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<strong>The 'SMART Steps' Project on Improving Diabetes Self-Management for High Risk Patients with Diabetes</strong> is an evaluation of a large automated telephone self-management/health IT initiative at the San Francisco Health Plan among 500 English, Chinese, and Spanish speaking patients with diabetes. The evaluation will focus on the effects of health IT on both patient-centered and clinical through a “real-world” effectiveness study, as well as explore impacts on patient safety. <strong>SMART Steps Team:</strong> Judy Quan, PhD; Margaret Handley, PhD, MPH; Dean Schillinger, MD; Tony Feng; Catalina Soria; Urmimala Sarkar, MD, MPH; Helen Lee

<strong>The Adaptation of the Coronary Heart Disease Policy Model to US Subpopulations project</strong> will adapt an established, validated computer simulation of heart disease in US adults (the CHD Policy Model) to describe differences by race/ethnicity in California and the US in order to examine disease trends in obesity and the impact of public health interventions on US Subpopulations. <strong>Pictured:</strong> Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, MAS with patient

<strong>Strengthening Indigenous Food Identity and Minimizing Chronic Disease Risk Among Transnational Oaxacan Communities.</strong> The goals of this project are to conduct a mixed methods assessment to identify potential protective components to the Oaxacan traditional diet that can be integrated into binational disease prevention efforts.

<strong>The Role of Food Insecurity as a Mediator of Socioeconomic Disparities in Health project</strong> aims to establish the extent to which food insecurity is related to the incidence of obesity, pre-diabetes, and diabetes among young adults, and establish the extent to which food insecurity predisposes adults with diabetes to poor diabetes control.

Welcome

The UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at San Francisco General Hospital carries out innovative research to prevent and treat chronic disease in populations for whom social conditions often conspire to both promote various chronic diseases and make their management more challenging. Founded in 2006, the CVP is based within the UCSF Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine and is located on the campus of San Francisco General Hospital. Beyond the local communities it serves, CVP is nationally and internationally known for its research in health communication and health policy to reduce health disparities, with special expertise in the social determinants of health, including literacy, food policy, poverty, and minority status, with a focus on the clinical conditions of pre-diabetes, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

Consuming Only a Little Less Salt per Day Could Mean Fewer Heart Attacks, Deaths

Kirsten Bibbins Domingo New research from the CVP indicates reducing salt in the American diet by about ½ teaspoon (or about 3 grams) per day could prevent nearly 100,000 heart attacks and 92,000 deaths each year. These benefits are on par with the benefits from reductions in smoking and could save the U.S. up to $24 billion in healthcare costs. Click here for the joint UCSF and Columbia University press release and additional New York Times coverage.

Citation:
Bibbins-Domingo K, Chertow GM, Coxson PG, Moran AE, Lightwood JM, Pletcher MJ, Goldman L. Projected effect of dietary salt reductions on future cardiovascular disease. N Eng J Med 2010, Feb 18;362(7):650-2.

Updates

Hilary Seligman MD, MAS developed an issues brief for the California Diabetes Program entitled Food Insecurity and Diabetes Prevention and Control in California. » Read more

New Institute of Medicine Report recommends tighter regulation of dietary salt.» Read more

Washington Post: FDA readies first legal limits on amount of salt in foods. » Read more

The 2009 CVP Annual Report is now available! » Click here

CVP faculty members, Urmimala Sarkar, MD, MPH, Margaret Handley, PhD, Hilary Seligman, MD, MAS and Dean Schillinger, MD published an article in the Quality and Safety in Health Care journal. » Read more

CVP Predicts Future Economic and Health Burdens Related to Adolescent Overweight. » Read more

CVP Co-Director Invited as Visiting Professor at University of Texas Health Science Center. » Read more

CVP Director Receives 14th Annual George Engel Award. » Read more

CVP Faculty Member Joins National Patient Safety Advisory Council. » Read more

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UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations

at San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center

Welcome

Consuming Only a Little Less Salt per Day Could Mean Fewer Heart Attacks, Deaths

Updates