November 17, 2023 | Jennifer Gonzales
The Institute of Human Virology (IHV) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) received an annual award for $3 million funded by the NIH Office of AIDS Research. The PFAP award is projected to total approximately $9 million over four years. Principal Investigators are Elana Rosenthal, MD and Sarah Kattakuzhy, MD, MPH.
The “Research Initiative on Infectious Disease and Substance Use (RIIS)” is a unique Baltimore and DC Based clinical care and research program at the IHV with the
primary purpose to explore the intersection of infections and substance use in marginalized populations. RIIS grew out of the DC Partnership for HIV AIDS Progress (PFAP), a local-federal partnership funded by the NIH Office of AIDS Research and established in 2009 to support multidisciplinary efforts to respond to HIV in the region.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have the support of the Office of AIDS Research to continue this endeavor. PFAP funding allows us to maintain an exemplary team of clinicians, study coordinators, and research assistants who literally meet patients where they are,” said Elana Rosenthal, MD, DC RIIS Director. “It is due to the commitment of our team members to these patient populations, and our amazing community partners - like HIPS and Baltimore Safe Haven - that we are able to conduct research that not only engages marginalized patients but is also directly responsive to their unmet needs.”
With the support of PFAP funding, RIIS has developed multiple community based clinical care and
research sites across the Washington, DC and Baltimore, Maryland region, accessing marginalized patient populations including people with HIV, people who inject drugs, gender and sexual minority individuals, people with unstable housing, and those who engage in sex work.
“The foundation of our research program is our partnership with community-based sites that provide culturally competent and relevant services,” said Sarah Kattakuzhy, MD, MPH, Baltimore RIIS Director. “By accessing patients at sites outside of traditional healthcare settings, we can directly engage individuals who would normally not be represented in research.“
“This program is an impressive example of how both innovation and implementation research can be used to improve public health outcomes,” said Henry Masur, MD, Chief, Critical Care Medicine Department at NIH Clinical Care Center. “This program has had a major impact on reducing the burden of HIV on Washington, D.C. by focusing on how to encourage the most marginalized populations to access and remain in care.”
Through this program, over 1,600 patients with HIV and hepatitis C virus have been linked to care and over 1,100 patients cured of hepatitis C. Further, hundreds of patients have been engaged in HIV treatment and prevention, gender affirming care, medication for opioid use disorder, STI testing and treatment and more. The PFAP award will enable ongoing support of this program.
“Investigators at IHV conduct state of the art research in improving the well-being of individuals afflicted with chronic viral infections. There is none more relevant and treasured by me than our efforts to reach and benefit marginalized communities” said Shyamasundaran Kottilil, MD, PhD, Interim IHV Director and Director of the Division of Clinical Care and Research. “During the past 14 years, PFAP has engaged community leaders and providers in Washington, DC and Baltimore to implement innovative care models for the most needful in our community. The work led by Drs. Rosenthal and Kattakuzhy are commendable and well deserved to be recognized by the large NIH funding.”
Because of the financial support from the PFAP award, researchers at RIIS continue to acquire insight into at-risk demographics and obstacles to healthcare access. The patient-centered approach to enhance the provision of care and foster collaborative translational research alongside clinical practice benefits healthcare in the Baltimore and Washington D.C. area.
The research project reported in this press release is supported by the Office of AIDS Research at National Institutes of Health under award number 75N90022C00017. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
About the Institute of Human Virology
Formed in 1996 as a partnership between the State of Maryland, the City of Baltimore, the University System of Maryland, and the University of Maryland Medical System, the IHV is an institute of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and is home to some of the most globally recognized and world-renowned experts in all of virology. The IHV combines the disciplines of basic research, epidemiology, and clinical research in a concerted effort to speed the discovery of diagnostics and therapeutics for a wide variety of chronic and deadly viral and immune disorders, most notably HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. For more information, visit ihv.org and follow us on Twitter @IHVmaryland.
About the University of Maryland School of Medicine
Now in its third century, the University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 as the first public medical school in the United States. It continues today as one of the fastest growing, top-tier biomedical research enterprises in the world -- with 46 academic departments, centers, institutes, and programs, and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians, scientists, and allied health professionals, including members of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences, and a distinguished two-time winner of the Albert E. Lasker Award in Medical Research. With an operating budget of more than $1.3 billion, the School of Medicine works closely in partnership with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide research-intensive, academic and clinically based care for nearly 2 million patients each year. The School of Medicine has nearly $600 million in extramural funding, with most of its academic departments highly ranked among all medical schools in the nation in research funding. As one of the seven professional schools that make up the University of Maryland, Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine has a total population of nearly 9,000 faculty and staff, including 2,500 students, trainees, residents, and fellows. The combined School of Medicine and Medical System (“University of Maryland Medicine”) has an annual budget of over $6 billion and an economic impact of nearly $20 billion on the state and local community. The School of Medicine, which ranks as the 8th highest among public medical schools in research productivity (according to the Association of American Medical Colleges profile) is an innovator in translational medicine, with 606 active patents and 52 start-up companies. In the latest U.S. News & World Report ranking of the Best Medical Schools, published in 2021, the UM School of Medicine is ranked #9 among the 92 public medical schools in the U.S., and in the top 15 percent (#27) of all 192 public and private U.S. medical schools. The School of Medicine works locally, nationally, and globally, with research and treatment facilities in 36 countries around the world. Visit medschool.umaryland.edu
Contact
Institute of Human Virology
Jennifer Gonzales
Public Relations & Communications Manager
jennifer.gonzales@ihv.umaryland.edu
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