October 25, 2007

NIH Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases ˜ National Resource Center
National Coordinating Panel Meeting

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Building 31, Room 4C32
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, Maryland

Executive Summary

The National Institutes of Health Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases ~ National Resource Center (NRC) was established by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) in 1994 to increase awareness, knowledge, and understanding of metabolic bone diseases among target audiences, address information gaps, and reach at-risk but underserved populations. In September 2003, NIAMS renewed funding for the NRC under a 4-year contract, and established a National Coordinating Panel to 1) provide guidance to the NRC, 2) ensure collaboration and avoidance of redundant efforts, 3) propose key messages for the NRC to promote, and 4) identify methods to evaluate the effectiveness of the NRC's activities.

Members of the Panel include representatives from the seven Institutes and Offices that contribute to the contract. In addition to the NIAMS, these include the National Institute on Aging (NIA), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), NIH Office of Research on Women's Health (NIH-ORWH), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office on Women's Health (DHHS-OWH). The NRC is the only trans-NIH clearinghouse funded by the NIH.

The Panel held its fourth annual meeting on October 25, 2007, on the campus of the NIH, Building 31, Room 4C32, Bethesda, MD. In addition to Panel members, the meeting brought together other Federal guests and outside guest experts in the field of bone health and metabolic bone diseases.

The meeting was organized into five sections.

Report on Research Advances

This report provided Panel members and guest experts with a review of recent research advances and issues in bone health and metabolic bone diseases. Included in the report were findings from both basic and clinical studies as well as emerging issues that the NIH is addressing with new research funding.

Report on the National Resource Center

This report provided Panel members and guest experts with a review of current NRC projects and progress during the fourth year of the 4-year contract. Activities were grouped by core functions, including inquiry response, materials development, promotion and outreach, and exhibits.

Reports on Reaching Diverse Audiences

Panel members and guest experts received updates on initiatives to reach at-risk but underserved populations. These included progress on Chinese Health Education materials for the Center's Asian Initiative; the completion and promotion of Isabel's Story/La historia de Isabel, an easy-to-read, illustrated, bilingual publication as part of the Center's Spanish initiative; and two new multicultural projects, one to help people find resources for getting good health care and another to create audience-specific materials to distribute at community health fairs.

Reports on Special Projects

Meeting attendees also learned about two newly completed special projects: Check Up On Your Bones, an interactive Web tool based on the Surgeon General's report on bone health and osteoporosis that provides personalized information about an individual's risk for osteoporosis, and a 2008 Pocket Calendar with Tips and Resources for Healthy Bones for Life, designed to let women know how to find online resources at the Bone Resource Pages.

Additional Plans and Ideas: NRC Promotion and Outreach

This final section of the agenda was set aside for a general discussion during which Panel members and guests identified a broad array of strategies the NRC could use in the coming year to coordinate and increase outreach and promotion activities for the Government's extensive resources on bone diseases.

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