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Active WVPBRN Projects

A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Community-Based Chronic Pain Self-Management Program in West Virginia

PI: Dina Jones, PT, PhD

This project proposes to address the gap between Chronic Pain Self Management Program's (CPSMP) effects and its impact on physiological outcomes, healthcare utilization, and work attendance. The project will address these through a rigorous study of CPSMP in 4 WV counties, both urban and rural.

 

Healthcare Accessibility for People with Disabilities

PI: Jordan Miller

This project aims to allow facilities to have an in-depth understanding of how usable their clinic is for people with disabilities on a cognitive, mobility, and sensory scale.  Participating facilities will get the added knowledge of how their clinical design scores on areas most pertinent to people with disabilities.

 

Attitudes and Practice Regarding Screening and Treatment for Hepatitis C in the West Virginia Practice-based Research Network (proposed provider questions on rural opioid-related hepatitis C epidemic for the West Virginia Practice-Based Research Network Collective Outreach and Research Engagement (CORE) Survey

PI: Gordon Smith, MD, MB, MBChB, MPH, Judith Feinberg, MD

West Virginia has the highest rate of hepatitis C in the nation. The information gathered from this survey will also provide a natural path for WVPBRN providers to research collaboration with WVCTSI-affiliated faculty at its three member institutions. This survey and potential participation in our NIDA study activities will provide valuable partnership and mentoring opportunities for network members. Both of us have a long history of collaborative research in the community and mentorship of budding investigators.

 

Quality measures and provider patient relationship

PI: William Lewis, MD

The business of medicine is currently undergoing a transformation from a fee for service model to a quality based reimbursement. Primary care is on the front line for this transformation. Should providers start preferentially selecting patient panels, as this would undoubtedly lead to those noncompliant patients ending up in safety net clinics such Federally Qualified Health Centers or academic medical clinics? With West Virginia being among the unhealthiest states in the nation some providers may feel that stacking their panels is the only option available to them to protect their revenue.

 

Weight Management Guideline Based Practice in West Virginia Primary Care Clinics

PI: Treah Haggerty, MD, MS

Obesity is an epidemic in the United States, and West Virginia has among the highest rates in the country. To address these issues, obesity needs to be addressed from a system approach and an individual approach. Descriptive analysis will be performed to get the basic understanding of the responses to the proposed question. A chi-square test will be utilized to assess the relationship between practice characteristics and obesity care characteristics such as following guidelines, referrals, and medication prescribing. Regression analysis will be utilized to determine if there is a relationship between confidence and practice characteristic.

 

Development and Pilot Testing of an Internet-delivered Postpartum Anxiety Prevention Program

PI: Shari Steinman, PhD

Postpartum anxiety disorders represent a severe and substantial public health burden with long- term impacts on both mothers and their children. This project aims to develop internet-delivered postpartum anxiety prevention program (P-POD) and assessment measures, and evaluate usability and acceptability of Internet-Delivered Perinatal Anxiety and OCD Prevention.

 

Community Resources Non-Opiate Treatment Back Pain

PI: Cara Sedney, MD

Back pain is often directly related to obesity, and therefore represents a “non-silent” manifestation of obesity, in contrast to “silent” manifestations such as hyperlipidemia and hypertension. Assessing motivational readiness for weight loss during a clinical encounter regarding back pain may enhance patient awareness and understanding of the relationship between his/her back pain and obesity, helping to guide a feasible treatment plan for back pain. The primary purpose of the proposed project is to utilize stakeholder-centered methodologies to develop and test a readiness to change survey for weight management interventions in rural clinical settings. Focus groups were used to review descriptions of the models of readiness to change, discuss their perceptions of these models, including their relevance and utility as well as potential clinical outcomes that may be meaningful. 

 

WV Project ECHO Chronic Lung

PI: Jay Mason

Project ECHO Chronic Lung is a learning and guided practice model for medical education that was developed out of the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine. Videoconferences will allow chronic lung/pulmonology specialists to share their expertise to rural providers throughout West Virginia. Provide a model of effective care coordination in regards to chronic lung disease, cut down specialist referrals, and wait times for patients to see specialists.  

