Hari Sharma, assistant professor of Health Management and Policy, has been named the recipient of the 2019 College of Public Health New Faculty Research Award.

The award was established by the college to assist newly appointed or junior faculty in collecting preliminary data or pilot studies leading to larger projects.

The awards are based on scientific merit — including originality, relevance to the UI public health mission, and likelihood of subsequent extramural funding.

Sharma’s interests focus on health economics, costs, quality, disparities, and nursing homes. Sharma’s project, “Staff Turnover in Nursing Homes – A Study of Iowa Nursing Homes,” will examine staff turnover in nursing homes across Iowa. Staff turnover is a major problem for healthcare providers including nursing homes. It is particularly problematic for states such as Iowa, where approximately 70 percent of the counties saw a decline in population from 2010 to 2018.