University at Buffalo Nursing Faculty Receive Funding for Interdisciplinary Research Projects

Two faculty members from the University at Buffalo (UB) School of Nursing have received awards to help fund interdisciplinary research projects in the areas of access to health care for low-income cancer patients and weight loss following bariatric surgery.

Darryl Somayaji, PhD, assistant professor in the UB School of Nursing, received a $50,000 grant from the UB Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) Pilot Studies Program to lead an investigation of health outcomes for lung cancer patients and survivors on Medicaid. The CTSI Pilot Studies Program provides funding to nursing faculty to help advance new technologies and treatments from conceptual stage to clinical study.

Somayaji’s study will look at health care patterns to determine if guidelines for timely diagnosis and treatment are being met, and if access to care has an impact on patient mortality. Her research will help improve health care models and inequalities in care that Medicaid-insured individuals diagnosed with cancer often face.

Laura Anderson, PhD, licensed psychologist and assistant professor in the UB School of Nursing, was awarded the Innovative Micro-Programs Accelerating Collaboration in Themes (IMPACT) grant from the UB Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development for $30,000. Her award will support investigations of factors behind excessive weight regain following bariatric surgery, a complication that occurs in more than 40 percent of patients.

Yu-Ping Chang, PhD, Patricia H. and Richard E. Garman Endowed Professor and associate dean for research and scholarship in the UB School of Nursing, tells Buffalo.edu, “We are very excited that two of our faculty received funding to further develop their programs of research. Both of their studies are inter-disciplinary and translational in nature, and are addressing significant clinical problems directly related to patients’ health and health care delivery.”