Haifa U at forefront of research into social outcomes of coronavirus
All of the projects will take between two and six months to complete, and most of the researchers are with the University's Faculties of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, and Social Sciences.
By DONNA RACHEL EDMUNDSAn ICEJ volunteer nurse caring for a Holocaust survivor in Haifa amid the Coronavirus crisis.(photo credit: ICEJ)
The University of Haifa has taken a leading role in Israel's quest to pioneer innovative solutions to the public health challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, securing substantial government funding for eighteen novel research projects.The university is taking a broad approach to investigating aspects of the coronavirus including the pandemic's effects on the tourism industry, anxiety and post-traumatic health disorder, poverty, education including homeschooling, and a possible exit strategy from the lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the disease.“Knowing we have depth and breadth of expertise in various crucial fields, I convened a cross-discipline team from University of Haifa’s pillars of excellence, including public health; nursing; education; aging, specifically among Holocaust survivors; social welfare; psychiatry; and cancer research,” University of Haifa president Prof. Ron Robin said.“We were reassured that our partners at the Rambam Health Care Campus, the Science and Technology Ministry, and other institutions were taking care of Israelis’ immediate medical needs, so I challenged our faculty to focus on the future — how we will ensure Israel moves beyond this crisis not only to survive, but to become stronger. Our society will be changed forever; it is our role to make sure it is changed for the better.”Prof. Deborah Shmueli, principal investigator of the university’s Minerva Center for Law and Extreme Conditions, has been awarded a sum of NIS 220,000 to run a significant project investigating potential plans for Israel to gradually bring her economy back on track, while minimizing any potential damage from the virus.All of the projects will take between two and six months to complete, and most of the researchers are affiliated with the University's Faculties of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, and Social Sciences.In total, Israel's Science and Technology Ministry has ear-marked NIS 10 million to partially fund coronavirus-related research, which has been allocated to 84 proposals, 18 of which are being run by University of Haifa faculty members.The grants put the University of Haifa – one of Israel’s seven research universities – at the forefront of coronavirus related research, given that over 20 percent of the government's grant funding was awarded to projects run by Haifa faculty members, placing Haifa as the leading university in grants distributed by the Science, Space and Technology Ministry. “We are pleased that the Science and Technology Ministry’s grants are supporting University of Haifa research that will help Israel – and the world – understand and address myriad societal challenges that are emerging as a result of the new coronavirus and the extended quarantine,” Prof. Robin said.“These research projects will address an array of issues from public health and breast cancer recovery to education, isolation, and loneliness. I am incredibly proud of how quickly our faculty responded to the government’s request for proposals and honored that we can play a critical role in the country’s recovery.”
