Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the major global health crises of the 21st century, threatening to undo decades of progress made in the fight against infectious diseases. The battle to preserve life-saving antibiotics is being approached in many ways, from developing new drugs and novel treatments for drug-resistant infections, to halting transmission in clinical and community settings, to developing sound, science-based policies that preserve existing antibiotics. However, none of these tactics alone can effectively solve the AMR problem. Studying AMR within distinct disciplines continues to generate important knowledge on the topic, but some of the biggest gaps in AMR research and public health practice are between fields, sectors, and disciplines.
Recognizing that AMR is a multidisciplinary problem that requires multidisciplinary solutions, a new faculty network focused on AMR recently came together under the YIGH Faculty Network Program. The Yale Antimicrobial Resistance Network currently includes members from the Yale Schools of Medicine, Public Health, and Engineering and Applied Science, as well as the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale College. Members of the Yale AMR Network are engaged in basic and translational AMR research and public health practice and are committed to tackling AMR in the local and global community.
The Network has begun to cross-educate one another on participants’ AMR work with the objective of sparking collaborations and identifying areas in which group members’ combined expertise and skill sets can advance AMR research. Newly formed collaborations have begun seeking seed and pilot funding to branch out into new areas of AMR research and reach affected populations with whom they have not previously worked. The Network is invested in training the next generation of researchers and welcomes new faculty members from across the University and participation from individuals at any stage in their training and career. If interested in learning more about this new Network, please contact Dr. Windy Tanner, windy.tanner@yale.edu, Yale AMR Network Lead. If you are interested in exploring developing a new YIGH Faculty Network, please contact Dr. Jeremy Schwartz, jeremy.schwartz@yale.edu, Lead of the YIGH Faculty Network Program.