Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:There is growing recognition that healthcare should align with individuals' health priorities; however, these priorities remain undefined, especially among older adults. The Rehabilitation Using Mobile Health for Older Adults with Ischemic Heart Disease in the Home Setting (RESILIENT) trial, designed to test the efficacy of mobile health cardiac rehabilitation (mHealth-CR) in an older cohort, also measures the attainment of participant-defined health outcome goals as a prespecified secondary endpoint. This study aimed to characterize the health priorities of older adults with ischemic heart disease (IHD) using goal attainment scaling-a technique for measuring individualized goal achievement-in a sample of 100 RESILIENT participants. METHODS:The ongoing RESILIENT trial randomizes patients aged ≥65 years with IHD (defined as hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome and/or coronary revascularization), to receive mHealth-CR or usual care. For the current study, we qualitatively coded baseline goal attainment scales from randomly selected batches of 20 participants to identify participants' cardiac rehabilitation outcome goals and their perceptions of barriers and action plans for goal attainment. We used a deductive framework (i.e., 4 value categories from Patient Priorities Care) and inductive approaches to code and analyze interviews until thematic saturation. RESULTS:This sample of 100 older adults set diverse health outcome goals. Most (54.6%) prioritized physical activity, fewer (17.1%) identified symptom management, fewer still (13.7%) prioritized health metrics, mostly comprised of weight loss goals (10.3%), and the fewest (<4%) were related to clinical metrics such as reducing cholesterol or preventing hospital readmission. Participants anticipated extrinsic (access to places to exercise, time) and intrinsic (non-cardiac pain, motivation) barriers. Action plans detailed strategies for exercise, motivation, accountability, and overcoming time constraints. CONCLUSIONS:Using goal attainment scaling, we elicited specific and measurable goals among older adults with IHD beginning cardiac rehabilitation. Priorities were predominantly functional, diverging from clinical metrics emphasized by clinicians and healthcare systems.

BACKGROUND:Research demonstrates the importance of documenting adaptations to implementation strategies that support integration of evidence-based interventions into practice. While studies have utilized the FRAME-IS [Framework for Reporting Adaptations and Modifications for Implementation Strategies] to collect structured adaptation data, they are limited by a focus on discrete implementation strategies (e.g., training), which do not reflect the complexity of multifaceted strategies like practice facilitation. In this paper, we apply the FRAME-IS to our trial evaluating the effectiveness of PF on implementation fidelity of an evidence-based technology-facilitated team care model for improved hypertension control within a federally qualified health center (FQHC). METHODS:Three data sources are used to document adaptations: (1) implementation committee meeting minutes, (2) narrative reports completed by practice facilitators, and (3) structured notes captured on root cause analysis and Plan-Do-Study-Act worksheets. Text was extracted from the data sources according to the FRAME-IS modules and inputted into a master matrix for content analysis by two authors; a third author conducted member checking and code validation. RESULTS:We modified the FRAME-IS to include part 2 of module 2 (what is modified) to add greater detail of the modified strategy, and a numbering system to track adaptations across the modules. This resulted in identification of 27 adaptations, of which 88.9% focused on supporting practices in identifying eligible patients and referring them to the intervention. About half (52.9%) of the adaptations were made to modify the context of the PF strategy to include a group-based format, add community health workers to the strategy, and to shift the implementation target to nurses. The adaptations were often widespread (83.9%), affecting all practices within the FQHC. While most adaptations were reactive (84.6%), they resulted from a systematic process of reviewing data captured by multiple sources. All adaptations included the FQHC in the decision-making process. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:With modifications, we demonstrate the ability to document our adaptation data across the FRAME-IS modules, attesting to its applicability and value for a range of implementation strategies. Based on our experiences, we recommend refinement of tracking systems to support more nimble and practical documentation of iterative, ongoing, and multifaceted adaptations. TRIAL REGISTRATION/BACKGROUND:Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03713515, Registration date: October 19, 2018.

