Technical Reports

Barriers to OUD Care in Polk County 2026 report cover

Barriers to Opioid Use Disorder Care in Polk County

The Public Science Collaborative analyzed and synthesized findings from six focus groups conducted with 42 individuals with lived experience of opioid use disorder (OUD) in Polk County, Iowa, in spring 2026. The focus groups were facilitated and transcribed by Rebel Healthcare. Participants represented three subpopulations: individuals residing in a minimum-security correctional facility, individuals engaged in […]

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Reducing Disease Burden by Design: A One Health Approach

Mosquito-borne diseases such as Dengue Fever, Zika, and Malaria remain among Uganda’s most urgent public health challenges, undermining individual well-being, community resilience, and national development. This report demonstrates how regenerative landscape design and low-cost environmental interventions can simultaneously reduce disease risk and strengthen agricultural productivity. Grounded in a One Health framework, this report emphasizes integrated

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Sustainable Agriculture in the Context of High Burden of Disease report cover

Sustainable Agriculture in the Context of High Burden of Disease: A One Health Approach

In July 2025, the Public Science Collaborative research team conducted two weeks of fieldwork in the Busoga region of Eastern Uganda to investigate how cocoa farming practices intersect with environmental and health risks related to mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria. This work builds on a growing body of research that links landscape features and agricultural

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Update and Extension of the RRCI report cover

Update & Extension of the Recovery-Ready Community Index

As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s substance use recovery work, PSC created a first in the nation, statewide recovery-ready community index (RRCI) comprised of recovery readiness scores for hundreds of Iowa communities. Since 2020, Iowa has witnessed the founding of seven recovery community organizations, including five recovery community centers and two collegiate recovery programs.

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An Ethnographic Assessment of Drug Use among Iowa Families report cover

An Ethnographic Assessment of Drug Use among Iowa Families

As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s substance use work, PSC sought to strengthen the Iowa Department of Public Health’s (IDPH) surveillance of substance use in Iowa, with particular attention to intergenerational impacts, through the deployment of an ethnographic assessment of active and former substance users. The goal of these activities is to help IDPH

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