TY - JOUR
T1 - “UHAND”—A National Cancer Institute Funded Partnership to Advance Cancer Health Equity through Scholar Training
AU - Haq, Arooba A.
AU - Reitzel, Lorraine R.
AU - Chen, Tzuan A.
AU - Chang, Shine
AU - Escoto, Kamisha H.
AU - Solari Williams, Kayce D.
AU - Roberson, Crystal
AU - Koshy, Litty
AU - McNeill, Lorna H.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2021/5/2
Y1 - 2021/5/2
N2 - Black and Hispanic adults are disproportionately affected by cancer incidence and mor-tality, and experience disparities in cancer relative to their White counterparts in the US. These groups, including women, are underrepresented among scientists in the fields of cancer, cancer dis-parities, and cancer care. The “UHAND” Program is a partnership between institutions (University of Houston and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center) aiming to build the capacity of underrepresented and racial/ethnic minority student “scholars” to conduct research on eliminat-ing cancer inequities by reducing social and physical risk factors among at-risk groups. Here, we examine the outcomes of the UHAND Program’s first scholar cohort (n = 1 postdoctoral fellow, n = 3 doctoral scholars, n = 6 undergraduate scholars). Data collection included baseline, mid-program, and exit surveys; program records; and monthly scholar achievement queries. From baseline to exit, scholars significantly increased their research self-efficacy (p = 0.0293). Scholars largely met goals for academic products, achieving a combined total of 65 peer-reviewed presentations and nine empirical publications. Eight scholars completed the 2-year program; one undergraduate scholar re-ceived her degree early and the postdoctoral fellow accepted a tenure-track position at another university following one year of training. Scholars highly rated UHAND’s programming and their mentors’ competencies in training scholars for research careers. Additionally, we discuss lessons learned that may inform future training programs.
AB - Black and Hispanic adults are disproportionately affected by cancer incidence and mor-tality, and experience disparities in cancer relative to their White counterparts in the US. These groups, including women, are underrepresented among scientists in the fields of cancer, cancer dis-parities, and cancer care. The “UHAND” Program is a partnership between institutions (University of Houston and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center) aiming to build the capacity of underrepresented and racial/ethnic minority student “scholars” to conduct research on eliminat-ing cancer inequities by reducing social and physical risk factors among at-risk groups. Here, we examine the outcomes of the UHAND Program’s first scholar cohort (n = 1 postdoctoral fellow, n = 3 doctoral scholars, n = 6 undergraduate scholars). Data collection included baseline, mid-program, and exit surveys; program records; and monthly scholar achievement queries. From baseline to exit, scholars significantly increased their research self-efficacy (p = 0.0293). Scholars largely met goals for academic products, achieving a combined total of 65 peer-reviewed presentations and nine empirical publications. Eight scholars completed the 2-year program; one undergraduate scholar re-ceived her degree early and the postdoctoral fellow accepted a tenure-track position at another university following one year of training. Scholars highly rated UHAND’s programming and their mentors’ competencies in training scholars for research careers. Additionally, we discuss lessons learned that may inform future training programs.
KW - Cancer disparities
KW - Cancer health equity
KW - Educational training program
KW - Minorities
KW - UHAND Program
KW - Women
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85105462311&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85105462311&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/ijerph18105054
DO - 10.3390/ijerph18105054
M3 - Article
C2 - 34064663
AN - SCOPUS:85105462311
SN - 1661-7827
VL - 18
JO - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
JF - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
IS - 10
M1 - 5054
ER -