Center for Population Health Research to Open at Orlando’s Adventist University of Health Sciences

December 6, 2016:    A Center for Population Health Research will soon open at Adventist University of Health Sciences in Orlando (ADU).

The idea behind population health research is to widen study beyond the health needs of an individual, with researchers instead looking at the health of an entire population.

This big picture approach is said to allow for more effective long-term planning and for lifting the overall health of a community.

Dr. Russ Butler, a professor of biology at ADU, will head research at the new center. He has many years of experience in the field of population health research.

Healthcare Finance News, the premier news platform for healthcare industry news, reports that ADU students and faculty will employ geographic information systems technologies to do medical geography research (the study of geographical factors related to health.)

Concretely, this approach to health research is allowing Butler and his students to study water quality in the nearby community of Bithlo in an effort to raise overall population health there.

Dr. David Greenlaw, president of ADU, said the institution’s goal with the center is “to give our students and faculty the very best resources to nurture personal and professional growth, and with this new research center they will be given the opportunity to produce results that will offer a positive impact on the community they serve.”