CENTER FOR NATIVE AND PACIFIC HEALTH DISPARITIES RESEARCH
A Center for Native and Pacific Health Disparities Research (the Center) has been established at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. Located in the Department of Native Hawaiian Health at the John A. Burns School of Medicine, the centers long-term mission goes beyond any single department or school. The Center will serve as a regional focal point for research designed to eliminate health disparities and improve health outcomes for populations in the Pacific region including Native and Pacific Peoples.
Through research studies, research training and engaging communities, the Center will combat those disparities. Funding is from a 5-year, $7.3 million grant from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD) and the National Institutes of Health.
The Center’s scientific theme is Cardiometabolic Health Disparities, which includes heart disease, diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome.
Many wonderful scientists, community researchers and grassroots organizations have worked together to make this Center a reality, said Dr. Marjorie Mau, Principal Investigator of the Center. We really wouldn’t be here without strong support from within and outside of UH. And we are honored to work with all of them in a co-learning environment.
Dr. J. Keawe`aimoku Kaholokula, Deputy Director, said the new Center heralds a new beginning in health-disparities research. “Academic researchers and community stakeholders can truly work together in addressing the health concerns of Kanaka Maoli and other Pacific Peoples,” said Kaholokula.
The Center has already formed research collaborations with the Southcentral Foundation of Alaska, an Alaska Native-owned healthcare organization, and the Pacific Islander Health Partnership of Southern California.