IMPACT Lab

The IMPACT Lab was awarded the 2019 Award of Excellence from the National Prevention Network for their work demonstrating effectiveness of community substance abuse prevention efforts in Washington State. Pictured here: IMPACT Lab Members (L to R: Gitanjali Shrestha, PhDc, Dr. Laura Hill and Dr. Brittany Rhoades Cooper on the far right) with collaborator Ms. Sarah Mariani from the Washington State Health Care Authority.

The IMPACT lab's Dr. Brittany Cooper was awarded Outstanding Oral Presentation for Bridging Science and Practice at the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) Conference in Seattle. Dr. Cooper's oral presentation was titled: Evidence-based Policymaking to Prevent Youth Substance Misuse: Where the Rubber Slams into the Evidence-Based Program Implementation Road. The presentation was representative of work that IMPACT Lab members, Drs. Cooper and Hill, had completed in collaboration with the University of Washington, the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP), and the Washington State Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery (DBHR). The group has been exploring evidence-based policymaking and conducting cost-benefit analysis in relation to Washington State Initiative 502 and it's legislative mandate to fund state agencies for prevention and reduction of substance use. The presentation shared the group's collaborative approach they have used to address logistical barriers and provide recommendations for how other researchers, policymakers, and practitioners can use cost-benefit evaluation data to inform on-the-ground implementation decisions.

For the 2nd year in the row, WSU (Team Datum) won the Annual Society for Prevention Research Sloboda and Bukoski SPR Cup! The Cup is named for two of the founders and long-time active members of SPR, Dr. Zili Sloboda and Dr. William Bukoski. The competition is an opportunity for a unique experience: several independent teams of scientists, each working with the same data set, problem solve together for a brief period of time and then jointly present the results of their work to each other and to a panel of senior prevention scientists and the SPR membership. This year's data came from the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey. IMPACT Lab's Kyle Murphy presented our team's work on Falling and Depression among Older Adults: Explanations, Conditions, and Implications for the Forgotten Population. Pictured: WSU Prevention Science Graduate Students, Shane McFarland (team captain), Kyle Murphy (lead presenter), Myah Houghten, Garrett Jenkins, and Marie Gray; Faculty mentors: Brittany Cooper and Raven Weaver.

Laura Hill was awarded the Friend of Early Career Prevention Network (ECPN) Award! This award is presented to a mid-career or senior preventionist who has supported and encouraged early career prevention scientists or issues. Congrats, Laura!