Global Innovation Fund Awards
The UW Office of Global Affairs has awarded $363,300 to 40 outstanding projects, sparking transformative global collaborations and advancing interdisciplinarity across the University of Washington.
Department of Medicine recipients
Analyzing cancer care navigation and cancer outcomes in rural Guatemala
Drs. Daniel Olivieri, R3, and Manoj Menon, associate professor (Hematology and Oncology)
Background
Cancer is the leading cause of death in Guatemala. Key drivers of morbidity and mortality include insufficient access to care and unstructured cancer care navigation. Such disparities are magnified among rural and indigenous populations, who face significant geographic and sociolinguistic barriers.
Wuqu’ Kawoq/Maya Health Alliance is a local non-governmental research and clinical organization based in Tecpán, Guatemala that aims to reduce barriers to care through innovative cancer care navigator programs.
This project would lay the groundwork for future collaborations and grant applications outside of UW. U.S.-based researchers at Wuqu’ Kawoq/Maya Health Alliance are also affiliated with the University of Michigan and Havard Medical School, among other institutions. Guatemala-based researchers are primarily affiliated with Wuqu’ Kawoq/Maya Health Alliance and Instituto de Nutrición de Centro América y Panamá (INCAP).
Building robust models of conservative kidney management
Dr. Susan Wong, associate professor (Nephrology)
Background
Conservative kidney management (CKM) is a planned, proactive, and palliative approach to caring for patients with kidney failure who do not wish to undergo dialysis or are unlikely to benefit from this therapy.
While CKM programs in the US are still in their infancy, the United Kingdom (UK) has a number of visionary programs that have set the benchmark for CKM practices worldwide. The aim is to identify the factors that support sustainability and scalability of CKM programs in the UK.
Safer Anesthesia from Education in Kenya: UW-Global Anesthesia INitiative and a Multi-Collaboration Approach
Dr. Carey Farquhar, professor of medicine (Allergy and Infectious Diseases) and global health, and collaborators in the UW Dept. of Anesthesia.
Background
Established last year, UW Global Anesthesia INitiative (UW-GAIN) unites over 50 UW Department of Anesthesiology faculty members, with expertise in education, curriculum development, and quality improvement in global health.
UW-GAIN is excited to build on this by developing a new curriculum focused on anesthesia knowledge and skill acquisition to improve safe surgery. Partnering with the University of Nairobi Department of Anesthesiology will strengthen the larger anesthesia educational community in Kenya.
An innovative, multi-collaboration approach offers UW faculty and students to teach/learn alongside University of Nairobi / Naivasha Hospital colleagues for every intended curriculum outcome. This represents a bidirectional global partnership, while forming inter- and intra-departmental bonds within our own university, that will promote sustainable growth in our work forward.