Researchers with the Hassenfeld Institute are gearing up to resume in-person recruitment for their autism study after a lengthy hiatus due to COVID-19. The study enrolls moms soon after they have given birth at Women & Infants Hospital. During the pandemic, research assistants worked remotely, calling new moms in their hospital rooms to tell them about the study and help them to enroll. Soon, research assistants will return to conducting in-person recruitment in the hospital's postnatal rooms.

The Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute and Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island are participating in a new study supported by the National Institutes of Health to improve gestational diabetes screening and diagnosis by better understanding blood glucose levels throughout pregnancy. Gestational diabetes is usually diagnosed between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy, which may be too late to counteract some long-lasting harm to the pregnant person and child.

The Healthy Weight Initiative is preparing to launch a study that will examine how early markers of self-regulation, which have been found to be related to weight gain in older children, relate to infant growth. Self-regulation is a broad construct that includes the ability to control thoughts, emotions and actions to achieve a desired outcome. For this study, the team will enroll both mothers and their children.

COVID Collaborative, Harvard's Edmond J. Safra Center, Brown's School of Public Health, and New America launched the Infection Prevention and Control and Schools Task Force to produce a set of resources to support schools and districts in implementing CDC guidance and getting students and staff safely back for in-person learning. Learn more about the task force, and access the resources.

The Hassenfeld Institute’s longitudinal study of the health of Rhode Island mothers and infants, known as the Hassenfeld Study, enrolls moms across the state either during early pregnancy or shortly after delivery and follows them and their children for three years. This provides the framework for research in many areas, including an analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on the communities we serve. 

When state and local agencies need a partner to assist with sophisticated evaluation of public health programs, they often turn to the Hassenfeld Institute’s Data Core for help. While the Data Core provides research support for projects within the Institute, they also collaborate extensively with state and local partners on a myriad of programs.

How do we engage children who struggle with overweight and obesity and their families in physical activity and healthy eating in the midst of a pandemic?