Baojiang Chen, PhD, Dean Ali S. Khan and Eleanor G Rogan, PhD

Spotlight on Research at COPH – Two members of College of Public Health (COPH) Governing Faculty were recognized for outstanding achievement in research at the Annual COPH Awards Dinner. Baojiang Chen, PhD

Dr. Chen is the 2014 recipient of the College of Public Health Faculty Research Award, which recognizes a member of the Governing Faculty whose research contributes to the advancement of public health science and practice, has been published in refereed journals, has received intramural or extramural funding, and has presented at regional, national, and/or international conferences. Dr. Baojiang Chen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biostatistics. Dr. Chen received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees from Nankai University in China in 2002 and 2005, respectively. He received his Ph.D. in 2008 from the University of Waterloo. Dr. Chen was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Biostatistics at University of Washington in Seattle before he joined the UNMC COPH Department of Biostatistics in 2010. Dr. Chen’s current research interest focuses on methodological development and statistical applications, related to Alzheimer’s disease and cancer. Dr. Chen has been working on statistical methods and analyses for Alzheimer’s disease as part of the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center (NACC).  Dr. Chen’s research also contributes greatly to public health by examining characteristics of subgroups at greatest risk of progression to dementia.   Patrik Johansson, MD, MPH

Dr. Patrik Johansson is the 2014 recipient of the Carruth J. Wagner, MD, Faculty Prize in Public Health, which recognizes a member of the Governing Faculty at the rank of assistant or associate professor who has shown promise in research and service, increases public health awareness, and raises the level of interest in public health careers among students. Dr. Johansson is the Director of the Rural Health Education Network and Associate Professor in the UNMC COPH Department of Health Promotion, Social & Behavioral Health. A graduate of the UNMC College of Medicine and an internist by training, Dr. Johansson’s work lies at the intersection of research, policy, and public health practice with a focus on health disparities. He was an assistant professor at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, and the Department of Prevention and Community Health.  Dr. Johansson was an instructor of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School while completing a health disparities internship at the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Minority Health and fellowships at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Dr. Johansson has served as a deputy chief medical officer at Greater Southeast Community Hospital. He has received a number of awards for his work with underserved communities, including the Harvard School of Public Health Albert Schweitzer Award and the Harvard Medical School Dean’s Community Service Award.  Dr. Johansson was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative Public Health.