Today we congratulate the 10 students who have been awarded the Public Health Systems Research (PHSR) Student Scholarship to attend AcademyHealth’s PHSR Interest Group Meeting and the Annual Research Meeting in Orlando. These students demonstrate outstanding potential to contribute to the field of PHSR, and will present their research during a poster session at the PHSR Interest Group meeting. When submitting their applications, this next generation of researchers outlined how the ARM and Interest Group meeting can help achieve their goals. Their expectations are highlighted below. Maral DerSarkissian, University of California, Los Angeles:
“I hope to pursue a global public health career in academia. My interest in academia is fueled largely by my attraction to teaching, desire to conduct innovative research in collaboration with others, and my deep-rooted love for learning.”Geoffrey Hoffman, University of California, Los Angeles:
“[The meeting] represents an opportunity to explore other research involving systems-level issues affecting population health. Because the conference brings together experts from numerous fields including health economics, public health systems research, health policy, and biomedical research, ARM fosters a unique environment replete with cutting-edge research, interdisciplinary work, novel and sophisticated methods and conceptual models, and the opportunity to build partnerships.”Rachel Hogg, University of Kentucky:
“The information disseminated in posters and presentations at the meetings will increase my knowledge related to cutting-edge and innovative research and research methods, and I will be able to apply it to my own research and develop innovative and relevant research projects. It will also allow me to be a better consumer of information, and critically analyze research.”Charleen Hsuan, University of California, Los Angeles:
“Interacting with leading researchers in my field will inspire me to pursue new research questions and help me further develop lines of inquiry…As a former attorney, I am particularly interested in exploring the way public health systems interact with law, as it is an area that could yield many future research questions.”Jennifer Hunter, University of California, Berkeley:
“While I believe that a public health systems perspective has the potential to advance the field of preparedness research, I find that there are few opportunities to interact with and learn from others with similar interests within public health. I feel confident that I would greatly benefit from the opportunity to attend the Public Health Systems Research Interest Group Meeting and to hear from the thought leaders in the field.”Robyn Mobbs, University of Colorado Denver:
“There is so much great expertise and passion in this field, and I would be extremely appreciative of the opportunity to engage in it all firsthand. I feel confident in my knowledge, skills and approach, and would also be so appreciative of the opportunity to practice presenting my research to others, learning: potential areas that may need to be presented differently; possible opportunities to strengthen my design; new avenues to pursue; or even the possibility to collaborate with others in future research.”Carlo Davila Payan, Georgia Institute of Technology:
“In light of the recently approved Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, I look forward to contributing to the public health sector in further enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of their systems and operations. I want to participate in providing decision makers with the capabilities to register, track, analyze, evaluate, and improve the nation-wide health systems, their coordination, and interaction.”Kellie Penix, Georgia Southern University:
“I am excited about the opportunity to present a piece of our research and feel that this would be an experience that would further develop my ability to present and justify research for future engagements…The relationships that are made at this conference could potentially have a profound impact on my future.”Kristina Rabarison, University of Kentucky:
“I have a strong desire to be an active contributor to the evidence base in public health. Its role in translational research development helps shape evidence-based policy decisions of a more efficient and effective public health system.”Yue (Wendy) Zhong, University of Florida:
“Presenting [at the meeting] in front of the other researchers, obtaining feedback from them, and exchanging ideas with experts in related area will help me improve my work and build academic connection through networking.”We’ll follow-up with these eager scholarship winners in July to find out more about their experiences in Orlando. PHSR is a field of study that examines the organization, financing, and delivery of public health services, and the impact of these services on the health of the population. AcademyHealth nurtures this growing discipline through its PHSR Interest Group—a group of more than 2,500 researchers and policymakers interested in improving population health through evidence-based decision making. The PHSR Student Scholarship is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.