By Beth Bowling

The University of Kentucky Center of Excellence in Rural Health (CERH) has released the agenda for the fifth annual Appalachian Research Day: Come Sit on the Porch.  The one-day event, which shares results of health research conducted with communities in Appalachia, will be held Wednesday, Sept. 18 at the First Federal Center in Hazard. Registration for the event closes on Sept. 12. 

UK researchers work closely with communities throughout Appalachia to learn more about health issues and improve wellbeing. Appalachian Research Day is an opportunity to highlight community-based research that begins at the local level and builds upon relationships between people, neighborhoods and groups who have common interests and concerns.

Highlights of this year’s conference include:

• Understanding and Improving Health: Lessons from Kentucky and America’s Poorest State, by Randy Wycoff, Dean, College of Public Health, East Tennessee State University
• Health Disparities in Hard to Reach Populations: A Community Health Worker Perspective, Kentucky Homeplace CHW Panel
• A Regional Approach to Improving Health Outcomes in the Kentucky River Area Development District, Scott Lockard, director, Kentucky River District Health Department
• Leveraging Strengths and Assets to Improve Health and Well-Being in Appalachia, Mike Meit, co-director, NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
• Operation Change Perry County, featuring an Operation Change Participant Panel moderated by Keisha Hudson, research assistant, UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health

More than 20 research posters on a variety of health topics will be presented and judged. Winners will be announced during lunch.

Lunch entertainment will feature Appalachian Storytelling by drama students from Knott County High School, Johnson County High School and Hazard Independent High School.                                            

Click here to register or to view the full agenda. For more information, contact beth.bowling@uky.edu, 606-439-3557.