New PAHO/WHO Collaborating Centers

Several new Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) Collaborating Centers have become active during the first half of 2005. Collaborating centers support the work of PAHO and WHO, working in priority areas of the organizations. More new centers will be reported in the next edition of PAHO Today.

The Center for Law and the Public's Health at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., has been named PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights. It will serve as an international leader and resource for promoting the role of law and human rights in public health and improving knowledge and understanding of the intersection of public health law and human rights through research, policy development, and scholarship.

The Center for Genetics and Global Health at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in New York has been named PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center in Community Genetics and Education. The center will conduct research and education on the ethical applications of genetic technology to public health, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The University of Texas Medical Branch (USA) has been named a PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center on Aging and Health. The center will work to improve the health of Hispanic older adults through collaborative research, education, and clinical training. The center will also offer a visiting scholars program.

St. Louis University's Prevention Research Center (Missouri, USA) has been named a PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center for Evidence-Based Chronic Disease Prevention. The new center will undertake research projects and train scientists on how to conduct evidence-based research to prevent and control diseases such as obesity, cancer, and type 2 diabetes.

The Dengue Laboratory of the Kouri Institute of Tropical Medicine in Havana, Cuba, has been named PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center for the Study and Control of Dengue. The center will conduct research, training, and laboratory activities to assist PAHO and its member countries with efforts to control dengue.

The McLaughlin Center for Population Health Risk Assessment at the University of Ottawa (Canada) has been named PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center for Population Health Risk Assessment. It will conduct research and promote dialogue on the long-term health effects of air pollution and radiation, with a focus on South America. It will also promote research and training in risk assessment and risk perception and communication.

The Department of Community Health and Psychiatry at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica has been named PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center for Aging and Health. It will promote collaborative research, provide training, and develop policies and programs to meet the challenge of population aging in the Caribbean.