The University of South Carolina’s Discover UofSC annual research project showcase returned to an in-person event in April 2022. This annual event is proudly sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
The MCH Catalyst Program hosted their inaugural Poster and Abstract Contests at Discover UofSC in 2021. Due to health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first MCH Catalyst Program Poster Contest was hosted virtually.
The contest- open to undergraduate and graduate students of the University of South Carolina- seeks to recognize exceptional students who present outstanding poster projects focused on the health of mothers, children, adolescents, or families.
With the help of student and faculty volunteers, the MCH Catalyst Poster Contest was able to review and judge over 20 graduate and undergraduate poster submissions in person. Each volunteer reviewer utilized a uniform rubric to judge the purpose, methods, reliability, results, conclusion, novelty, and overall quality of the poster submission.
Three undergraduate and five graduate students were chosen as winners of the MCH Catalyst Poster Contest. Undergraduate winners included:
- Lauren McAbee, 1st place for her project Evaluation of a device to detect neonatal hypothermia in a clinical setting in Ghana;
- Abigail Broadhead, 2nd place for her project Correlation between the Broad Autism Phenotype Feature of Aloofness and Maternal Depression and Anxiety; and
- MacKenzie Bewley, 3rd place for her poster titled There’s an App for That: Examining the Role of Social Media and Smartphone Technology in Supporting Youth Mental Health.
The graduate winners for the MCH Catalyst Poster Contest were named as follows:
- 1st Place awarded to Sarah Brunson for Relationships between Pregnancy and Postpartum Hypertensive Disorders and Lactation Outcomes: A Scoping Review
- 2nd Place awarded to Erin Gorman-Sandler for Gestational stress induces mitochondrial dysfunction in prefrontal cortex and depressive-like behavior in postpartum rats
- 3rd Place awarded to Agnes Bucko for Provider practices and children’s obesogenic behaviors in South Carolina’s family child care homes
- 4th Place awarded to Erin Stickler for Do Pregnant Women Perceive Being Counseled About Nutrition by Healthcare Providers?
- 5th Place awarded to Erin Kishman for Salivary Evening Melatonin in Postpartum Women: An Exploratory Analysis
All winners of the MCH Catalyst Poster Contest were presented with monetary prizes along with their certificates of achievement. The MCH Catalyst Program would like to thank the volunteers who assisted in poster reviews, as well as the UofSC Office of Research for their help in making the 2022 MCH Catalyst Poster Contest a success.