Mid-South Trandisciplinary Collaborative Center for Health Disparities Research

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The Mid-South Transdisciplinary Collaborative Center for Health Disparities Research (Mid-South TCC), proposed by the University of Alabama at Birmingham, seeks to reduce the disparities in chronic disease burden experienced by African Americans in three Mid-South states (Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi), expand to another three Mid-South states (Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky) and then nationally. The targeted Mid-South geographic area includes the most impoverished rural counties and inner-city communities in the nation, carrying exceptionally high burden of obesity, chronic diseases, and high mortality rates from these conditions. Our goal is to address the social determinants that interplay to impact a person's health and produce disparate health outcomes of minority populations. Specifically, we will focus on pathways to obesity and chronic illness and the mechanisms connecting these pathways to health disparities throughout the life-course. Our ultimate goal as a Mid-South TCC is to investigate all social, economic, cultural, and environmental factors driving and sustaining health disparities in obesity and chronic illnesses across the lifespan, and develop and implement interventions to ameliorate such disparities. This goal will be achieved through the following specific aims: Aim 1. Conduct a one-year planning phase to: Solidify and expand the existing multi-sector Mid-South coalition in order to establish a regional infrastructure that will support the proposed research, implementation, and dissemination activities; Conduct a comprehensive assessment to identify existing relevant research, outreach capacities, policies and socioeconomic contexts, as well as barriers and needs unique to the targeted areas and population; Engage additional academic, community, and organizational/institutional partners and agencies to fill identified gaps; Identify areas of research to be developed and finalize procedures for pilot research projects; Develop a detailed plan and timelines for the program implementation. Aim 2. Develop and implement a collaborative research program of regional research sub-projects; Establish 3 shared cores to support all Mid-South TCC research: Social Determinants of Health Measurement Core, Biostatistics/Study Design Core, and Academic-Community Engagement Core. Aim 4. Implement a pilot project program, including a career development component; Aim 5. Evaluate the research, implementation, and dissemination activities of the TCC.