Mission of the Center

We aim to build the capacity for effective chronic disease prevention and management. Our focus is people at risk with emphasis on the most vulnerable and those who can help them--families, clinicians, communities, and systems. We conduct innovative research and disseminate results that can help to change policy and practice.

We pursue our mission by bringing together national and international experts in chronic conditions--primarily heart disease, respiratory disease, diabetes, breast cancer, Alzheimer's disease, allergy and factors associated with obesity--who are doing innovative work related to the social, behavioral, environmental and clinical aspects of disease management. We foster collaborations that create new approaches to disease control and adapt successful projects and programs for use in new places. We disseminate proven interventions so they reach the largest number of people, in particular, low-income families, minority groups, children, older adults, and women.

While no one intervention is likely to solve all the problems that accompany chronic disease, we believe that careful research of an array of solutions can lead to potential policies and practices that collectively can achieve optimum health and well-being.