As we continue to work on getting the Aging, Transitions over the Lifespan, and Suicide (ATLAS) Study up and running, we had a news article published about our work in the Michigan Public Health News Center through the UM School of Public Health (SPH). This brief article is focused on Dr. Mezuk, the principal investigator for ATLAS, and describes her research interests, gives an overview of the ATLAS Study, and emphasizes the importance of mental health promotion in suicide prevention research.

We are happy to get the word out about the ATLAS Study to SPH and a wider audience! Please read the full article here.

We are excited to congratulate Dr. Mezuk for being awarded the 2022 Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research (MICHR) Distinguished Clinical and Translational Research Mentor Award! This award honors individuals who “meet the highest standards” for mentorship in clinical and translational research. We at GREMAP are thankful for Dr. Mezuk and her continuous commitment to outstanding mentorship.

Please read more about the award and the other recipients here.

Here at GREMAP we are looking to add another member to the team of the Aging, Transitions over the Lifespan, and Suicide (ATLAS) Study!

Specifically, we are seeking an experienced data analyst to support ATLAS in analysis, data management, collaboration, and co-authorship. Candidates for this position will value working independently and efficiently, collaborating with an interdisciplinary team, and contributing to innovative public mental health and suicide prevention research.

To view more detailed information and apply, please visit the job posting here. 

This past week we welcomed Cohort 3 of the Michigan Integrative Well-Being and Inequality (MIWI) Training Program to the UM campus for 3 days of training, discussion, and comradery. Topics included grant writing, mixed methods, implementation science, measurement, and mentorship.

We are happy to announce that the piece that we have been working on with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) has just been published as a part of their ‘Stories’ blog! This blog features voices of researchers, advocates, policymakers, and those who have been personally affected by suicide to provide their audience with diverse and valuable perspectives on suicide prevention in the U.S. (read more of the stories here).

Our blog post focuses on data quality in the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), which is an essential dataset and tool for researchers that study suicidality. Specifically, it explains work previously done by GREMAP that investigated the narrative data in the NVDRS and observed significant inequalities in the narratives based on the individual characteristics of the suicide victim, primarily for older adults, people of color, and those with less education. This blog briefly discusses these findings and highlights the importance of improving this qualitative aspect of NVDRS data to further suicide prevention efforts.

It is a part of the public engagement aspect of the Aging, Transitions over the Lifespan, and Suicide (ATLAS) Study, which prioritizes working with stakeholders such as advocacy groups like AFSP.

You can read the blog here.

We are excited to welcome new team member Dylan Warren to GREMAP! Dylan is a medical student at Ohio University and will be collaborating with us on a project studying how burnout among providers affects diabetes-related stigma. The project will utilize the University of Michigan HomeLab and is led by Dr. Weidi Qin and Dr. Kevin Joiner from the School of Nursing.

Here are some words from Dylan about his interest in diabetes research and how he came to work on this project with us:

“The program that connected me with the project is the NIDDK, which stands for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. It is organized/hosted by the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, however, there are 16 universities who take part in the program, including the University of Michigan! The program is funded by the NIH and helps connects medical students between their 1st and 2nd years, or 2nd and 3rd years, with researchers working in the areas of diabetes, hormone action, physiology, obesity, etc. Really, anything related to the diseases listed in the name of the program!

I was put onto the program by the Office of Research at Ohio University (my home university). I majored in nutrition in undergrad at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. Not only did we talk a lot about diabetes, digestive diseases, and kidney diseases, I also have specific interest in these areas!”

Welcome to GREMAP, Dylan!

Congratulations to Linh Dang for being selected as a new trainee on the public health and aging training grant! This program focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration, mentorship, and advanced coursework to support researchers that are working to address the unique needs of aging populations, with an emphasis on chronic disease prevention. Congrats Linh!

Congratulations to Dr. Weidi Qin for getting funding for her new project! The funding comes from the Population Studies Center Marshall Weinberg Endowment Fund at the Institute for Social Research here at U of M. Weidi’s project is titled “Neighborhood, Social Support, and Inflammation in Older Adults” and will examine the pathways linking neighborhood characteristics, social support, and inflammation levels among community-dwelling older adults. Congrats Weidi!