Registration, Abstract Submission Open for CCTS Spring Research Days

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 24, 2021) — The University of Kentucky Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) will host the acclaimed medical historian John M. Barry, author of "The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History," at the keynote panel of its 2021 Spring Research Days. The free, virtual event will be held on the afternoons of April 7 and 8.

Held in conjunction with the UK College of Dentistry, the UK College of Nursing, and the Implementation Science Research Day, the CCTS Spring Research Days will focus on sharing research findings and best practices, enhancing collaborations, and mentoring the upcoming generation of clinical and translational researchers. This year’s new virtual format will feature an interactive conference space, where you might even find cartoon caption tests and a science comic book reveal.

Registration for this free event is now open, and the CCTS calls for abstracts for poster and oral presentations, as well as the annual Von Allmen Allman 60-Second Poster Pitch Competition, which awards cash prizes.

Please note these important abstract deadlines:

• March 3, 2021:  Deadline to submit abstract for an oral presentation
• Rolling Deadline: For the Von Allmen Allman 60-Second Poster Pitch Competition, abstracts will be accepted until the 20-slot capacity for the competition is reached. Submit soon!
• March 8, 2021:  Abstract approval notification will be sent
• March 19, 2021:  Deadline to submit posters for poster session
• March 24, 2021:  Deadline to upload oral presentations (if selected)

The keynote panel, co-sponsored by the UK Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), will feature Barry in conversation with Claire Clark, Ph.D., associate professor and director of graduate studies in the UK College of Medicine; Karen Petrone, Ph.D., professor and director of the CHSS; and Lovoria Williams, Ph.D., associate professor and endowed research professor in cancer health equity in the UK College of Nursing and associate director of the CCTS.

Barry is a prominent medical historian and award-winning author whose work has led him into policymaking. The only non-scientist on a federal government Infectious Disease Board of Experts, he served as an advisor to the Bush and Obama White Houses on pandemic preparedness and response and was on the team that recommended public health measures to mitigate a pandemic. He has worked with the private sector and with state, federal, United Nations, and World Health Organization officials on pandemics, water-related disasters, and risk communication. 

His 2004 book, "The Great Influenza," a study of the 1918 pandemic, was a #1 New York Times best-seller and named the year’s outstanding book on science or medicine by the National Academies of Sciences. He is currently a professor at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine as well as co-founder and Distinguished Scholar at Tulane's Bywater Institute, which focuses on river research.

Registration is required to access this event.