NIH 1998 Almanac/The Organization/NICHD/
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development : Mission
The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) seeks to assure
that every individual is born healthy, is born wanted, and has the opportunity to fulfill
his or her potential for a healthy and productive life unhampered by disease or
disability. In pursuit of this mission, the NICHD conducts and supports laboratory,
clinical, and epidemiological research on the reproductive, neurobiologic, developmental,
and behavioral processes that determine and maintain the health of children, adults,
families, and populations. The institute administers a multidisciplinary program of
research, research training, and public information, nationally and within its own
facilities, on reproductive biology and population issues on embryonic development as well
as maternal, child and family health and on medical rehabilitation.
NICHD programs are based on the concepts that adult health and well-being are determined in large part by episodes early in life, that human development is
continuous throughout life, and that the reproductive processes and the management of
fertility are of major concern, not only to the individual, but to society. The institute
holds the tenet that when disease, injury, or a chronic disorder intervenes in the
developmental process, it is incumbent to restore or maximize individual potential and
functional capacity.
The institute supports and conducts basic, clinical, and epidemiological research in
the reproductive sciences to develop knowledge enabling men and women to regulate their
fertility in ways that are safe, effective, and acceptable to various population groups,
and to overcome problems of infertility. The purposes of institute-sponsored behavioral
and social science research in the population field are to understand the causes and
consequences of reproductive behavior and population change.
Research for mothers, children and families is designed to advance knowledge of
pregnancy, fetal development, and birth to develop strategies to prevent infant and
childhood mortality to identify and promote the prerequisites of optimal physical, mental
and behavioral growth and development through infancy, childhood, and adolescence and to
contribute to the prevention and amelioration of mental retardation and developmental
disabilities. Much of this research focuses on the disciplines of cellular, molecular, and
developmental biology to elucidate the mechanisms and interactions that guide a single
fertilized egg cell through it development into a multicellular, highly organized adult
organism.
Medical rehabilitation research is designed to develop improved techniques and
technologies with respect to the rehabilitation of individuals with physical disabilities
resulting from diseases, disorders, injuries, or birth defects. Research training is an
area supported across all NICHD research programs, with the intent of adding to the cadre
of trained professionals available to conduct research in areas of critical public health
concern.
An overarching responsibility of the NICHD is to disseminate information emanating from
institute research programs to researchers, practitioners and other health professionals,
and to the general public.
