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- People at CIRA
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CIRA Bids Farewell to Elaine O'Keefe and Welcomes New Executive Director

Elaine O'Keefe (pictured left) has stepped down as Executive Director of CIRA after eleven years with the Center. During her tenure, CIRA successfully competed for renewal funding from NIMH in 2012 and again in 2017. Replacing Elaine is CIRA's new Executive Director, Sharon Mierzwa (pictured right), who joined the leadership team on July 29, 2019. Sharon is an accomplished public health professional with extensive experience developing and executing public health projects and initiatives, procuring and managing grants, leading comprehensive strategic planning efforts, and conducting outcomes evaluations. We look forward to continuing CIRA's important work with Sharon's guidance.

More from CIRA

Yale Expert to Study Opioid Treatments Among Individuals Involved with the Criminal Justice System

Yale School of Medicine researchers will lead one of the sites in a large study designed to reduce opioid overdoses. Dr. Sandra Springer is one of the principal investigators of this multi-site effort supported by a major grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The grant is one of 12 forming the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN). The network will focus on finding quality treatments for opioid use disorder in criminal justice environments across the nation. The awards will total about $155 million over a multi-year period and involve 10 research institutions and two health centers to provide supportive infrastructure.

More from YaleNews

• Long-Acting Buprenorphine vs. Naltrexone Opioid Treatments in CJS-Involved Adults (1U01DA047982-01) - PIs: Joshua Lee (NYU), David Farabee (NYU), Lisa Marsch (Darmouth), Robert Schwartz (Friends Research Institute), Sandra Springer, Elizabeth Waddell (Portland State)

$5.5 Million Grant Supports Study of Model to Integrate Treatments for Opioid Addiction, Infectious Diseases

As part of a multi-site collaboration involving principal investigators from Columbia University, Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), and University of South Carolina School of Medicine-Greenville, Yale's Dr. Sandra Springer will study a new model of treatment for opioid addiction. The investigation is supported by a grant from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.

More from YaleNews

• Coordinated Medical Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder and Infectious Disease (1U01TR002763-01) - PIs: Sandra Springer, Kathleen Brady (Medical University of South Carolina), Frances Levin (Columbia), Edward Nunes (Columbia)

• WEBINAR: How to Search, Communicate, and Disseminate Your Research
  Date: Wednesday, August 21, 2:00 pm-3:00 pm
  Description: This introductory seminar explores effective search, communication, and dissemination strategies and provides an overview of resources publicly available through the National Library of Medicine for public health and health services and policy researchers to use in their work.
  Further Details
• WEBINAR: Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America - Implementation Update
  Date: August 23, 2:30 pm-3:30 pm
  Description: The webinar will provide an update on efforts to implement the Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America initiative.
  Further Details
• Yale School of Public Health Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases Seminar Series
  Date: Thursday, September 12, 12:00 pm-1:00 pm
  Location: Yale School of Public Health, LEPH 115, 60 College Street, New Haven, CT
  Speaker: Lauretta Grau, PhD, Research Scientist, Yale School of Public Health
  Title: Qualitative Findings that Shape Entry and Retention on the HIV Treatment Cascade
  Contact: Kimberly Rogers (203.785.2912 or [email protected])
  Further Details

• Bloomberg Fellows MPH and DrPH Programs
  Application Deadline: December 1, 2019
  The Bloomberg Fellows Program is a groundbreaking initiative to provide world-class public health training to individuals engaged with organizations tackling critical challenges facing the United States. Fellows receive a full scholarship to earn an MPH or DrPH degree from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  Further Details

Download a PDF compilation of active funding opportunities. Opportunities previously not listed are below.

• RWJF: Advancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Policy and Law Research
  Application Due Date: October 2, 2019 at 3:00 pm ET
  Informational webinar: September 4, 2019 at 2:30 pm ET (Registration)
  Further Details
• US Children with Perinatal HIV who were Born Internationally (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
  AIDS Application Due Date(s): November 14, 2019
  Further Details
• Reducing Stigma to Improve HIV/AIDS Prevention, Treatment and Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)
  AIDS Application Due Date(s): November 12, 2019; November 12, 2020
  Further Details
• NIDA Program Project Grant Applications (P01 Clinical Trial Optional)
  AIDS Application Due Date(s): First AIDS application is on January 7, 2020 followed by standard AIDS dates (expiration date: September 8, 2022)
  Further Details

• Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI)
  Conference dates: March 8-11, 2020 in Boston, MA
  Abstract submission dates: August 28 – September 26
  Further Details

