OVERVIEW OF THE INTERNATIONAL PROJECTS

An important part of diverse activities of our staff is the active participation in the international projects focused on the public health priority areas. Knowledge and experience gained from these projects is translated into prevention, protection and support of the public health as well as into the latest legislation of public health service in Slovakia. International collaboration opened new opportunities to work with the scientific, academic and governmental public health institutions of top quality, mainly in the European Union, USA and Russia. Thanks to our intensive work on these projects we gained access to the state-of-the-art scientific knowledge and implementation of modern methods of scientific and research work, either in the form of analytical and intervening epidemiological studies, toxicological observations, field and laboratory measurements, or new methods of health risks evaluation and overall impact on public health assessment. The research expertise of our staff, as well as the refurbishment of facilities, enabled further development of our competencies and increased our credibility. We successfully collaborate with local medical and third-party non commercial partners.

Top priority after 1989 was to assess the evidence-based status of public health considering the environment and workplace pollution by harmful factors. Our research has progressively covered all categories of determinants of health, including the way of life and lifestyle risk factors, environmental and occupational loads, genetic, social and psychological aspects. We have resumed the long tradition of our predecessors RPHO and DPHO in Banska Bystrica in studying and solving the health risks in the contaminated regions of central Slovakia. Special efforts were and are made regarding child welfare. Several studies focused on issues of preventing the most frequent non-infectious diseases in population, laying stress on heart disease, arteriosclerosis and lung cancer, oral cavity and laryngeal cancer, kidney, bladder and pancreas cancer. Toxicology concerns were reviewed in the epidemiology studies focused on the health risks of working age adults and individual groups of population. The scope of activities is growing in the area of intervening studies and is directly translated to individual and group counselling.

The following survey identifies projects by name, a grant provider in case the project has received any, collaborating institutions, duration and a project leader.

