Interdisciplinary Research Group Pools Forces in Fight against HIV/AIDS The Interdisciplinary Sexual Health and HIV Research group (INSHHR) at the School of Nursing pools together and leverages the diversity, creativity, experience, and skills of investigators across disciplines to conduct research aimed at improving sexual health and HIV-related outcomes. Founded in 2015, the group grew to nine members in 2019, including postdocs Chen Zhang and Amy Braksmajer, associate professor Jim McMahon, and assistant professor Natalie Leblanc.
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he University of Rochester has long been on the front lines of the fight against HIV/AIDS, dating back to the earliest days of the epidemic. Michael Gottlieb ’73M, identified the first cases of AIDS in 1981, and within six years of that discovery Rochester’s first HIV clinic was established at the UR Medical Center (URMC). Today, the University of Rochester’s Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) is one of only 19 such centers established by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and attracts more than $10 million annually in NIH funding. Designated one of URMC’s Areas of Excellence, the CFAR has more than 120 members across six schools and institutes and serves as an anchor for HIV/AIDS researchers, providing leadership and
infrastructure within the University to create interdisciplinary collaborations to foster high-impact research results. On a smaller scale, the same thing is happening at the School of Nursing. Its Interdisciplinary Sexual Health and HIV Research (INSHHR) group pulls together investigators from across the school, leveraging their varied experiences, backgrounds, and skills to boost the impact of research aimed at improving sexual health and HIV-related outcomes. In just a few short years, membership in the group has grown to nine members – the largest group of HIV investigators working in behavioral or population health – and it accounts for approximately 15 percent of all HIV-related funding at the University. Not a bad return for a modest 2015 NURSING 2019 Volume 1 19
