U of U Health cardiovascular pharmacoepidemiologist , is one of three health professionals nationwide who have been selected for the class of 2020 National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Fellowships. As part of the two-year appointment, Bress will collaborate with eminent researchers, policy experts, and clinicians from across the country. He will help facilitate initiatives convened by the National Academies to provide nonpartisan, scientific, and evidence-based guidance to national, state, and local policymakers, academic leaders, health care administrators, and the public.
"Being selected as the 2020 NAM Fellow in Pharmacy is one of greatest honors and opportunities to serve in my professional career. I am eager to interface with NAM Members and Fellows, policymakers, government officials, and legislators to advance the mission of the NAM," says Bress, associate professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences.
Bress' research is aimed at preventing cardiovascular disease by optimizing the use of medications. He is investigating how society and genetics influence ways in which people of different races and ethnicities use and respond to these treatments. Optimizing medication, particularly among populations at high risk for cardiovascular disease, will improve health equity and help people live healthier lives.
Bress was chosen as a NAM Fellow based on his professional qualifications, scholarly reputation, professional accomplishments, and relevance of his current field expertise to the work of the NAM and the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
His research exploring the generalizability of the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) results to the U.S. adult population has already been cited over 120 times and informed the new US High Blood Pressure Guidelines in 2017. In 2018, he won American College of Clinical Pharmacy's (ACCP) prestigious New Investigator Award, which recognizes an ACCP member who has made a significant impact on an aspect of clinical pharmaceutical science.
Currently, he is an active member of the hypertension working groups for three ongoing NIH-funded cohort studies including the Jackson Heart Study, the Women's Health Initiative, and the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study.
"I am thrilled for Dr. Bress to have the opportunity to participate in the NAM Fellowship. It is an honor for him, our Division, our Department, and our Institution," says Rachel Hess, M.D., Division Chief for Health System Innovation and Research. "Dr. Bress has a remarkable trajectory as a researcher and educator dedicated to understating and improving health and health disparities, particularly in the area of cardiovascular disease. The National Academy of Medicine will further accelerate his leadership growth."
Each NAM fellow will continue in his or her primary academic post while engaging part time over a two-year period in the National Academies' health and science policy work. Each fellow will also work with an expert study committee or roundtable related to his or her professional interests, including contributing to its reports or other products.
The overall purpose of the is to enable talented, early-career health science scholars to participate actively in the work of the National Academies and to further their careers as future leaders in their fields.
The , established in 1970 as the Institute of Medicine, is an independent organization of eminent professionals from diverse fields including health and medicine; the natural, social, and behavioral sciences; and beyond. It serves alongside the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering as an adviser to the nation and the international community. Through its domestic and global initiatives, the NAM works to address critical issues in health, medicine, and related policy and inspire positive action across sectors.