UR Research Center for Deaf Honored for Community Work

This week is Rochester Deaf Awareness Week, and the University of Rochester Medical Center is getting special recognition.

The Deaf community is honoring the University’s National Center for Deaf Health Research (NCDHR) as an organization that is trying to alleviate barriers and increase opportunities for deaf people.

NCDHR is a unique research center focusing on illness prevention among this traditionally underserved group. The NCDHR is being lauded for its groundbreaking efforts to engage deaf people in community-based public health activities, provide jobs and new opportunities for deaf individuals, strengthen educational pipelines for qualified deaf students to enter health and research fields, and view the deaf community as a cultural group.   

“The NCDHR is truly deserving of recognition for its exceptional advocacy and contributions to our community,” said Steven DeBottis, president of Rochester Recreation Club for the Deaf, Inc., and co-chair of RDAW.

The NCDHR is led by Thomas A. Pearson, M.D., Ph.D., the Albert D. Kaiser Professor, Department of Community and Preventive Medicine, and senior associate dean for clinical research at URMC. Pearson accepted the recognition at an RDAW kickoff event at the Rochester Public Market last weekend.

Rochester Deaf Awareness Week takes place in conjunction with national Deaf Awareness Week set forth by the National Association of the Deaf (www.nad.org) and the World Federation of the Deaf (www.wfdeaf.org)

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