11/14/16  Portland, Ore.

Congratulations to MinKyoung Song, Ph.D., R.N., F.N.P.-B.C. and Darcy Mize, Ed.D., M.S.N., R.N. as the 2016 recipients of the annual Faculty Hartford Award for Research and Practice (HARP).

Approval of their proposals was based upon external reviews, with Dean Susan Bakewell-Sachs making the final funding decisions.

MinKyoung Song's feasibility study, "Healthy Grandparents, Healthy Grandkids!" is an important first step in laying the groundwork for a large scale study.

In the words of one reviewer, "Grandparents raising grandchildren is most definitely an under-researched population especially family-focused interventions focusing on decreasing risk factors [such as obesity]…"

Darcy Mize, Clinical Assistant Professor at our Klamath Falls campus, will conduct an exploratory method of qualitative description to gather information directly from older adults in rural Oregon. "The Meaning of Health and Health Care for Older Adults in Rural Oregon" will not only inform the healthcare community, but has the potential to benefit the study's participants by exposing the nature of their healthcare disparities.

The HARP program supports faculty at OHSU's School of Nursing with pilot and/or feasibility projects that will contribute to the long-term goal of improving the care of older adults through nursing science and practice improvement. Core values of HARP include innovation, accountability for outcomes, and a plan to leverage these funds into sustainable programs of research or sustainable practice improvements.