  1. State of Public Health and of Environment Study (SIPEH/NIPEH – Slovak Integrated Programme on Environment and Health) – in the regions of Žiar nad Hronom and Ružomberok, compared to Banska Bystrica. The study was made in collaboration with the MH SR, WHO and Ministry of Health of the Netherlands.
    Project Duration: 1992 – 1994
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  2. Arsenic Exposure and Biotransformation Assessment. Collaboration with EPRI (Electric Power Research Institute), Palo Alto, USA.
    Project Duration: 1991 – 2000
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  3. RAPHRE – Study on Health Impact of Environmental Pollution – Novaky area, EC HEA 18/1991. Financed through an EU grant. Collaboration with TECNIMONT and Dept. Medicina del Lavoro, Milano University, Italy.
    Project Duration: 1993 – 1995
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  4. Environmental Health Risk Assessment. Personal exposure to air pollutants. Project supported through “American-Slovak Science and Technology Programme“. Collaboration with the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA.
    Project Duration: 1996 – 2000
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  5. CINDI / Countrywide Integrated Noncommunicable Diseases Intervention Programme, WHO EURO / Intervention programme, which includes cross-sectional surveys on health risk factors and studies on process evaluation
    Project Duration: from 1993 continually
    Project Leader: Mária Avdičová, M.D., PhD
  6. CESAR / Central European Study on Air Pollution and Respiratory Health
    Project Duration: 1994 – 1997
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  7. GEENET – EURO / Global Environmental Epidemiology Network in EURO, Framework of EU COPERNICUS programme
    Project Duration: 01. 01. 1995 – 31. 12. 1997
    Project Leader: Kvetoslava Koppová, M.D., PhD.
  8. The European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs – ESPAD
    Project Duration: 1995 – 2012
    Study leader at RAPH: Katarína Slotová, M.D., PhD.
  9. Development of Environment Information Centre in Slovakia. Geographic information system implementation.
    Project Duration: 1. September 1997 – 30. September 1999
    Project Leader: Františka Hrubá, RNDr., PhD.
  10. INCO / Epidemiological Study of Spatial and Temporal Variation in Outdoor Air Pollution and Children’s Respiratory Disease in Central Europe
    Project Duration: 1998 – 1999 (CESAR 2)
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  11. IARC/WHO / Cancer Epidemiology Studies on Lung Cancer, Oral Cavity and Laryngeal Cancer – within the framework of INCO Copernicus EU programme. Continuing collaboration with IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer) Lyon.
    Project Duration: 1998 – 2003
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  12. Healthy Children in Healthy Families – Primary prevention of the atherosclerosis in childhood on the basis of the high mortality of the cardiovascular diseases in Slovak population with some variation in different regions of the Slovak Republic.
    Project Duration: 1999 – 2012
    Study leader in Slovak Republic: Magdaléna Ďateľová, M.D., MPH
  13. REAP / The EU Phare Regional Environmental Assesion, Project Implementation of Directive on the Quality of Water for Human Consumption
    Project Duration: 2000 – 2001
    Project Leader: Kvetoslava Koppová, M.D., PhD.
  14. PATY / Pollution and the Young (follow-up to CESAR I. and CESAR II.)
    Project Duration: 1.12.2002 – 31.11.2004
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  15. ASHRAM / Arsenic Health Risk Assessment and Molecular Epidemiology
    Project Duration: 2002 – 2004
    Project Leader: Kvetoslava Koppová, M.D., PhD.
  16. CRB / Cancer Risk Biomarkers – Cytogenetic Biomarkers and Human Cancer Risk
    Project Duration: 2002 – 2004
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  17. Impact of Odoriferous Sulphurous Gases Resulting from the Pulp Production Process on the Health of Pulp Mill Employees and Inhabitants of Ružomberok and Environs.
    Project Duration: 2002 – 2006
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  18. ESBIO / Expert team to Support BIO monitoring in Europe
    Project Duration: 2005 – 2006
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  19. PHIME / Public Health Impact of long-term, low level Mixed element Exposure in susceptible population strata.
    Project Duration: 2006 – 2010
    Project Leader: Kvetoslava Koppová, M.D., PhD.
  20. Working Conditions as Determinants of Gender-based Inequality. Project carried out within the framework of Community EQUAL Initiative and co-financed by EU.
    Project Duration: 2006 – 2009
    Project Leader: Ľubica Hettychová, M.D.
  21. Name of the project: SEARCH – School Environment and Respiratory Health of Children
    Project Duration: 2007 – 2008
    Study leaders at RAPH: Katarína Slotová, M.D., PhD., Kvetoslava Koppová, M.D., PhD.
  22. Healthy Workplaces
    Project Duration: 2008 – continues
    Project Leader: Ľubica Hettychová, M.D.
  23. HEM – Closing the Health Gap in EU
    Project Duration: 2008 – 2009
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  24. WHO-SVK BCA 2008 – 2009, outcome: International Health Directives – theory – legislation – implementation – implications, ISBN 978-80-89057-24-5
    Project Duration: 2008 – 2009
    Project Leader: Cyril Klement, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  25. ESNAP / Pancreas Cancer Epidemiology Study. Grant by the MH SR.
    Project Duration: 2008 – 2011
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  26. GVRNA / Genetic Variability and RNA Viruses Virulence Relationship. Grant by the MH SR.
    Project Duration: 2008 – 2011
    Project Leader: Cyril Klement, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  27. Synergy – Pooled Analysis of Case-Control Studies on the Interaction of Occupational Carcinogens in the Development of Lung Cancer. The SYNERGY project is funded by the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV), and is coordinated by IARC, the Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the DGUV, Institute of the Ruhr-University Bochum (IPA) and the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences at Utrecht University (IRAS)
    Project Duration: 2009
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD., Zuzana Vassányi, Ing.
  28. Follow-up Study on Lung Cancer, Oral Cavity and Laryngeal Cancer, Central Europe Multicentric Study of Case-Control Type.
    Project Duration: 1. July 2009 – 30. April 2010
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  29. COPHES / DEMOCOPHES – Co-ordinate and perform human biomonitoring on a European Scale/ Demonstration of a study to co-ordinate and perform human biomonitoring on a European Scale. A harmonised approach to human biomonitoring in Europe/Measuring environmental exposure of children and their mothers in a European human biomonitoring survey – a feasibility study.
    Project Duration: 2009 – 2012
    SK study leaders for rural area: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD., Katarína Slotová, M.D., PhD.
  30. WHO-SVK BCA 2010 – 2011, outcome: Emergency Situations in Public Health Service, ISBN 978-978-89057-29-0
    Project Duration: 2010
    Project Leader: Cyril Klement, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  31. EHES – European Health Examination Survey
    Project Duration: 2010 – 2011
    Project Leader: Mária Avdičová, M.D., PhD.
  32. WHO-SVK BCA 2012 – 2013, outcome: Biological and Chemical Weapons – preparedness and response, ISBN 978-80-89057-439-0
    Project Duration: 2012 – 2013
    Project Leader: Cyril Klement, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.
  33. Pilot study on bladder cancer in Central Europe. Collaboration with the MOUNT SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE, New York, USA.
    Project Duration: 2012 – 2013
    Follow-up:
    Genetic Epidemiologic Study on Bladder Cancer  (GERMM). Grant by the MH SR.
    Project Duration: 2013 – 2015
    Project Leader: Eleonóra Fabiánová, Assoc. Prof., M.D., PhD.