vehicles throughout the year. Air pollution occurs when sulfur dioxide from power plants and nitrogen oxides from both power plants and cars follow various paths to form hazardous sulfate and nitrate particulates. This multiphase path becomes more important with wintertime air as a result of colder temperatures…

UW Mobility Innovation Center releases report on innovation frameworks for smart cities

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The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) recently partnered with the Mobility Innovation Center at UW CoMotion to study six US cities that have been experimenting with innovative approaches to transportation management. The resulting report, “Innovation Frameworks for Smart Cities,” reveals how these cities have solicited new ideas, built outcome- and equity-oriented programs and enacted change with limited public resources. The report also offers four initial recommendations to support SDOT in working toward an innovation framework. Learn More >

First-year Interest Groups add concept of population health to core curriculum

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The Population Health Initiative has partnered with the University of Washington’s First Year Programs to introduce the concept of population health to the approximately 3,000 incoming freshmen and transfer students who join a First-year Interest Group (FIG). FIGs are peer-guided clusters of courses that small groups of students take together during their first quarter at the UW. All FIG students register for a two-credit course that encourages critical thinking, research and community engagement. As part of this course, students engage…

Recognizing community-engaged research in promotion and tenure guidelines

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The Population Health Initiative seeks to bring the university community and partners together in more interdisciplinary and collaborative ways to improve the health of people here and around the world. A potential barrier to realizing this goal is the appearance of inconsistent criteria in recognizing interdisciplinary and collaborative research, teaching, public scholarship, mentoring and community engagement for faculty promotion and tenure. This concern, which is shared by faculty and leadership across the university, was a key focus of the UW…