BACKGROUND:Despite decades of evidence demonstrating the efficacy of hypertension care delivery in reducing morbidity and mortality, a majority of hypertension cases remain uncontrolled. There is an urgent need to elucidate and address multilevel facilitators and barriers clinical staff face in delivering evidence-based hypertension care, patients face in accessing it, and clinical systems face in sustaining it. Through a rigorous pre-implementation evaluation, we aimed to identify facilitators and barriers bearing the potential to affect the planned implementation of a multilevel technology-facilitated hypertension management trial across six primary care sites in a large federally qualified health center (FQHC) in New York City. METHODS:During a dedicated pre-implementation period (3-9 months/site, 2021-2022), a capacity assessment was conducted by trained practice facilitators, including (1) online anonymous surveys (n = 124; 70.5% of eligible), (2) hypertension training analytics (n = 69; 94.5% of assigned), and (3) audio-recorded semi-structured interviews (n = 67; 48.6% of eligible) with FQHC leadership and staff. Surveys measured staff sociodemographic characteristics, adaptive reserve, evidence-based practice attitudes, and implementation leadership scores via validated scales. Training analytics, derived from end-of-course quizzes, included mean score and number attempts needed to pass. Interviews assessed staff-reported facilitators and barriers to current hypertension care delivery and uptake; following audio transcription, trained qualitative researchers employed a deductive coding approach, informed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). RESULTS:Most survey respondents reported moderate adaptive reserve (mean = 0.7, range = 0-1), evidence-based practice attitudes (mean = 2.7, range = 0-4), and implementation leadership (mean = 2.5, range = 0-4). Most staff passed training courses on first attempt and demonstrated high scores (means > 80%). Findings from interviews identified potential facilitators and barriers to implementation; specifically, staff reported that complex barriers to hypertension care, control, and clinical communication exist; there is a recognized need to improve hypertension care; in-clinic challenges with digital tool access imposes workflow delays; and despite high patient loads, staff are motivated to provide high-quality cares. CONCLUSIONS:This study serves as one of the first to apply the CFIR to a rigorous pre-implementation evaluation within the understudied context of a FQHC and can serve as a model for similar trials seeking to identify and address contextual factors known to impact implementation success. TRIAL REGISTRATION/BACKGROUND:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03713515 , date of registration: October 19, 2018.

Digital health implementations and investments continue to expand. As the reliance on digital health increases, it is imperative to implement technologies with inclusive and accessible approaches. A conceptual model can be used to guide equity-focused digital health implementations to improve suitability and uptake in diverse populations. The objective of this study is expand an implementation model with recommendations on the equitable implementation of new digital health technologies. The Digital Health Equity-Focused Implementation Research (DH-EquIR) conceptual model was developed based on a rigorous review of digital health implementation and health equity literature. The Equity-Focused Implementation Research for Health Programs (EquIR) model was used as a starting point and merged with digital equity and digital health implementation models. Existing theoretical frameworks and models were appraised as well as individual equity-sensitive implementation studies. Patient and program-related concepts related to digital equity, digital health implementation, and assessment of social/digital determinants of health were included. Sixty-two articles were analyzed to inform the adaption of the EquIR model for digital health. These articles included digital health equity models and frameworks, digital health implementation models and frameworks, research articles, guidelines, and concept analyses. Concepts were organized into EquIR conceptual groupings, including population health status, planning the program, designing the program, implementing the program, and equity-focused implementation outcomes. The adapted DH-EquIR conceptual model diagram was created as well as detailed tables displaying related equity concepts, evidence gaps in source articles, and analysis of existing equity-related models and tools. The DH-EquIR model serves to guide digital health developers and implementation specialists to promote the inclusion of health-equity planning in every phase of implementation. In addition, it can assist researchers and product developers to avoid repeating the mistakes that have led to inequities in the implementation of digital health across populations.

BACKGROUND:, a diverse workforce alone is not sufficient; rather holistic health equity should be established as the anchoring principal mission of all academic medical centres, residing at the intersection of clinical care, education, research and community. METHODS:, which serves as the organising framework through which we conduct embedded pragmatic research in our healthcare delivery system to target and eliminate health inequities across our tripartite mission of patient care, medical education and research. RESULTS:. These elements include: (1) developing processes for collecting accurate disaggregate data on race, ethnicity and language, sexual orientation and gender identity and disability; (2) using a data-driven approach to identify health equity gaps; (3) creating performance and metric-based quality improvement goals to measure progress toward elimination of health equity gaps; (4) investigating the root cause of the identified health equity gap; (5) developing and evaluating evidence-based solutions to address and resolve the inequities; and (6) continuous monitoring and feedback for system improvements. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:can provide a model for how academic medical centres can use pragmatic research to embed a culture of health equity into their health system.