 

STR / MAT Expansion Initiative

PI: Marc Haut, PhD, ABPP-CN

As WVU’s largest comprehensive treatment program, COAT has on-campus and statewide patients undergoing programs that combine medication and therapy. During the first phase, the personnel at four new hub sites were trained to use the COAT model to deliver buprenorphine-based MAT. In the second phase, spoke sites – rural clinics and healthcare providers – will be trained in the COAT model to provide buprenorphine-based MAT in their community by an assigned hub, and the hub sites will work with a total of 14 spokes. Several of the MAT sites are PBRN sites.

 

WV Project ECHO Psychiatry

PI: Jay Mason

WV Project ECHO Psychiatry will allow clinics/providers to get specialized consultation services in the area of adult and child psychology. It will expand the knowledge of the primary care provider in the area of Psychiatry, thus improving patient care. The purpose of the project is to expand the WV ECHO program to Psychiatry. Community health centers will have an opportunity to present psychiatric cases for both children and adults, at no cost, delivered right to your clinic using simple videoconferencing technology

 

WV Project ECHO MAT

PI: Jay Mason

WV Project ECHO MAT will allow organizations to learn more about Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), start MAT programs, and offer organizations already offering MAT to receive ongoing consultation and assistance. This project aims to expand the WV ECHO program to MAT. Community health centers, primary care and other physicians and behavioral health providers will have an opportunity to be trained in opioid addiction treatment using MAT combined with therapy, at no cost, delivered right to your clinic using simple videoconferencing technology.

 

A Pilot Test of the Ask Suicide Screening Questions (ASQ) Toolkit in West Virginia Primary Care

PI: Mary LeCloux

West Virginians are at comparatively high risk for suicide and associated mental health and substance abuse related problems. Primary care providers (PCP's) are uniquely positioned to address suicide prevention in their practices, as the majority individuals who die by suicide visit a primary care provider in the months and year prior to their death. The main objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of the ASQ Toolkit as a universal suicide risk screening measure in two West Virginia Primary Care practices.

 

Facilitating Improved Patient Engagement in Weight Management Through mHealth Technology Use in Patients’ Visit Waiting Time

PI: Treah Haggerty, MD, MS; (WVU)

Poster presentation at North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) Annual Meeting, Colorado Springs, CO. November 2016. (International forum)

 

WV Chronic Pain ECHO Project

PI: Sally Hodder, MD, (WVU); Craig Robinson (Cabin Creek)

Project ECHO Chronic Pain is a learning and guided practice model for medical education that was developed out of the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine. Videoconferences will allow chronic pain specialists to share their expertise to rural providers throughout West Virginia. Provide a model of effective care coordination in regards to chronic pain, cut down specialist referrals, and wait times for patients to see specialists.      

                WV ECHO website

 

Rural WV Responds to Opioid Injection Epidemic

PI: Judith Feinberg, MD (WVU)

West Virginia (WV) has the highest drug overdose fatality and hepatitis B rates in the U.S., especially in the rural southern coalfield counties. By developing a novel, integrated prevention, harm reduction and treatment strategy to rapidly identify and mitigate HIV microepidemics, we can limit further spread and reduce hazardous IDU in southern WV.

 

Barriers to Accurate Medication Reconciliation        

PI: Jill Cochran, PhD (WVSOM)

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation HOPE Award

The goal is to assess the feasibility of implementing the Medications at Transition and Clinical Handoffs (MATCH) toolkit within a rural primary care center, a process designed to reduce medication errors and patient harm as they transition across healthcare entities. In order to meet the goal, researchers conducted a data analysis using clinic and hospital data to conduct data validation and create a demographic profile of patients at highest risk of hospital readmission, completed focus groups with clinic and hospital staff and interviews with patients/caregivers, and implement the MATCH process across healthcare systems.

