Collegiate Center Summaries

Iowa Institute of Public Health Research and Policy

The Iowa Institute of Public Health Research and Policy (IIPHRP), an Iowa Board of Regents approved institute, was established to expand the scope, scale, and impact of public health research at the University of Iowa. The IIPHRP fosters and nurtures grassroots application of cutting edge, public health research to address grand challenges in population health. The IIPHRP serves as a catalyst and creates intellectual communities that reach across disciplinary boundaries by bringing together researchers, healthcare organizations, providers, citizens, community leaders, private partners and policy makers, to help shape and inform public health policy. By bringing together the best of what we know, the IIPHRP aims to create better population health in Iowa, and across the nation.

Institute for Public Health Practice

Established in 1999, the Institute for Public Health Practice (IPHP) has developed as a central point of coordination for several related but distinct programs, projects, and centers, including the Upper Midwest Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Center and the Midwestern Public Health Training Center. At the heart of these endeavors is the goal of enhancing the public health workforce through competency-based training and community-focused collaborations.

The institute and its centers deliver training programs in collaboration with state and local public health agencies; emergency management and public safety agencies; primary care associations and their affiliated community health centers; academic partners; other health professionals; and the State Hygienic Laboratory at the University of Iowa, which serves as the official state public health laboratory.

IPHP offers a range of services including training and course development, media production and graphic design, and web development.

The institute currently administers the following centers:

Upper Midwest Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Center (UMPERLC)

Protecting the health of our communities requires a well-trained public health workforce that is able to prepare for, promptly identify, and respond to public health threats. The Iowa Center for Public Health Preparedness was established in May 2001. In September 2010, the organization became one of 14 Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Centers funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Upper Midwest Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Center (UMPERLC) works with its partners from Iowa and Nebraska to identify training needs and to create innovative training and education programs to strengthen the emergency response capacity of the public health workforce.

Midwest Public Health Training Center (MPHTC)

The Midwestern Public Health Training Center is one of 10 regional public health training centers located throughout the United States. The University of Iowa College of Public Health has housed a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded center since 2001.  The center was previously named the Upper Midwest Public Health Training Center.  MPHTC serves HRSA Region VII (Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska).  MPHTC  works with its practice and academic partners to identify training needs and develop competency-based curriculum to meet the dynamic needs of the public health workforce.  MPHTC also facilitates student placements in public health practice settings, with an emphasis on medically underserved and vulnerable populations, and faculty-student-practice partner collaborative projects.

Center for Public Health Statistics

The Center for Public Health Statistics (CPHS) was established in March 1999 under the strategic plan for the University of Iowa College of Public Health. Administratively designated as a collegiate center, the CPHS functions collaboratively with collegiate departments and centers, university groups, and outside entities in fulfillment of its mission.

The mission of the center is to (1) collect, analyze, and disseminate public health data in relation to the research, teaching, and service missions of the College of Public Health, (2) develop collaborative relationships in the area of public health statistics, and (3) represent the College of Public Health to the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) with respect to issues involving public health data.

The CPHS takes the lead for the college in producing the biennial edition of the Iowa Health Fact Book and has responsibility for the UI/Wellmark Data Repository. The Iowa Health Fact Book is a compilation of county-specific health indicators, health resources, and facts of interest to public health professionals in Iowa, produced in partnership with the IDPH. The UI/Wellmark Data Repository is a longitudinal database of administrative health insurance claim records.

The CPHS works collaboratively with the IDPH across the state on screening programs for cardiovascular disease and breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer targeted to low-income Iowans. In addition, the center is actively engaged in research projects in several areas of public health, providing biostatistical expertise and data analysis support.