What if we had a systematic approach to bringing research findings to on-the-ground settings around the world? What if we could ensure that research findings did more than just populate academic journals, and in fact, improved health for millions of people?

The Department of Global Health awarded 30 international travel fellowships this spring to support the projects and research of graduate and professional students and medical residents at UW for the next academic year. Students from varied disciplines across the University, including global health, social work, psychology, and pharmacy, will travel to 16 countries pursuing fieldwork experience. Projects range from implementing a harm-reduction program in Vietnam to developing evaluation tools for emergency medical and trauma response systems in sub-Saharan Africa.

By Leila Gray

Insect-transmitted viruses, like Powassan and West Nile, which can attack the brain in some cases, are becoming a growing public health concern. Medical scientists are trying to understand how brain cells try to fend off invading viruses.

Recently they have learned that, in a turnabout, a biochemical self-destruct trigger found in many other types of cells appears to guard the lives of brain cells during infection with West Nile virus. 

By Victor Balta, UW News and Information

The University of Washington Board of Regents on Thursday approved the location for construction of a new building to house the UW’s Population Health Initiative. The centrally located site will bring together the work of the UW’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, Department of Global Health and parts of the School of Public Health while creating easy access for collaborators from other departments across campus and guests from around the world.