Prof. Michael Edelstein Awarded Prestigious EU Grant

The “Reducing Inequalities in Vaccine Uptake in the European Region - Engaging Underserved communities” (RIVER EU) project is a collaborative project between fourteen academic and public health organizations in ten countries in the EU and Israel.

The 5 year project, with a 3.3 million euro budget from Horizon 2020, the European Union’s Framework Program for Research and Innovation, aims to reduce health systems barriers to vaccination among ethnic, religious or cultural minorities across Europe, specifically focusing on MMR and HPV vaccination in selected underserved communities. Prof. Michael Edelstein will serve as the project’s deputy principal investigator as well as lead for the work package focusing on collecting evidence on health system barriers and enablers among low (underserved communities) and high (positive deviants) uptake communities and on interventions that improve access to vaccination services among underserved communities.

Prof. Edelstein: "There are many institutions involved. It is a very exciting project that will have a positive impact on some of the most vulnerable populations in Europe and beyond, and I am proud that Bar-Ilan U. will make a significant contribution to it. It is also a great opportunity for Bar-Ilan U. and its faculty to create strong academic links with many excellent universities across Europe."

To see Bar-Ilan spokesperson's office announcement, click here.