The Centre of Public Health Sciences receives the Icelandic Public Health Awards
The Centre of Public Health Sciences at the University of Iceland receives the Icelandic public health awards for organisations this year for their contribution to increased knowledge and understanding of public health in Iceland. The awards were presented at Bessastaðir on the last day of winter.
The Icelandic Public Health Awards are a collaboration between the office of the President of Iceland, the Ministry of Health, the Directorate of Health, Geðhjálp, and the National Olympic and Sports Association of Iceland. The President of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson, announced the foundation of this award in his address on New Year's day 2023. A call for suggestions from the general public was sent out in February, searching for worthy recipients and almost 350 suggestion were received from various directions, according to the website of the office of the President A special selection committee went over the proposals and nominated three parties in two categories: individuals and organisations. In the end one individual and one organisation was awarded.
Snorri Már Snorrason received the individual award which he acceped from the President in person. As mentioned above the Centre of Public Health Sciences at the University of Iceland received the award in the category for organisations, and Arna Hauksdóttir, professor of public health sciences, accepted the awards from Willum Þór Þórsson, Minister of Health on behalf of the Centre.
"The Centre of Public Health Sciences tackles diverse epidemiological research on factors influencing health, especially impact from trauma. Among those are studies on the impact of violence and societal trauma such as economic collapse, and natural disasters. The Centre has recently conducted large process studies such as the Saga Cohort and the COVID-19 National Resilience Cohort. All these studies are conducted in international collaboration; often under the leadership of the Centre. It can be maintained, according to the selection committee, that no institute or research team has made the same contribution to increased knowledge and understanding of public health in Iceland as the Centre of Public Health Sciences," is stated on the website for the office of the President.
The Centre of Public Health Sciences was established in 2007 and in addition to comprehensive research that has received numerous domestic and international grants, the centre is responsible for graduate studies in public health sciences, epidemiology, and biostatistics at the University of Iceland. The programme is organised in collaboration with all of the University's schools and academics at the centre teach and supervise students in collaboration with numerous faculties at the University, as well as guest lecturers from domestic and international institutes that are at the forefront in their fields.
Since the foundation of the Centre of Public Health Sciences 126 students have completed a Master's degree, 21 a doctoral degree and 176 a postgraduate diploma in public health sciences. These students currently work in diverse positions in the fields of research, public health and in the education and health sector.
Research projects affiliated with the Centre of Public Health Sciences
- 32,000 women participated
- Excellence grants from the Icelandic Centre for Research (Rannís) and the European Research Council (ERC).
- Planned follow up or subsidiary research
- The Icelandic research includes 24 thousand individuals at 4 points in time.
- The Centre leads the collaboration between 6 nations in research on the long term effect of COVID-19 on physical and mental health
- The collaboration includes a process study that in total contains over 550 thousand participants
Natural disaster and health
- Natural disaster The avalanches in Flateyri/Súðavík, Eyjafjallajökull, the tsunami in Sout East Asia 2004 (Swedish victims)
- Data: Questionnaires and health data bases
- Grants: Rannís and Nordforsk
InPreSS (International Pregnancy Drug Safety Studies)
- Impact of chemotherapy on pregnacy and child
- NordForsk and other international funds
CoMorMent (Genetics of comorbidities between psychiatric- and cardiovascular disease)
- Horizon 2020
Stress and life expectancy after diagnosis of lung cancer
- Grants from the Icelandic Centre for Research (Rannís) and Cancerfonden in Sweden
Induction of labour in Iceland
- Grant from the Icelandic Centre for Research (Rannís)
Risk factors and the development of chronic disease
- Heart disease (The Icelandic Heart Association)
- Rheumatism and pain (clinical research)
