The Epidemiology Research Unit (ERU) was established in 1999 with the formation of the Tropical Medicine Research Institute and is comprised of two main groups: the child development group and the chronic disease research group. Recognizing the major burden that chronic non-communicable disease (CNCD) weighs on the region and the developing world, the ERU accepts the responsibility of carrying out relevant research that will ameliorate this burden.
Under the theme "Epidemiology for Population Health", the ERU aims to make a significant contribution to the improvement of health in the Caribbean and the world by developing collaborative programmes of excellence in research, teaching and consultancy service in the fields of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Public Health. Its main areas of research are chronic non-communicable disease and child development.
The Sickle Cell Unit (SCU) is the only comprehensive facility for the care of persons with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) in the English speaking Caribbean. In fact, it is one of the largest of such facilities world-wide with over 5000 patients registered in their database. The mission of the SCU is to be a research institution which seeks to improve the lives of individuals with sickle haemoglobinopathies through rigorous Biomedical Research, Education and Clinical Care. The Unit has evolved from being a research clinic that catered to the needs of the patients enrolled in the Jamaica Sickle Cell Cohort Study to being a full service primary care facility that is involved in research, clinical care and education.
The Unit seeks to provide evidence-based solutions that are applicable in economically challenged countries, continue the accumulation of observational data based on longitudinal cohort studies and engage in basic science research that seeks to explain the heterogeneity of SCD.
The Tropical Metabolism Research Unit (TMRU) was established in October 1954 as an MRC Research Unit in the University of the West Indies to investigate the metabolic basis of childhood malnutrition. The research focused on protein and energy metabolism in children with Kwashiorkor and Marasmus and the early findings provided the knowledge which has led to a six-fold improvement in therapy and reduction of mortality. More recently, the focus of the research has been on the impact of malnutrition on the mental development of children, and in addition, on the protein metabolic basis of immune failure in severe malnutrition.
Ever sensitive to the health needs of our people, the TMRU turned its attention to chronic diseases, (Hypertension, Diabetes, and Cardiovascular Disease) when these nutrition related diseases became epidemic. The initial focus of the research was on the epidemiology of these diseases, identifying the burden of disease as well as the main determinants of diabetes and hypertension.
In 1999, the Tropical Metabolism Research Unit (TMRU) became a part of the Tropical Medicine Research Institute (TMRI).
The George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Centre (GA-CDRC) was founded in 1992 by the School of Clinical Medicine and Research, UWI, Cave Hill Campus, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Government of Barbados, in response to the epidemic of chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes, obesity and their complications) in the Caribbean. Presently, the GA-CDRC has a strong track record in undertaking population based epidemiological research, including research that contributes to the surveillance of chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) incidence, prevalence and risk factors. The ultimate goal of this research is that it leads to improvements in the health of people in Barbados and the wider Caribbean, in other words that it is translated into policy and practice.
The George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Centre
A Unit of the Caribbean Institute for Health Research
Phone: (246) 426-6416
Fax: (246) 426-8406
Email: cdrc@cavehill.uwi.edu
© 2016-17 George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Centre.
All Rights Reserved.
