Southwest Health Engagement and Research Collaborative (SHERC)

The overall goal of the Southwest Health Engagement and Research Collaborative (SHERC) is to increase basic biomedical, clinical, and behavioral research at Northern Arizona University (NAU) to address health issues among populations of the southwestern United States. In the next 5 years, we will increase research capacity especially in the areas of clinical and translational research with a focus on team science. SHERC will work closely with community partners to expand capacity to address multiple chronic and infectious diseases, as well as high-priority behavioral health conditions, as determined by community partners. SHERC consists of 5 cores that all interact synergistically. Each of the SHERC cores provides a clear opportunity for innovation individually; in combination, they demonstrate significant impact in innovation. The Administrative Core combines evidence-based organizational theory with a tested but novel use of a “continuous improvement” model of program assessment and feedback. The innovative Core Leadership Development Program will cultivate a new cadre of mentored research leaders. The Research Capacity Core focuses on enhancing translational, data, and clinical science, and simultaneously aims to grow the use of novel laboratory technologies, cutting-edge community-engaged methods and models, biostatistics, interinstitutional collaborations, and support of relevant NAU core research facilities. The Investigator Development Core will support early-stage investigators in basic biomedical, behavioral, and clinical sciences at NAU through 2 programs: a Pilot Project Program and an Individualized Mentoring Program. The Community Engagement Core uses an innovative 4-direction Framework for Inquiry and Action. The Recruitment Core aims to recruit 2 mid-level or senior faculty members with established health research programs to fill gaps in institutional expertise; to support the new hires in establishing collaborative and independent health research programs at NAU; and to integrate them into SHERC as collaborators, mentors, and leaders. The 3 Research Projects include the following innovative studies: Project 1 (Camplain) addresses physical activity and sedentary behavior and their impact on health outcomes among incarcerated people in Arizona. Project 2 (Cope) focuses on childhood asthma and aims to determine the effect of a gut microbiome modifying therapy (fiber supplementation) to improve type-2 asthma symptoms by reducing airway inflammation via the gut microbiome-airway axis. Project 3 (Mihaljevic) will develop and operationalize modeling tools that allow us to rapidly improve the design and implementation of spatial epidemiological models of respiratory illnesses that are informed by local-level geographic and demographic features.