Research has linked spatial concentrations of incarceration with racial disparities in adverse birth outcomes. However, little is known about the specific mechanisms of this association. This represents an important knowledge gap in terms of intervention. We theorize two pathways that may account for the association between county-level prison rates and adverse birth outcomes: (1) community-level mental distress and (2) reduced health care access. Examining these mechanisms, we conducted a cross-sectional study of county-level prison rates, community-level mental distress, health insurance, availability of primary care physicians (PCP) and mental health providers (MHP), and adverse birth outcomes (preterm birth, low birth weight, infant mortality). Our data set included 475 counties and represented 2,677,840 live U.S. births in 2016. Main analyses involved between 170 and 326 counties. All data came from publicly available sources, including the U.S. Census and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Descriptive and regression results confirmed the link between prison rates and adverse birth outcomes and highlighted Black-White inequities in this association. Further, bootstrap mediation analyses indicated that the impact of spatially concentrated prison rates on preterm birth was mediated by PCP, MHP, community-level mental distress, and health insurance in both crude and adjusted models. Community-level mental distress and health insurance (but not PCP or MHP) similarly mediated low birthweight in both models. Mediators were less stable in the effect on infant mortality with only MHP mediating consistently across models. We conclude that mass incarceration, health care access, and community mental distress represent actionable and urgent targets for structural-, community-, and individual-level interventions targeting population inequities in birth outcomes.

CONTEXT/UNASSIGNED:Minoritized populations such as racial and ethnic minorities and individuals of less privileged socioeconomic status experience a disproportionate burden of poor hypertension (HTN) control in the United States. Multilevel systems interventions have been shown to improve patient-level outcomes in minoritized populations; however, there remains a large translational gap in implementing these approaches into federally qualified health centers (FQHC), which serve those at highest risk of HTN-related morbidity and mortality. The paucity of purposeful collaborations between academic researchers and practice staff throughout the research process remains a significant roadblock to the timely translation of evidence to practice. DESIGN/UNASSIGNED:This commentary describes the key principles and best practices that underlie the development and sustainment of an equitable research-practice alignment, which is supporting the implementation of multilevel systems intervention for improved HTN care in a large FQHC in Brooklyn, New York. The key principles, which are derived from the central tenants of relationship development and maintenance in community-engaged participatory research, patient-centered outcomes research, and organizational alignment theory include (1) cocreation of a shared mental model, (2) bridging multilevel communication, (3) ensuring mutual accountability, and (4) creating a culture of continuous improvement. CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:Together, the principles guide how the research and practice teams work together to achieve a shared goal of improving the health and well-being of minoritized patients through the provision of high quality, community-oriented HTN care. Best practices to sustain our alignment require an ongoing and deliberate investment in honest and transparent communication by all members.

OBJECTIVE:Chronic social isolation is a risk factor for all-cause mortality and disease progression, but is not routinely screened for in clinical settings. This study analyzed provider-patient communication patterns about social influences during primary care encounters, to identify opportunities to screen for objective or perceived social isolation. METHODS:Content analysis was conducted on transcripts of 97 audiotaped, English-speaking patient encounters with 27 primary care providers at 3 safety-net primary care centers in New York City. Conversations were first coded for specific social isolation screening, then more broadly to quantify and qualify how social influences were discussed in relation to health. RESULTS:Transcripts included no explicit examples of social isolation screening. Social influences on health were discussed meaningfully in only 28 % of transcripts, compared to medication adherence (93 %) and diet (64 %). Patients initiated conversations about social influences on health twice as often as providers, however providers did not acknowledge 67% of these prompts. CONCLUSION:Social influences on health, including social isolation, were uncommonly discussed in this sample of primary care visits. When social influences were discussed meaningfully, providers utilized relationship-centered communication strategies. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS:Strategic conversations about social influences, even when brief and informal, can effectively screen patients for social isolation.