UIS and SIU researchers to collaborate on mapping asthma and COPD healthcare in Springfield

Five faculty and staff from the University of Illinois Springfield, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville have been awarded grants from the Caryl Towsley Moy, Ph.D., Endowed Fund for Collaborative Research to study asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Sangamon County has among the highest number of emergency department visits related to asthma and COPD in the state. Wiley Jenkins, Ph.D., associate professor in the Office of Population Science and Policy at the SIU School of Medicine and Egbe Egiebor, Ph.D., UIS assistant professor of public health, are employing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to discover patterns and correlations that might aid in the treatment of adults with asthma and/or COPD.

By mapping these incidents and correlating with environmental factors, geographically targeted interventions will be developed to increase health and decrease costs. Maithili Deshpande, Ph.D., SIU Edwardsville assistant professor of pharmacy, Kristin Osiecki, Ph.D., UIS assistant professor of public health, and Amanda Fogelman, SIU School of Medicine Population Science and Policy senior research development coordinator, will also will join the team.

Richard Moy, M.D. (1931-2013), founding dean of the SIU School of Medicine, and his sons Philip and Eric Moy created the $250,000 endowed fund at UIS in honor of their wife and mother, former professor Caryl Moy (1932-2010). The fund supports faculty from UIS and the SIU School of Medicine who do team-based research. Caryl Moy taught for 21 years at UIS (then Sangamon State University) beginning in 1970. She also served as a clinical professor at the SIU School of Medicine.

For more information, contact Keenan Dungey, UIS associate vice chancellor for research and institutional effectiveness, at 217/206-8112 or kdung1@uis.edu.