November 13, 2020 - IU Research Impact: COVID-19 update

Thanks for reading, see you in 2021!

When we launched this email update in April, we did so urgently, wanting to share crucial information about the wide range of important and useful work being carried out by IU faculty to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

As 2020 nears its close, the pandemic has become a fact of our lives, and some 900,000 emails later, this newsletter has built a regular readership. The time seems right to transition this newsletter to cover not only work related to the pandemic and COVID-19, but also the breadth of IU's diverse research enterprise.

After today's newsletter, we'll be taking a break until early February 2021. We'll return then with a new version of IU Research Impact including stories about IU's myriad research and creative activities. In the meantime, please watch your email for news of the release of IU's 2019-20 Annual Report, which sums up the remarkable activities of IU faculty, scholars, artists, and researchers in a year like no other.

Thanks for reading, and see you next year!

Will people be willing to get a COVID-19 vaccine? Communication matters.

A COVID-19 vaccine will likely be the beginning of the end of the pandemic, making communication about its value and risks extremely critical. IU researchers are studying how best to tailor vaccine communication to assist public health departments, healthcare systems, colleges and others in spreading the word.

Read more about communication and public opinion on the COVID-19 vaccine

Training National Guard to help nursing homes battle COVID-19

As COVID-19 continues its spread in nursing homes, the National Guard is being sent to facilities across the state to help with infection control, cleaning and other non-clinical tasks. An IU School of Medicine professor led the training for hundreds of Indiana National Guard soldiers as they prepared to support nursing homes amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more about the National Guard helping nursing homes battle COVID-19

Fever scans may not help stop the spread of COVID-19

With little data on whether people with mild COVID-19 symptoms have fevers, plus many asymptomatic carriers, fever screening may be giving people a false sense of security when it comes to slowing the spread, according to a recent IU study.

Read more about fever scans and their effectiveness in stopping the spread

Partnering in a national COVID-19 data effort

Coronavirus testing is yielding vast amounts of data that may hold answers to better treatments. Regenstrief Institute, a key IU research partner, is serving as the "Honest Data Broker" for the National COVID Cohort Collaborative to create and safely share comprehensive datasets.

Read more about the national COVID-19 data effort

Featured Expert

Disparities in health care have come into clear focus during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gerardo Maupomé is currently co-leading Hispanic COVID-19, or H-COVID, a new survey to provide insight on key areas of the COVID-19 experience for Hispanics. An expert on the public health challenges faced by Hispanic residents in Indiana, Maupomé serves as associate dean of research at the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, is a professor with the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, and is also an associate director with the Indiana CTSI Community Health Partnerships.

Learn more about featured expert, Gerardo Maupomé

Gerardo Maupomé

COVID-19 Funding Opportunities

The National Institutes of Health Notice of Special Interest regarding research relevant relevant to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 continues to accept applications on a rolling basis through March 31, 2021. The NOSI expires on April, 1, 2021. This NOSI encourages urgent competitive supplements and administrative supplements to existing longitudinal studies that address key social and behavioral questions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including adherence to and transmission mitigation from various containment and mitigation efforts; social, behavioral, and economic impacts from these containment and mitigation efforts; and health impacts resulting from these social, behavioral, and economic impacts. Application budgets are generally limited to no more than $100,000 direct costs per year.

Resources

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