Features - 2015

Learn about NIMHD extramural and intramural research and programs. Here you'll find recent stories, announcements, and videos about research funded or conducted by NIMHD.

CAUSES: Causes of Asian American Mortality Understood by Socio-Economic Status

NIH logo

December 18, 2015 — Using local, state, and national death/mortality datasets, investigators from Stanford University are examining racial/ethnic, nativity and geographic differences in Asian American subgroup mortality compared to other racial/ethnic groups. In this interview, Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Latha Palaniappan, a clinical professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine in Palo Alto, CA, describes CAUSES: Causes of Asian American Mortality Understood by Socioeconomic Status, a NIMHD-funded RO1 grant.

NIMHD Director Addresses Smoking Cessation Challenges in Minority Populations

NIH logo

November 23, 2015 — In recognition of National Hispanic Heritage Month, NIMHD Director Dr. Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable presented a special lecture, Tobacco Use Behavior and Health Consequences among U.S. Racial/Ethnic Minorities, on October 13 in the Lipsett Amphitheater at the Clinical Center.

New Mental Health Initiative Reaches Out to African-American Men

NIH logo

November 20, 2015 — NIMHD and the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., have launched an educational outreach initiative titled Brother, You're On My Mind (BYOMM): Changing the National Dialogue Regarding Mental Health Among African-American Men. The focus is to raise awareness about the mental health challenges associated with stress and depression that affect African-American men and their families.

NIMHD Program Official Assists in Ebola Effort in Guinea

NIH logo

October 27, 2015 — Dr. Rick Berzon, a health scientist administrator at NIMHD, recently returned from a three-month detail in Conakry, Guinea, West Africa, where he assisted the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) USG (United States Government) Ebola Response effort.

NIMHD Researchers Gain New Insights into Smoking Beliefs of Minority Youth

NIH logo

October 8, 2015 — Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States, causing nearly 480,000 premature deaths each year.

NIMHD Course Provides Scholars with a Foundation for Health Disparities Research

NIH logo

September 15, 2015 — Having just emerged from a lecture by Dr. Daniel Onion, who discussed the cardiovascular disease prevention programs he has conducted for 40 years in rural Maine, recently written up in JAMA, Dr. Yolanda Haywood was eager to talk about her experience as one of 94 scholars selected for the 2015 NIMHD Translational Health Disparities Course.

Exploring New Opportunities for Disparities Research in Chronic Disease Prevention

NIH logo

July 30, 2015 — More than 90 leading academic, research, clinical, and public health experts in community-based and chronic disease prevention efforts gathered at the Workshop on the Science of Prevention and Health Promotion to Address Health Disparities in March to discuss disparities in chronic disease prevention, with the goal to identify research gaps and opportunities for targeted initiatives.

NIMHD Workshop Aims to Prevent HIV Among Diverse Young Men Who Have Sex With Men

NIH logo

July 22, 2015 — The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) hosted a workshop in February to discuss current research and challenges regarding behavioral interventions to prevent HIV infection in young men who have sex with men (MSM) from diverse backgrounds.

On a Quest to Combat Surgical Disparities, NIMHD and the American College of Surgeons Hold Symposium

NIH logo

July 1, 2015 — More than 60 researchers, surgeons, scientists and federal leaders convened at the Symposium on Disparities in Surgical Care and Outcomes this spring to assess the current state of the science and develop a research agenda for addressing the disparities in surgical care, outcomes and treatment. The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) hosted the event with the American College of Surgeons in Bethesda, Maryland, on May 7-8, at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus.

Impacting Lives Through Free Dental Clinic in College Park, Maryland

NIH logo

May 29, 2015 — Deamonte Driver, a 12-year-old boy from Washington, D.C., who died after an untreated tooth infection, is the inspiration behind the Mid-Maryland Mission of Mercy & Health Equity Festival, which provided a free dental clinic to more than 1,200 patients last fall.

The Year 2015: A Commemorative Time for Minority Health and Health Disparities Research

NIH logo

April 29, 2015 — This year, as the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) recognizes its 5th anniversary, we reflect on the evolution of the Institute's role in public health achievements and the future improvements in minority health and health disparities.

ASN Kidney News

NIH logo

April 1, 2015 — ASN Kidney News is the authoritative source for analysis of trends in medicine, industry, and policy affecting all practitioners in nephrology. ASN Kidney News is published by the American Society of Nephrology.

In Search of the Moonshot: Summit Focuses on Strategies to Increase Diversity in Medicine and Research

NIH logo

March 9, 2015 — The National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), in partnership with the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), recently hosted on the NIH campus the Consensus Summit on Building Diversity in Medicine and Research, where a diverse group of 75 thought leaders and decision-makers representing academia, research, corporations, medical students, health practitioners, government, and nonprofits gathered to share lessons learned, discuss best practices, and establish innovative strategies and recommendations for next steps toward enhancing workforce diversity in medicine and biomedical and behavioral research.

Prominent American Indian/Alaska Native Researchers Highlight Discoveries, Challenges at NIH Forum

NIH logo

February 23, 2015 — Addressing the need for culturally-appropriate health research within American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities, a recent research forum provided an opportunity for researchers to highlight their studies and share challenges in conducting biomedical research both inside and outside the AI/AN communities.

Championing Research Partnerships

NIH logo

January 30, 2015 — On January 30, Dr. Yvonne T. Maddox, NIMHD acting director, presented to a standing-room-only audience at the Inaugural University of Maryland, Baltimore—University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMB-UMBC) Research and Innovation Partnership Symposium. Medical researchers, faculty and students from UMBC's Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program came together to launch this event, marking a new opportunity to develop meaningful and sustainable research collaborations between the two university partners.

Tribal Members Partner with Researchers to Enhance Health Disparities Research in the Northern Plains

NIH logo

January 20, 2015 — Historically, tribal communities have had some negative experiences participating in biomedical research, including improper collection and use of biological and genetic samples; inadequate informed consent; lack of community involvement in identifying local health priorities and guiding study planning, design, and goals; as well disagreements on how research data is used, controlled, and shared.

Fulbright Scholar Integrates Brain Therapeutics, Culture to Treat Huntington's Disease

NIH logo

January 15, 2015 — Introducing herself with the traditional Māori greeting, Fulbright Scholar Dr. Melanie Cheung (Ngāti Rangitihi, Te Arawa) shows that her feet are planted firmly in the world of her Indigenous people of New Zealand.

NIMHD Competitive Course Seeks to Define the Science of Health Disparities

NIH logo

January 2, 2015 — NIMHD's translational health disparities course arms scholars with data on health disparities, its determinants and the multifactorial nature of the field.