We are thrilled to have launched the LCIRN Scholars Program in July 2021. The program aims to support early-career researchers to incorporate life intervention research concepts, methods, and skills into their work to promote health and well-being across the lifespan. Scholars will receive training, mentorship, and funds to develop a pilot project in their area of interest. Each scholar will also be embedded in one of the LCIRN research nodes for additional support and opportunities for collaboration. We are learning as we go with this new endeavor, and hope to build this into a flexible and transformative program for life course scholars of varying stages and skill sets.

The first phase of training includes 3 months of life course theory and concepts, featuring many of our node leaders and network members as guest teachers. Scholars will also have some opportunities for in-depth skills building around statistical methods with Todd Little. During this time, scholars will receive regular mentorship and will begin to develop their pilot projects.

Due to COVID, we made the decision to make the program entirely virtual. This allowed us to welcome an outstanding group of eight scholars from all over the country. These scholars come from disciplines including public health, social work, psychology, education, and medicine, and they bring diverse research and practice experience to their study of life course health development and its application to interventions. With interests ranging the spectrum from primary care to social emotional well-being, mother-infant relationships to civic engagement, these scholars are already making big impacts, and we’re honored to be a part of their journeys.

Click here to meet all of our Scholars!

ADHD is one of the most common chronic conditions affecting 8-10% children in the US¹. Data indicate the incidence and prevalence are increasing, for reasons that are unknown. ADHD persists into adulthood in at least 30% cases, with 56% having one or more additional psychiatric diagnoses, and with greater risks for incarceration, substance use and premature mortality^2,3. Overall, approximately 6% of children in the US are being treated with stimulant medication, while almost one quarter of children diagnosed with ADHD are not receiving treatment either with medication or counseling.

There is an urgent need to find new ways to diagnose, manage and treat ADHD, and to prevent negative sequelae^4,5. The Life Course Health Development (LCHD) model seeks to explain how health develops over a person’s lifetime shifting the emphasis of clinical practice from the treatment of established disorders to more effective prevention and intervention strategies focused on optimizing the development of health. Applying the LCHD model to the study of ADHD opens new avenues for understanding its etiology and guiding its management. In terms of resource allocation, it attempts to overcome the folly inherent in trying to improve health later in life while ignoring influences operating during the early years.

In May 2021, the LCIRN hosted more than 20 researchers, practitioners, and policy makers for a virtual brainstorming session on new approaches. Led by Drs. Nate Blum and Bill Barbaresi, the meeting asked 3 big questions:

We are excited to continue the conversation this fall with additional meetings to begin to build a research agenda for a new ADHD node that will be co-developed with DBPNet and potentially other MCHB research networks. We want to approach ADHD in a life-course oriented way, better mobilizing resources in a child’s ecosystem and deploying them in a way that builds more supportive pathways to optimize healthy development.