 

App Development and Feasibility Testing for Overweight and Obese Pregnant Women       

PI: Peter Giacobbi, PhD (WVU)

WVCTSI Pilot Grant

The purpose of this study is to develop an app with guided imagery content help from the WVPBRN, to address diet and increasing physical activity using technology and evaluate the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of the app in 50 pregnant women. Secondary outcomes will include survey measures of self-efficacy diet, food cravings and physical activity and neonatal morbidity. This app can be used by pregnant women in waiting room areas and home. Preliminary clinical perceptions of guided imagery was also collected to utilize in this and future studies.

Potential Use of Guided Imagery       

 

WV Collaborative for Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Screening

PI: Danielle Davidov, PhD (WVU)

PCORI Tier Program I

The partnership team will connect with communities to form the West Virginia Collaborative for IPV Screening including IPV service providers and advocacy groups, IPV victims and survivors (patients), healthcare systems, researchers, criminal justice system representatives, and policymakers. The WVPBRN will help identify practices and providers to join the Collaborative. 

 

ePHQ-2: a multi-center correlation study of a depression screening method in WV

PIs: Mary Ann Maurer, MD (Charleston Div); Mathew Weimer, MD (Valley Health Systems)

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation

The study will examine possible differences in positive results of a depression screening based on scripting face-to-face versus scripting IPAD format for this increasing ubiquitous screening tool already in use in order to inform practice and policy change among WV Alliance for Creative Health Solutions membership and other primary care settings.

 

Project ECHO Hep C         

PIs: Sally Hodder, MD (WVU); Amber Crist/Craig Robinson (Cabin Creek)

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation

Project ECHO Hepatitis C is a learning and guided practice model for medical education that was developed out of the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine. Videoconferences will allow Hepatitis C specialists to share their expertise to rural providers throughout West Virginia. Provide a model of effective care coordination in regards to Hepatitis C, cut down specialist referrals, and wait times for patients to see specialists.         

                  WV ECHO website  

 

WVPBRN Resident Learning Collaborative      

PIs: William Lewis, MD (Eastern); Treah Haggerty, MD (WVU)

This group aims to increase capacity for residents to engage in quality improvement. Primary care Residents were surveyed to assess their experience, perceptions, and confidence in research and quality improvement projects. The survey results will guide the development of training modules to encourage and build capacity in clinical research and quality improvement.

Presented: NAPCRG PBRN Conference, June 23, 2017, Bethesda, MD

Training Modules:

  • Determining the rate of diabetic retinopathy in a rural health clinic (IRIS 2)
  • Part 2 PI: Jonathan Kline, PHARMD (Eastern)
  • WVCTSI Community Engagement Demonstration
  • This project aims to establish state-wide capacity for providing access to diabetic eye care that could eventually lead to severe visual impairment or blindness if left undetected or untreated; to establish a telehealth care process to evaluate the business model; begin process improvement to optimize the model incorporated in rural West Virginia clinics and create a sustainability plan by informing policy changes affecting insurance coverage of the scanning device technology.

 

Vision threatening eye disease in WV: WV Sight Outreach Program (IRIS 1)

Part 1 PIs: Ron Gross MD (WVU); Dana King, MD (WVU)

Alcon Foundation; Allergan Foundation
Presented: NAPCRG PBRN Conference- June 22, 2017, Bethesda, MD
NAPCRG PBRN Conference- July 11, 2016, Bethesda, MD
APHA Conference- November 1, 2016, Denver, COHIMSS Webinar- June 14, 2017

                  IRIS Case Study

 

Active Community Projects

New River Gorge Health Alliance     

Lead: Melanie Seiler (Active SWV)

The New River Gorge Health Alliance, established in 2017, are aiming to address the needs of 1) developing a resource directory for Nicholas, Fayette, Raleigh, and Summers Counties, and 2) establishing a network of various stakeholders to implement evidence-based information and techniques in their communities to address local needs.

                  Active SWV: Alliance website

 

Live Well: Greenbrier County (Greenbrier County Regional Health Alliance)

Lead: Sally Hurst (WVSOM)

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation

Greenbrier County Health Alliance is a collaborative partnership that empowers all local communities in Greenbrier County to improve health through community action, innovative programming and grassroots advocacy.

                  Website