Wilson among 30 picked for 1998 HHS fellowship

Diane Baer Wilson, Ed.D., R.D., associate professor in the College of Health Professions, has been named a 1998 fellow by the U.S. Public Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services. Wilson is among 30 health professionals from across the country to participate in the Primary Care Policy Fellowship, after being nominated by the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine.

The intensive three-week program in Washington, D.C., will immerse participants in legislative policy, education and research related to current health care issues. The program aims to encourage more effective advocates among the participants for improving primary health care at all levels of government and the private sector. Sessions on leadership development and media training are also offered to enhance their advocacy roles.

Fellows earn the opportunity to attend the fellowship’s annual networking conference in Washington for graduates of the fellowship from previous years.

Wilson was selected on the basis of her work in preventive research and health professions education. She has administrative responsibility for approximately $1 million of funded research related to identifying the roles of nutrition in cancer prevention. In her role as nutrition coordinator for research in the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center’s Department of Prevention and Control, she works closely with Dr. Dan Nixon on the WINS (Women’s Intervention Nutrition Study) breast cancer study and will begin PINS (Prostate Intervention Nutrition Study), a nutrition intervention to measure changes in PSA (prostate specific antigen) levels in males. In the College of Health Professions, Wilson teaches and oversees thesis research among graduate students in the Health Professions Education program in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences.

Through her professional experiences, Wilson has become an advocate for primary prevention education for health professionals and for the public at large. She said that participating in this prestigious fellowship is especially timely given how challenging it is to motivate healthy people to improve their lifestyle behaviors.

“The limits of individual education for disease prevention are becoming very evident,” Wilson said. “Understanding the roles of policy, community and industry is extremely important in the behavior changes that are required for healthier lifestyle practices.”

Wilson said that the fellowship training will be especially applicable in South Carolina where data has shown a high incidence of chronic diseases.

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