Research Core (RC) at CHOIR
RC LEADERSHIP TEAM
Jonathan Greenberg, PhD; RC Co-Lead
Ryan Mace, PhD; RC Co-Lead
Barrett Laird, MPH; Project Manager
Elizabeth Allen, MS, MPH; Data Analyst
MISSION: TO SUPPORT THE GROWTH OF THE CHOIR RESEARCH FOOTPRINT THROUGH RESEARCH-RELATED INFRASTRUCTURE, RESOURCES AND COLLABORATIONS.
Consistent with the overall mission of CHOIR, the Core advances research in healthcare in four priority areas: 1) intervention development, 2) clinical trials, 3) digital health technology, and 4) biostatistics.
Our interventions are informed by the NIH stage model of intervention development and the Science of Behavior Change. We use user-centered designs, qualitative and mixed methods, and community-engaged principles to engage research partners and communities as early as possible in the intervention development process to facilitate implementation.
The Research Core works closely with the Community Engaged Core to bring interventions to communities, as well as with the Educational and Training Core to support the growth of investigators consistent with the mission of CHOIR.
INTERVENTION DEVELOPMENT:
The Research Core will support the development, from conceptualization to implementation, of evidence-based mind-body and lifestyle interventions that improve health outcomes and wellbeing for patients, caregivers and dyads in both hospital and community settings. Additional objectives include:
To provide expertise in intervention development frameworks and research methods.
To help researchers develop evidence-based interventions that are feasible and acceptable to patients and research partners.
To help researchers evaluate the feasibility of interventions through iterative user centered designs.
To help researchers disseminate intervention development findings.
The research core aims to attain these objectives by supporting CHOIR researchers through:
Providing consultation on topics related to intervention development, including: the intervention development (e.g., NIH Stage Model) and mechanistic frameworks (e.g., Science of Behavior Change); qualitative and mixed methods; data collection, management, and analysis; project management; digital health; and grant writing.
Developing a database with a repository of seminal published scientific work across the stages of intervention development, including theoretical frameworks and intervention development models.
Providing templates and examples of successful intervention development grants and manuscripts.
Providing resources for collecting and integrating mixed-methods data to inform intervention development, adaptation, and optimization.
CLINICAL TRIALS:
The Research Core will support the design and conduct of rigorous clinical trials across the stages of intervention development (from development and feasibility testing to implementation and dissemination). Additional objectives include:
To improve the recruitment, enrollment, and retention of target populations.
To ensure the safety and ethical treatment of trial participants.
To disseminate trial findings and promote their implementation in clinical practice.
The research core aims to attain these objectives by:
Providing consultation on the design and conduct of both in-person and remote clinical trials.
Creating research resources (e.g., IRB, data management, study checklists and standard operating procedures, measurement, etc.).
Supporting the integration of mixed-methods data collection and analysis into clinical trials.
Providing resources and templates for IRB protocols and documents.
Providing resources regarding appropriate journals to target for various clinical trial findings (e.g., journal scope, impact factor, publication types, criteria, etc.).
Supporting researchers with administrative and compliance aspects of clinical trials operations.
DIGITAL HEALTH TECHNOLOGY:
The Research Core will support the development and evaluation of digital health technologies that improve patient outcomes and enhance healthcare delivery. Additional objectives include:
To remain up-to-date with rapidly evolving technologies and research best practices.
To incorporate user-centered design principles to ensure that tools are digitally inclusive and appropriate for diverse patient populations.
To protect patient privacy and ensure the security of digital health technologies.
To disseminate digital health technology findings and promote their implementation in clinical practice.
The research core aims to attain these objectives by:
Supporting the integration of digital health technology (e.g., live video, smartphone apps, web-based platforms, virtual reality) into intervention development studies and clinical trials.
Providing consultation to troubleshoot design and operations challenges with digital health technologies in ongoing studies.
Creating training resources for both staff and patients on the successful use of digital health technologies in research studies.
Facilitating partnerships with industry to identify and acquire digital health technologies for CHOIR research.
BIOSTATISTICS:
The Research Core will provide biostatistics support on statistical methods and data analysis techniques to enhance the quality and impact of CHOIR research studies. Additional objectives include:
To stay at the forefront of biostatistical methodologies and research best practices, ensuring that our work is informed by the latest advancements in the field.
To rigorously design, analyze, and interpret data from intervention development, clinical trial, and digital health studies using appropriate statistical methods.
To oversee data management and quality assurance processes, thereby maximizing the reliability and validity of research findings.
To effectively communicate biostatistics in research writing and translate findings into clinical practice.
The Research Core aims to attain these objectives by:
Developing systems and policies to ensure that data are accurately collected, managed, and maintained, contributing to the overall quality of research studies.
Providing consultation and support for statistical plans, data management and analysis, software, and writing.
Identify biostatistics educators and collaborators to provide expert guidance to CHOIR in addressing methodological challenges.
Developing educational and training resources to enhance statistical literacy and proficiency with analysis software.