UNC Charlotte Interdisciplinary Research Team MAPPR, Receives Prestigious Nomination -Voter Link Inside-
A publication produced by several UNC Charlotte researchers has been selected for inclusion in a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) poll of 2014 research that highlights the identification and elimination of disparities in health care. The article, titled Por Nuestros Ojos: Understanding Social Determinants of Health through the Eyes of Youth, is nominated by RWJF as one of four “most influential” pieces of research this year on this critical topic.
The publication describes a Photovoice project conducted by the Mecklenburg Partnership for Primary care Research (MAPPR) as part of a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study on the social determinants of health of the Hispanic community in Charlotte. Photovoice is a participatory technique used to illustrate the lived experience of often marginalized groups from their perspective. Hispanic youth were paired with UNC Charlotte students and asked to take pictures of elements in their neighborhoods that positively or negatively influence their health, and explain what they are portraying. Their work influenced the development of nine Community Wellness Fairs and two community health groups.
MAPPR is a trans-disciplinary team studying the barriers to healthcare access for underserved and vulnerable populations in Charlotte, North Carolina (http://www.mapprnc.org). Using a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach, MAPPR’s mission is to bring together community members, organizations, and researchers to improve community health and quality of life. MAPPR is a multi-institutional network, with researchers from Carolinas Healthcare System’s (CHS) Dept. of Family Medicine, and UNC Charlotte’s Dept. of Geography and Earth Sciences, Metropolitan Studies, and the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS). CHHS Research Professor, Dr. Michael Dulin from CHS is the co-founder of MAPPR and principal investigator of this project. Nursing professor Dr. Maren Coffman is also a member of MAPPR. UNC Charlotte authors included in this publication are Claire Schuch, Brisa Hernandez, Dr. Heather Smith, Dr. Janni Sorensen, and Dr. Owen Furuseth.