I-HEAL: A DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOCUSED PROGRAM AWARD
Improving Health Care Access and Engagement for Veterans and Service Members with TBI Morbidity (I-HEAL) was funded as a Focused Program Award by the Department of Defense (DOD) via the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) in 2023 to accelerate translation of research as highlighted in the 2022 NASEM report on Accelerating Progress in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Drs. Risa Nakase-Richardson, Jolie Haun, and Megan Moore are leveraging methods from the field of implementation science, including community-based participatory research, to address quality of healthcare gaps for persons with brain injury.
OVERARCHING STUDY GOALS: IMPROVING ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY HEALTHCARE
- Leverage Implementation Science and Human Centered Design in developing products. Create ready-to-use and relevant products supporting access to high-quality healthcare services for those with cognitive difficulties. Products are developed for five main stakeholder groups: providers, policymakers, administrators, patients with TBI, and caregivers of patients with TBI.
- Embrace Community Based Participatory Research best practices. Engage with community stakeholders to strengthen the alignment of research and products with lived experiences.
- Support workforce development both on the I-HEAL team and by presenting at conferences and workshops on the use of evidence-based treatment for TBI in increasing access to high-quality healthcare.
I-HEAL MULTI-PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS
I-HEAL’S INFRASTRUCTURE
I-HEAL consists of four individual projects and four supportive cores synergistically working to increase the quality of healthcare for people with TBI. A brief description of each project and core can be found below.
Each project is overseen by one or more Principal Investigators (PIs) and supported by core members and individual experience partners (clinicians or administrators).
A note within a patient's health record to tell providers that the patient experiences cognitive challenges and may need additional support such as caregiver inclusion.
A resource guide for providers to accommodate people with cognitive disability in need of behavioral health interventions common in polytrauma populations (PTSD, Sleep Disorders, Chronic Pain, and Depression).
A training manual and implementation plan for workforce development training in evidence-based behavior management for rehabilitation providers working with patients who experience behavior changes due to TBI.
Policy recommendations for using virtual health resources with patients with TBI. Recommendations are based on existing research and best practices.
The I-HEAL Cores provide ongoing support so that the projects can move the innovations forward. Cores complete the “business side” of the I-HEAL grant and help disseminate our work to internal and external stakeholders including the broader public.
- People who can speak to their lived experience of TBI or caregiving for a loved one with TBI, also known as Lived Experience Partners (LEP).
- Professionals from influential organizations who advise on all aspects of individual studies, also known as Individual Study Partners (IEP).
- Professionals from influential organizations who advise on the dissemination plan and policy, also known as Policy and Professional Partners (PPP).
SUPPORTING MATERIALS
A list of commonly used abbreviations in I-HEAL's work.