Director's Messages

Spotlight on 2019

As we take stock of the year that just ended, I’m very proud of how productive the ODP was in 2019. Our dedicated staff has worked hard to advance rigorous science and strengthen public health by increasing the scope, quality, dissemination, and impact of prevention research supported by the NIH.

I am excited to share our Spotlight on 2019 (PDF) highlighting some, though certainly not all, of our accomplishments last year. The report summarizes key projects related to each of the ODP’s six strategic priorities and outlines their potential impact on the health of communities across the United States.  

Over the past year we’ve:

  • Demonstrated how NIH-supported research helps inform clinical practice recommendations.
  • Co-sponsored projects to better measure and study electronic nicotine delivery systems such as e-cigarettes and vaping devices.
  • Developed collaborative initiatives across the NIH to address unmet prevention research needs.
  • Identified the leading risk factors and causes for premature death so we can focus on the most pressing health challenges facing the nation.
  • Analyzed the NIH prevention research portfolio and highlighted opportunities to better align research funding with disease burden.
  • Organized workshops to identify research gaps and produce action-oriented recommendations for future research.

Working together with our NIH colleagues and other partners, the ODP is committed to advancing NIH’s health promotion and disease prevention efforts highlighted in the NIH-Wide Strategic Plan, Fiscal Years 2016–2020. You can find specific connections between our projects and the four NIH Objectives (PDF) throughout the report. You can also see ODP’s 2019 Year at a Glance by checking out the infographic on the final page.

I hope this report gives you a better understanding of the progress we’ve made in the past year toward improving the breadth and depth of prevention research supported by the NIH. To stay up-to-date with everything we do in 2020, please consider following us on Twitter and subscribing to our email updates.