UAB lands $10M pediatric preparedness grant, expands youth program in Wilcox County

The University of Alabama at Birmingham will receive more than $10 million over five years to strengthen pediatric emergency and disaster preparedness, with some of the work directly reaching young people in Wilcox County.

UAB has been selected as one of 10 centers nationwide to participate in the Pediatric Prevention Network, previously known as the Pediatric Pandemic Network. The network recently received $22.5 million through the federal Health Resources and Services Administration to strengthen pediatric response capabilities across the country, including in rural, remote and tribal communities.

As part of the initiative, UAB will expand its Youth Advisory Boards in Wilcox and Jefferson counties and establish a Tribal Youth Advisory Board in Alabama. The boards engage young people in identifying community needs and preparing for emergencies and disasters.

The funding will also support training for Youth Advisory Board members in lifesaving emergency skills through a partnership with Pulse Finders. Training will include Stop the Bleed, AED and CPR use, first aid and Narcan administration.

Other initiatives supported by the funding will focus on mental and behavioral health, direct engagement with families and youth, and improving care for children and adolescents with special health care needs.

UAB researchers also plan to develop a hospital-based, physician-reviewed program aimed at improving emergency care for medically complex children and adolescents.

The grant will provide continued support for UAB's Mini Medical School, which gives middle school students virtual and in-person opportunities to learn about science, technology, engineering and math careers, particularly in health care.

Funding will also support UAB's 9th Grade Bridge Program, which teaches ninth-grade students how to recognize, prepare for and respond to issues affecting their communities.

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UAB will continue partnerships with KultureCity, COACHES, PsySTART and the Gulf Shores Disaster Project while developing new partnerships through the network.

One new partner is the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, which will serve as an affiliate hub under the UAB and Children's of Alabama Regional Pediatric Prevention Network. The Oklahoma center will lead activities in that state and across U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Region 6, with a particular focus on rural and Native communities that face barriers to pediatric disaster preparedness and emergency medical care.

Dr. Tamera Coyne-Beasley, the Derrol Dawkins M.D. Endowed Chair of Adolescent Medicine and vice chair of Pediatrics for Community Engagement, will serve as UAB's principal investigator. She will also serve as the Community and Youth Engagement lead for the entire 10-center network.

Coyne-Beasley will work with Erin Carley, program director and facilitator of UAB's Youth Advisory Board. Other researchers involved in the project include faculty from the UAB Department of Pediatrics, School of Public Health and School of Education and Human Sciences.

“We are honored to be one of the 10 centers nationwide selected to serve the needs of our pediatric patient population through our partnership with the Pediatric Prevention Network,” Coyne-Beasley said.

She said UAB looks forward to working with other hospitals in the network to bring expertise and patient-centered care to communities across the country while continuing its work directly with adolescents and their families.

The Pediatric Prevention Network is designed to improve children's hospitals' ability to prepare for and respond to disasters and other crises affecting children and adolescents. The network also seeks to strengthen local and regional health systems through collaboration, community engagement, workforce development and data-driven improvements.