• John E. Pachankis, Erin M. McConocha, Jesse S. Reynolds, Roxanne Winston, Oluwaseyi Adeyinka, Audrey Harkness, Charles L. Burton, Kriti Behari, Timothy J. Sullivan, Adam I. Eldahan, Denise A. Esserman, Mark L. Hatzenbuehler & Steven A. Safren , (2019) 'Project ESTEEM protocol: a randomized controlled trial of an LGBTQ-affirmative treatment for young adult sexual minority men’s mental and sexual.', BMC Public Health, 9 Aug 2019. doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7346-4
• Hayes, R.J., Donnell, D., Floyd, S., Mandla, N., Bwalya, J., Sabapathy, K., Yang, B., Phiri, M., Schaap, A., Eshleman, S.H., Piwowar-Manning, E., Kosloff, B., James, A., Skalland, T., Wilson, E., Emel, L., Macleod, D., Dunbar, R., Simwinga, M., Makola, N., Bond, V., Hoddinott, G., Moore, A., Griffith, S., Deshmane, Sista N., Vermund, S.H., El-Sadr, W., Burns, D.N., Hargreaves, J.R., Hauck, K., Fraser, C., Shanaube, K., Bock, P., Beyers, N., Ayles, H., Fidler, S.; HPTN 071 (PopART) Study Team., (2019) 'Effect of Universal Testing and Treatment on HIV Incidence - HPTN 071 (PopART).', The New England Journal of Medicine, Jul 18;381(3):207-218. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1814556.
• Yuan, T., Qian, H.Z., Wang, J., Gao, Y., Zou, H., (2019) 'Is circumcision an answer for HIV prevention in men who have sex with men? - Authors' reply.', The Lancet Global Health, Aug;7(8):e1012. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(19)30270-0.
• Rentsch, C.T., Edelman, E.J., Justice, A.C., Marshall, B.D.L., Xu, K., Smith, A.H., Crystal, S., Gaither, J.R., Gordon, A.J., Smith, R.V., Kember, R.L., Polimanti, R., Gelernter, J., Fiellin, D.A., Tate, J.P., Kranzler, H.R., Becker, W.C.; VACS Project Team., (2019) 'Patterns and Correlates of Prescription Opioid Receipt Among US Veterans: A National, 18-Year Observational Cohort Study.', AIDS and Behavior, Jul 17. doi: 10.1007/s10461-019-02608-3. [Epub ahead of print]

• New CDC Resources
  • 2017 Partner Services Annual Report
  • Fact Sheet: Understanding the HIV Care Continuum
  • Injection Practices and Sexual Behaviors Among Persons with Diagnosed HIV Infection Who Inject Drugs - United States, 2015–2017
  • Changes in HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Awareness and Use Among Men Who Have Sex with Men - 20 Urban Areas, 2014 and 2017
• Online Course: Trans 101: Transgender People in Everyday Work and Life!
  This 30-minute self-monitored course is an excellent resource for anyone interested in increasing their knowledge and awareness about the issues impacting the health and lives of transgender people.

NOTE: All times expressed in Eastern Time unless otherwise noted. All dates refer to 2019 unless otherwise noted.

Spotlight on CIRA

CIRA Cross-Core Meeting

• Meetings will resume in September.

IRM Core Qualitative Research Discussion Group (QRDG)

All meetings will be held from Noon to 1:30 pm at 135 College Street New Haven, CT (Suite 200, Room 202).

• Fri, September 20: Donna M. Cole, Ph.D., M.P.H., Simmons College - Title TBA

CIRA's Interdisciplinary Research Methods Core

• Meetings will resume in September.

International Research Interest Group (IRIG)

• Meetings will resume in September.

CIRA Peer Review Program

Are you planning to submit a grant application? Do you have a manuscript in progress? Are you working on a presentation for a conference? Increase your chances for success by having your work peer-reviewed!

Why CIRA peer review? What are the benefits?

• The spirit of our program is one of collegiality and respect; it is constructive rather than evaluative in nature
• The investigator or author receives constructive feedback from a multidisciplinary group of colleagues with relevant expertise
• It facilitates a discussion on how to communicate the content more clearly and effectively
• The process allows the investigator or author to practice how to respond to reviewer feedback
• The review sessions connect the investigator or author to a useful network for expanding knowledge and exploring potential collaborations across disciplines
• It provides input on the relevancy of the proposal/manuscript/presentation to the funding agencies/mechanisms, journals, and audience

Email Katie Doucet ([email protected]) for questions or to schedule a Peer Review session. Requests for peer review must be submitted 4 weeks prior to the requested review date.

Research Snapshot Series

CIRA's Research Snapshot series features one page summaries of completed, peer reviewed and published studies conducted by our affiliated scientists. The summaries describe the reason for the study, the key findings, and implications for practice and policy, presented in plain language. Each of the briefs also include a link to a published article in a peer reviewed journal that derives from the featured study.

If you are a CIRA Affiliate and interested in submitting a brief for publication or just want to discuss the process, contact Pete Donohue, [email protected].

FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Yale AIDS Prevention Training Program (Y-APT) and Research Education Institute for Diverse Scholars (REIDS)

CIRA has 2 fellowship programs seeking new applicants. Each program pairs fellows with a mentor from among the top HIV researchers at CIRA for a 2-year period. Review of applications will begin after the new year.

Visit the CIRA website for Eligibility Criteria and Application Requirements - http://cira.yale.edu/fellowships.