The Johns Hopkins Nursing Science Incubator for Systemic Solutions (N-SISS): Preparing Innovators to Address the Conditions of Daily Living and Redesign Health - Project Summary/Abstract There is compelling evidence that the social determinants of health (SDOH) represent primary drivers of health inequities, but dominant approaches to mitigating harmful SDOH have had inadequate success in reducing persistent health inequities. The Nursing Science Incubator for SDOH Solutions (N-SISS) at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing will support nurse scientists and scientists in aligned fields in developing innovative and rigorous programs of research focused on health equity, with a particular emphasis on SDOH. Because we intend to deliver N-SISS educational materials to two important but distinct audiences—that is, three annual cohorts of 10 core N-SISS Innovators as well as a national audience of nursing or aligned SDOH researchers and students (ancillary N-SISS network trainees)—we organized the N-SISS program into two tailored sets of activities and resources. At its core, the program will consist of a 10-month-long structured training curriculum of individualized SDOH research training, applied research experiences, mentoring, and career support, which will be offered to core N-SISS Innovators and which will culminate in the submission of an SDOH-focused research (R, K, or F) grant proposal to NIH at the end of the program. Secondarily, the ancillary N-SISS network trainee program will provide a variety of SDOH training resources for self-directed learning via a dedicated web platform open to all researchers and students at no cost. The N-SISS program design is innovative in several respects: the curriculum draws upon the project team's integrated conceptual framework of SDOH mechanisms to provide the requisite theoretical and methodological skills for applied SDOH mitigation; the program uses a three-pronged mentoring approach grounded in the literature of effective scientific mentoring for independent research; and the didactic and collaborative learning opportunities are additive, providing flexibility and enhancing the reach to national audiences. To increase reach and participant representation, the program will strategically identify and support investigators determined by NIH and NINR to be underrepresented in sponsored research. In addition, the program materials and events will be accessible to ancillary N-SISS network trainees, who include members of the broader nursing and aligned scientific workforce (we estimate at least n=3,600 ancillary network trainees will use the program over the project period). N-SISS will leverage Johns Hopkins University's extensive research and training infrastructure and the program directors' national network of health equity researchers to strengthen the scientific nursing workforce's capacity to conduct impactful, innovative SDOH research to eliminate health inequities and redesign health.
