Research

The Medical Laboratory Science program participates in the national 2022 ASCP Cell Bowl competition.

Founding members of the Alaska Public Health Information Response Team submitted a book chapter proposal, entitled "Addressing Health Misinformation in the Infodemic Era: The Alaska Public Health Information Response Team," in the early spring of 2021 for consideration in a forthcoming book, "Building Health Misinformation Immunity: A Professional's Guide to Helping the Public," which was recently published.

The UAA Justice Center worked in partnership with the Alaska Department of Public Safety (DPS) through the Federal Bureau of Justice Assistance funded Alaska Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (AK-SAKI) to conduct research on DPS's policies and procedures related to sexual assault investigations, prosecutions, and victim-survivor engagement and support.

In February 2022, a team at the University of Alaska Anchorage led by Dr. Jennifer Meyer deployed a statewide survey to assess respondents' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to COVID-19 prevention strategies and specifically Long Covid or Post COVID conditions.

Div. of Population Health Sciences associate professor Corrie Whitmore co-authored a published article in College Teaching about making land acknowledgements in university settings meaningful, title "Making Land Acknowledgements in the University Setting Meaningful and Appropriate."

UAA Justice Center Assistant Professor Ingrid Johnson recently published an article in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, titled "Victim-Survivors’ Prioritization of Reasons for Non-Reporting Adult Sexual Assaults to Law Enforcement." This manuscript used data from a survey of survivors of adult sexual assault in Alaska on their reasons for not reporting to the police, which was part of the Alaska Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (AK-SAKI).

A team led by Robbin Garber-Slaght at NREL and co-principal investigator Philippe Amstislavski at the University of Alaska Anchorage received nearly $2.5 million in HESTIA funding to develop cost-effective, bio-based insulation materials. The project, "Celium: Cellulose-Mycelium Composites for Carbon Negative Buildings/Construction," will create carbon-negative insulation by combining foamed cellulose with mycelium—the root network of fungi.

On June 30, the Alaska Black Caucus held the Covid & Beyond: Black Health & Wellness Town Hall at the Wendy Williamson Auditorium at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Amana Mbise, Ph.D., an assistant professor with the School of Social Work under the College of Health, presented eye-opening findings from the first-ever Black Alaskans Health Status report.

According to results from research led by Micah Hahn, an environmental epidemiologist here at UAA, Alaskans' health starts suffering when temperatures climb to 70 degrees, and that local and state officials should consider policies to respond to heat-related health problems that are expected to increase as the climate continues to warm.

The medical laboratory science (MLS) research team presents at the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Scientist conference.