Sinai Health, DePaul University Partner to Address Health Disparities

Sinai Health System and DePaul University are partnering to build a community-driven research institute that will aim to mitigate health disparities in Chicago.

Sinai Health’s research arm, Sinai Urban Health Institute (SUHI) will collaborate with DePaul on education, research projects, and development and implementation of clinical and community programs that will address social and health equity issues.

“Sinai and DePaul both share more than a century of commitment to serving Chicago,” said Karen Teitelbaum, President and CEO of Sinai Health System.

“We have already been working together with DePaul to train the next generation of health providers. This collaboration is an extension of our shared mission to understand the needs of our communities and develop people and programs that will offer real solutions to address inequity and move the needle for social justice.”

Sinai and DePaul have signed a memorandum of understanding designed to foster more opportunities for the institutions to work together. The agreement includes providing shared education programs for students and researchers, jointly pursuing research and grant opportunities, sharing expertise and data, and supporting sustainable community and academic partnerships aimed at reducing health disparities.

“There is a true intersection of mission and service for DePaul to work hand-in-hand with a safety net health system like Sinai. This new endeavor is closely tied to our roots, in particular to the charitable service by St. Louis de Marillac working with St. Vincent de Paul in caring for the sick and poor in 17th century France,” said DePaul President A. Gabriel Esteban, PhD.

“This collaboration will enable DePaul to expand our health sciences portfolio and provide students and faculty with unmatched opportunities for practical, hands-on work that puts them in a position to identify and propose solutions to health inequities in Chicago and beyond.”

SUHI and DePaul will create a community-driven research institute to conduct solutions-driven research. The institute will engage with community members, leaders, and organizations to evaluate and address health inequities.

As part of the institute’s joint mission, researchers will develop and apply cutting-edge impact evaluation tools and practices to determine the most effective solutions. The new endeavor will bring together expertise from SUHI research and DePaul faculty, providing students with the opportunity to apply research and data in the community.

“DePaul faculty and students will have the chance to participate in research and job-shadowing clinical internships and other programs that will provide practical experiences with public health research and service,” said Salma Ghanem, DePaul’s Interim Provost.

“This latest collaboration with SUHI will build on the work being done in a fellowship program established earlier this year in which four DePaul faculty members began new studies in the Unequal Cities project on racial inequities in mortality in our country’s largest cities.”

Through the partnership, each institution will share applicable public health data and online resources, technical expertise, and participate in joint research and grant applications.

“We’re excited to expand our educational and research capacities, better leverage grant opportunities and also provide front-line clinical experiences for students. Working together, we can really bring research to life and use data to develop solutions that will truly impact people’s health and lives,” said Helen Margellos-Anast, President of Sinai Urban Health Institute.