<p>The University of Kentucky College of Public Health (CPH) received more than $46 million in grant funding for research during fiscal year 2012. This total includes more than $15 million in primary awards for which CPH faculty members serve as the principal investigators and more than $31 million in collaborative awards for which CPH faculty members participate in multidisciplinary research teams. With 38 CPH faculty and staff members receiving grant awards as principal investigators for their research projects, all six of the CPH’s constituent departments and five research centers received extramural funding during the past fiscal year. The CPH realized a 32% increase in primary awards from fiscal year 2011 to fiscal year 2012 and a record-setting $1.4 million in salary reimbursement dollars from grants to cover faculty effort on research projects. “The success of our faculty and staff in an extremely competitive extramural funding environment is nothing short of amazing,” said Stephen W. Wyatt, D.M.D., M.P.H., Dean of the CPH. “The research portfolio of our faculty and staff provides incredible opportunities for our students; supports UK’s research priorities, including clinical and translational science; builds bridges to other campus academic units; and increases the stature of our College nationally.” The CPH is home to the departments of preventive medicine and environmental health, health behavior, health services management, epidemiology, gerontology, and biostatistics as well as the Public Health Leadership Institute, the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center, the Southeast Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention, the Center for Public Health Systems and Services Research, the Council on Aging, and the Kentucky Rural Cancer Prevention Center. Major sponsors of externally funded research by CPH faculty members include the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Kentucky Department for Public Health, and the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Sponsored research projects led by CPH faculty range from clinical and community-based trials of public health interventions and large-scale analyses of public health data to training and technical assistance activities that benefit Kentuckian public health practitioners, physicians, and graduate students. An exemplary research project that received funding this year from the National Institute on Drug Abuse is Dr. Faika Zanjani’s K01 grant to develop, implement, and evaluate a community-based intervention designed to reduce health problems related to prescription drug and alcohol interactions among older adults in rural areas. For this five-year, $725,000 project, Dr. Zanjani, who is an assistant professor in the Graduate Center for Gerontology, will work with local pharmacists to understand the factors influencing prescription drug safety in rural areas and conduct interviews with older adults using motivational techniques to promote prescription drug safety. “It is so exciting to have the opportunity to conduct research that can aid in reducing the rates and consequences of prescription drug and alcohol interactions among older adults residing in rural U.S. areas,” said Zanjani. “This research can ultimately reduce individual and societal health burden and improve life quality through improved cognition and physical capabilities.” CPH faculty members also received funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to manage the National Coordinating Center for Public Health Services and Systems Research and the Public Health Practice-Based Research Networks National Coordinating Center. These centers coordinate research efforts across the country to explore the impact of the financing, organization, and delivery of public health services on the health of the U.S. population. The centers also organize the national conference for public health services and systems research, known as the Keeneland Conference, which brings together several hundred researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in Lexington, Kentucky, to discuss ways to improve the nation\\\\\\\'s public health system and translate evidence-based research into practice. “The economic downturn means that you’ve got to get more bang for the buck for healthcare,” said Douglas Scutchfield, M.D., director of the National Coordinating Center for Public Health Services and Systems Research and Peter P. Bosomworth Professor of Health Services Research and Policy. “That requires us beginning to look at some hard questions having to do with the issues surrounding public health systems and services research.” The mission of the CPH is to apply comprehensive health approaches to better understand and help reduce the burdens and disparities of health problems on individuals, families, and communities in Kentucky and around the country. Founded in 2004, the CPH is fully accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health and offers programs in which students can earn the following degrees: a Master of Health Administration (M.H.A.); a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) in biostatistics, environmental health, epidemiology, gerontology, health behavior, or health services management; a Doctor of Public Health (Dr.P.H.) in epidemiology, gerontology, health behavior, or health services management; a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in gerontology or epidemiology/biostatistics; and dual MD/MPH and PharmD/MPH. Please visit http://www.mc.uky.edu/publichealth/index.html to learn more about the CPH’s research and degree programs.</p>