Dr. Carla Boutin-Foster
Dr. Carla Boutin-Foster of the Division of General Internal Medicine was awarded $8,000,000 in funding for a five year period from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD), a division of the NIH, to support a Comprehensive Center of Excellence in Disparities Research and Community Engagement (CEDREC), which will be a consortium between Weill Cornell Medical College, Hunter College School of Nursing, City University of New York, Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, and the Center for Healthful Behavior Change at New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Boutin-Foster is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Associate Professor of Public Health and the Nanette Laitman Clinic Scholar in Public Health/Community Health. Dr. Boutin-Foster joined our faculty in 1997 after completing residency training in Internal Medicine at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
Dr. Boutin-Foster will serve as the Director of CEDREC and Dr. Mary Charlson will serve as co-Director. The Center is composed of four cores: an Administrative Core, led by Dr. Carla Boutin-Foster; a Research Core, led by Dr. Gbenga Ogedegbe (NYU) and Dr. Alvin Mushlin; a Research Training Core, led by Dr. Mary Charlson; and a Community Engagement and Outreach Core, which will be lead by Dr. Erica Phillips-Caesar, Dr. Walid Michelen (Lincoln), Dr. Kathleen Nokes (Hunter).
The mission of CEDREC is to provide a community-academic infrastructure that integrates cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, provides strong mentorship to junior investigators, and fosters community partnerships in an effort to improve minority health and eliminate health disparities. CEDREC will initially launch two research projects focused on improving minority health in the areas of cardiovascular disease and cancer prevention. The target communities are Central Harlem and the South Bronx, where 1 in 3 residents live in poverty and where cardiovascular disease and cancer death rates are among the highest in New York City. Research conducted in the areas of hypertension and colorectal cancer will contribute to achieving the goals of the NIH strategic plan to reduce and ultimately eliminate health disparities.
CEDREC is a unique and promising addition to research in the Department of Medicine, as it targets hard to reach populations; utilizes non-traditional venues; and translates basic science theories to understanding and developing solutions to pressing public health issues. With the establishment of the Center, a new website will soon be launched, and will serve as a hub for the consortium's activities and provide information to patients, students, and health professionals.