The US Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Community Living awarded a 5-year $4.4M grant to The Ohio State University Nisonger Center, part of the Wexner Medical Center and Ohio State’s Neurological Institute; Can You Hear Me Now? Listening to People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Health Research. This grant, in collaboration with key stakeholders, will establish a Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) to improve the health and function of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“The Nisonger Center is a national innovator in research to help improve the quality of life of people with disabilities. This extremely competitive award further galvanizes Ohio State’s reputation as a national leader on health and function for people with intellectual disability and related neurodevelopmental disorders,” said Dr. K. Craig Kent, Dean of the Ohio State College of Medicine.
“This award to establish a national Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Health and Function for people with Intellectual Disability will help fund the development of a body of research that will improve the long-term health-related function and quality of life for adults with intellectual disability. This research will develop evidenced-based technologies to allow this underserved and under-studied population to speak for themselves in health research, determine the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and health outcomes in this vulnerable population, and develop best practice guidelines for clinical evaluation and intervention. To ensure the quality and relevance of our work, we will partner with people with intellectual disability and related neurodevelopmental disorders using principles of participatory action research to emerge as a national leader and resource on health and function for people with intellectual disability and related neurodevelopmental disorders.”
Susan M. Havercamp, PhD
Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Genetic Counseling
Director, Health Promotion & Healthcare Parity/Behavior Support Services
The Ohio State University Nisonger Center
“This award is momentous for supporting what may be the single venue in disabilities research that engages two panels of experts–one to reflect and articulate the lived experience, and the other to disentangle the thorniest conceptual and methodological research problems– in understanding and measuring mental health of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.”
Gloria Krahn, PhD, MPH
Barbara Emily Knudson Endowed Chair in Family Policy Studies
Director of Strategic Initiatives
Oregon State University