DFPM Ranks Second in the 2024 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research Ranking

The University of Utah’s Department of Family & Preventive Medicine (DFPM) ranked second in the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research (BRIMR) annual rankings for the 2024 federal fiscal year, among all family medicine departments in the United States. BRIMR rankings are based on the total National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding awarded to each department.

Together, the Division of Public Health and the Division of Family & Community Medicine secured more than $9 million in NIH funding, propelling the department to its second-place rank. Notably, DFPM has been in the top five for the past five years, surpassing its third-place rank from last year.

Department Chair John Barrett, MD, expressed his pride in the department’s achievement: “We are so proud of the scholarship produced by our outstanding faculty. This year’s BRIMR ranking is evidence of world-class research work. Our Public Health faculty are largely behind this effort, and we are seeing burgeoning success from our newer Family Medicine academic faculty. We will continue to cultivate a strong community of researchers who collaborate across the University. We are excited for what is to come.”

In addition to department ranking, BRIMR compiles individual researcher rankings. Several DFPM researchers ranked highly, including Kelly Baron, PhD, ranking third, and Joseph Stanford, MD, ranking sixth among family medicine researchers. Mia Hashibe, PhD, and Karen Schliep, PhD, ranked in the top 40.

Public Health Professor Kelly Baron reflected on her ranking: “Since joining the University of Utah in 2018, I’ve had a lot of success in developing new directions in my research and collaborations both within our department and across campus. I’m grateful for my collaborations with Dr. Ivette Lopez, who has been such a driving force in developing some of these more recently funded projects.”

Similarly, the collaborative environment has been essential to early-career researchers. Family & Community Medicine Assistant Professor Ursula Martinez, PhD, a principal investigator on an NIH award focused on smoking cessation in cancer patients shared her experience. “The department prioritizes research and offers many opportunities for career development and growth. I am constantly inspired by the work my colleagues are doing, which is the perfect environment for an early-stage investigator like me,” said Martinez.

The collective success shows the department’s commitment to fostering a collaborative, research-driven environment that empowers both established and early-career investigators to make meaningful contributions to the field.