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Local Research Finds ‘Benefits for Real People’
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Business New Haven
11/13/2000
By: John Florian
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You've probably seen advertisements seeking people to take part in medical-research studies. Well, who's conducting those tests, and why? One sponsor is the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center, located at Derby's Griffin Hospital, whose founder and director, David Katz, M.D. is tackling local health issues and sharing results nationwide.
Dr. Katz, what is the Prevention Research Center and what does it do?
It's part of a network of 24 centers around the nation, funded by the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC), that brings together communities and academic centers to identify public-health problems and devise solutions. Our center was created in 1998 and is expanding as grant money comes in to fund new projects. We've attracted nearly $5 million in grant support, including the CDC's $3 million core grant. So we're creating a solid infrastructure of personnel and are now up to a dozen full-time people working in the lab.
And your focus is to help the community?
That's exactly right. At the CDC, there's an emphasis on translational research, which translates scientific findings into practical benefits for real people. In community-based public health, you don't presume to know the community's priorities. You ask. Then, when a project idea evolves - for instance, on injury prevention in the elderly, preventing violence in school children, or reducing cardiovascular risk in post-menopausal women - our job is to design an intervention study.
But aren't you reinventing the wheel with studies that other Prevention Centers might have already tackled?
All 24 centers meet regularly, so we have a good understanding of each other's work, and we share information electronically all the time. When we have good results, because we are wired into this network, the results are shared nationally.
What community does the Yale-Griffin Center serve?
We're located in Griffin Hospital, so the primary community is the six towns in the lower Naugatuck Valley. But we collaborate extensively with academic colleagues at Yale, and also are collaborating now with the state health department on two projects. One is to promote oral health throughout the state; the other is to identify and develop best practices for the control and prevention of obesity, which is a national epidemic.
What else are you working on now?
One study is to determine how to provide information to post-menopausal women about cardiac risk, in a way that will make them take action to protect themselves. Surveys consistently show that women believe the leading health threat to them is breast cancer. Breast cancer is tremendously important. But in fact, the lifetime risk of dying of breast cancer for a woman is one in 30. Yet the lifetime risk of a woman dying of heart disease is one in three. That's ten times greater.
What's your methodology?
In this study, we've assigned one group of women to a conventional risk-factor screening program with counseling, and another group to an enhanced program where they get a CAT scan of the coronary arteries. Essentially, we're asking, Is a picture worth a thousand words? If a woman actually sees abnormalities in her coronary arteries, does that motivate her to take action to reduce risk, more than just hearing about her cholesterol level? We think so. But without proof, insurance companies won't be willing to pay for this test.
Where do your project ideas come from?
We have very fruitful partnerships. Suggestions come from our community advisory board, our colleagues at Yale, our staff and myself. We also ask readers of our Speaking of Health newsletter, which is mailed to 40,000 households, for ideas.
Would input from local businesses help?
Oh, yes. Financial support through tax-deductible donations would help, of course. We also want to talk with local business leaders who have strong feelings about ways health can be improved and issues to address. I'd like everyone to know about our resource. That this is a place for creating solutions to problems.
For particulars, call 203-732-1265 or visit www.yalegriffinprc.org.
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