University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Black Americans are twice as likely to experience a stroke and face worse outcomes compared to their white peers. But a new project supported by the University of Minnesota CTSA is working to change that. The community-engaged research study started with focus groups and is now turning its attention to training “stroke champions” who can educate the rest of their community. Niloufar Hadidi, PhD

Mothers Leading Science was recently adopted by the University of Pittsburgh, making it the first institution outside the University of Minnesota to implement the program as a sister site. Established by the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at the University of Minnesota in 2018, Mothers Leading Science is a yearlong career development program for research-intensive faculty in the

The social determinants of health — the conditions in which a person lives, learns, works, and plays — account for 80 percent of health outcomes, but they’re almost never used in medical care. “So much affects health outcomes beyond what happens at a medical facility, such as education, access to transportation, financial stability, and more,” says David Haynes, PhD, an Assistant Professor in the

CTSI KL2 scholar Carolyn Bramante, MD, MPH, led the nation’s first study on whether metformin, fluvoxamine, and ivermectin, or their combinations could serve as possible treatments to prevent ER visits or hospitalization, as well as Long-COVID. Yesterday, the New England Journal of Medicine published the results of the clinical trial. “Our trial suggests that metformin may reduce the likelihood of

The latest poster session at the University of Minnesota CTSA had a twist. Called the Un-Poster Session, it allowed researchers’ family and friends to get in on the event by taking over the presentation. Unlike traditional poster sessions, children or partners of current and former scholars in the UMN Clinical and Translational Science Institute's professional development programs got to present

An NCATS-supported Science Café project has been reimagining how to engage immigrant and refugee communities on health issues. Over the past few years, the University of Minnesota CTSA partnered with Minneapolis’ Karen, Somali, and Spanish language communities to hold 18 Science Cafés on health topics ranging from vaccinations and exercise to navigating the healthcare system. While Science Cafés

Research from Bridget Basile Ibrahim, PhD, MA, FNP-BC, a fellow in CTSI’s Rural Health Equity Postdoctoral Program, found that rural hospital administrators often try to provide obstetrics care despite not having enough births to keep units profitable. Findings were published in JAMA Health Forum. The study noted that hospital administrators estimated that their hospitals need an average of 200

A youth shelter and University of Minnesota researchers teamed up to address the unmet needs of pregnant or parenting teens who are also facing homelessness. This vulnerable group often slips through the cracks of social services, finding themselves both ineligible for shelter and with few healthcare resources to meet their unique needs. Janna Gewirtz O'Brien, MD, MPH, an Assistant Professor at

Coaching is a powerful force for catalyzing the success of early-career researchers at the University of Minnesota. UMN CTSA scholars who’ve received coaching are advancing their careers in ways that align with their values, separate from external pressures. For example, it gave former KL2 scholar Kate Diaz Vickery, MD, MSc, the confidence and encouragement to lean into the community engagement

Koushik Paul — an alumnus of the University of Minnesota Clinical and Translational Science Institute's Pathways to Research Program (PReP) — is complementing his education at the University's Medical School with hands-on community engagement work. Paul and collaborators facilitate health fairs and roundtable discussions in partnership with the Little Earth community, an indigenous preference

The de Beaumont Foundation recently recognized Chao Yang of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) at the University of Minnesota as one of the “40 under 40 in Public Health.” Yang is the Assistant Director of CTSI's Community Engagement to Advance Research and Community Health (CEARCH) function. The award recognizes leaders in public health who are improving the health of

A growing body of research points to the profound effects of structural and interpersonal racism on health equity. This is particularly true when it comes to cardiovascular disease and related conditions, such as high blood pressure and obesity. In Minnesota, people of color experience some of the worst health disparities in the U.S. The Center for Chronic Disease Reduction and Equity Promotion

With funding from CTSI, University of Minnesota researchers worked with local Indigenous community partners to develop evidence-based and culturally appropriate COVID-19 resources, creating three distinct fact sheets on staying healthy and staying connected during the pandemic. The project, “Helping Indigenous communities stay connected in light of COVID-19,” was conducted by the Memory Keepers

Community engagement is the bridge that connects researchers and local communities; however, face-to-face engagement is often limited in reach and scale — especially during a pandemic. In a recently published paper, researchers from Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota evaluated the feasibility of a virtual statewide Facebook community platform to enhance public trust and engagement with

An award-winning smartphone app spearheaded by the University of Minnesota integrates a patient’s responses with the healthcare provider’s electronic health records (EHR) system.