Dr. David Savitz, Brown University, Associate Dean For Research, Professor of Epidemiology, Obstetrics & Gynecology, and Pediatrics
"Reproductive Epidemiology and Demography: Contrasting and Complementary Perspectives."
One of the distinctive contributions of population centers is bringing social scientists and public health researchers together around shared interests in population health. While the academic roots and cultures for such scholars are distinctive, including demography and epidemiology, there has been a growing appreciation for the joint contribution that can be made by their integration. In this presentation, I will examine some of the important contrasts in perspective, ways that differences may be complementary to one another, and offer some suggestions for strengthening the joint contributions in training and research. Contrasting perspectives include the underlying motivation for research (advancing knowledge or improving health), the emphasis on theory versus pragmatism, interest in large-scale phenomena versus rare health events, the importance of representativeness, the differing paths for funding research through NIH, and analytic methods from economics versus biostatistics. Convergence of perspectives has increased in the past decade with the notable rise in social epidemiology, integration of tools from biomedical sciences into population research, a shared commitment to informing public policy, and the development of large and comprehensive research platforms such as the Adolescent Health Study. Given the prominence of population centers for training, there is a clear opportunity to enhance cross-disciplinary experiences. Integrated pursuit of major societal challenges such as opioids, obesity, mental health, and discrimination through jointly conceived and executed research programs offers promise of advancing understanding and identifying effective tools for intervention at all levels – public policy, the health care system, and through individual action.
The City of Columbus and Franklin County are currently recommending masking indoors after the CDC upgraded the county to a “high” COVID-19 community level. IPR strongly encourages masks at all events.
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