The UAMS Translational Research Institute (TRI) has approved research pilot study awards for four researchers totaling $200,000.
The annual awards of up to $50,000 each are made to projects with the strongest likelihood of leading to improved health and health care. This is the first year TRI has offered awards for pilots focused on implementation science projects.
Implementation science is the study of methods to promote the systematic uptake of research findings and other evidence-based practices into routine practice to improve the quality and effectiveness of health services.
Awardees were selected using a Study Section modeled after an NIH review panel, with internal, external and community reviewers. The awardees are:
Pearl McElfish, Ph.D., MBA, Associate Vice Chancellor, Northwest Arkansas Campus, Director of the Office of Community Health and Research, Co-Director of the Center for Pacific Islander Health, Assistant Professor, Internal Medicine
Pilot project: Implementation of Family Model DSME in an Underserved Marshallese Population in a Clinical Setting
Benjamin Teeter, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Pharmacy Practice, Center for Implementation Research
Pilot project: Testing Implementation Strategies to Support Community Pharmacist-Initiated Prescription and Distribution of Naloxone to Reduce Overdose by Opioids
Jeremy Thomas, Pharm.D., Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice
Pilot project: Implementation of Clinical Pharmacy Services Delivered via Telehealth to Federally Qualified Healthcare Centers
Kristin Zorn, M.D., Associate Professor, Gynecology Oncology and Genetics
Pilot project: An Implementation Strategy to Increase Appropriate Referrals for Genetic Counseling and Testing Among Patients at High Risk for Hereditary Cancer Syndromes