Rhiannon Reed, Dr.P.H., an epidemiologist in the lab of the Division of Transplantation’s Jayme Locke, M.D., was recently awarded an intramural grant from the Gulf States Health Policy Center for her project, “Population Health and Regional Disparities in Organ Access and Utilization.”

The purpose of this award is to conduct secondary data analysis to inform policy change and health system improvements that will ultimately improve the health outcomes of citizens of the Gulf States region. Reed’s project will examine the association between population health and organ supply within United States donor service areas. Findings from this analysis may be used to inform allocation policy, including rationale for prioritizing greater regional and national sharing to mitigate disparities in organ supply, in addition to identifying areas in need of public health efforts to target and prevent comorbid disease development.