Ukraine is a newly independent state that inherited an impressive intrastructure of occupational and environmental health research institutes from the former Soviet Union. During the past 10 years, the transition from a communist to democratic, free-market society has resulted in an economic crisis that has threatened the survival of these institutes. The greatest threat has been the flight of junior and mid-level faculty from the under-funded academic sector to other industry sectors and to positions abroad. A major goal of the University of Illinois Fogarty program in Ukraine has been to sustain the capacity of several of these institutes by involving them in collaborative research efforts with funding from external agencies. A key success factor in this endeavor has been the establishment of a UIC-operated Data Management Center in the capital city of Kyiv. We have helped the Institute of Pediatrics, Obstetrics, and Gynecology initiate and carry out the European Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood in Ukraine with funding from international foundations, NIEHS, and NCHS. We have similarly engaged our partner institutes in carrying out a USAID/USEPA funded study of Environmental Pollutants and Health Status of Children under the auspices of the bi-national Kuchma-Gore Commission. Most recently our Data Center is providing data management support to the bi-national study of thyroid cancer in children following the Chernobyl reactor accident. We that believe institutional capacity-building through collaborative, in-country research is a difficult, but rewarding path to sustaining the Fogarty Center initiative.
Learning Objectives: By the end of this session participants will be able to describe current research training in occupational and environmental health in the Ukraine and discuss issues related to the sustainability of these efforts
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.