Coordinators: T. Habtemariam

S. Sodeke

Specific Aims:

To create a Shared Resource Core, with the national Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care as a key component, to support the research, training, education, and community outreach and information dissemination activities of the proposed Center. The Shared Resource Core will enable scientists and scholars to share facilities and complex research instrumentation, databases and information systems to exploit advanced technologies of applied genomic, bio-informatics, health and information technology to reduce or eliminate health disparities through sharing and collaborative research.

* Specific Aim #1: Establish a Shared Core Instrumentation laboratory, sharable facilities as well as trained technicians to support the Ph.D. level training of African American and other underrepresented minority biomedical scientists including postdoctoral, Ph.D. trainees, and undergraduate students committed to public service to eliminate health disparities in minority populations by year 2005.

 

* Specific Aim #2: By the end of the first two years of the project (2004), establish baseline health and disease data for the Black Belt Counties through a comprehensive health survey and make these data shareable on the World Wide Web (WWW) by scientists and interested parties.

 

* Specific Aim #3: To create a comprehensive Health Disparities and Telehealth Virtual Resources Center to bring the most current, reliable and ethically sound health information to be shared by minority populations and scientists dedicated to addressing health disparities.

 

* Specific Aim #4: To provide at least two in-service and training workshops per year in order to upgrade the level of expertise of faculty, staff and students in the resources available at the Center for Bioethics, in the use of complex instrumentation and in the various technology based databases and resources.

 

* Specific Aim #5: By the end of year one of the projects, to develop quality assurance systems designed to collect data and feedback on the utilization of shared resources, assess the operations and refine in an ongoing manner to ensure high quality services.

* Specific Aim #6: By the end of 2004, the bioethics work will be integrated into the shared resource core. The National Bioethics Center will itself be a resource to be shared with campus scientist, graduate and doctoral students working in minority health disparities research.