Partnership Development and Sustainability Support Program (PDSS) 2021-2022 Awardees Announced | Clinical & Translational Sciences

The Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences announced three partnerships selected to receive funding through the 2021-2022 Partnership Development and Sustainability Support (PDSS) program. This funding program provides up to $10,000 to new and existing community-academic partnerships for a 9-month period. It enables partners to develop the trust, infrastructure, capacity and skills needed to undertake future research.

The awarded partnerships include:

Building Partnerships to Bridge to Extramural Funding for Implementation of a Multi-component Contraceptive Care Program

Tessa Madden, MD, MPH, Associate Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Washington University School of Medicine with AllianceChicago

Summary: This award will be used to build a partnership between researchers in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine, AllianceChicago, and community health centers (CHCs) participating in AllianceChicago’s network with the objective of applying for a PCORI implementation grant. The partners will work together to formalize a partnership agreement, identify CHCs for participation in the implementation study, interview key CHC stakeholders to understand current contraceptive care, identify patients for a patient advisory board, and obtain baseline contraceptive data.

Healthy Eating & Active Living Taught at Home (HEALTH)

Rachel Tabak, PhD, Research Associate Professor, Prevention Research Center, Brown School at Washington University with Parents as Teachers National Center

Summary: The HEALTH team has partnered on a number of large research projects, developing at-home testing programs that embed healthy eating and activity content within the Parents as Teachers (PAT) Program. We aim to further sustain and advance this partnership by building a better understanding of and developing methods to use the data PAT routinely collects during practice through a system called PENELOPE (a case management records system). This will allow for studies that reduce the burden on participants in terms of data collection and that allow for analysis of current practice.

Resilience through Engagement – A Telehealth Wellness Program for Older Adults

Selena Washington, PhD, OTR/L, Assistant Professor of Occupational Science and Occupational Health, Doisy College of Health Sciences at Saint Louis University; Kelsey Weitzel, Assistant Extension Professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, University of Missouri-Columbia; and Marla Berg-Weger, PhD, MSW, Executive Director of the Geriatric Education Center, Saint Louis University School of Social Work with Wesley House

Summary: Social isolation, fear, stress, and loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic threatens older adults’ resilience (the ability to cope); which jeopardizes their health, level of occupational engagement, and overall well-being. This project will utilize two evidence-based programs, Circle Friends and Stay Strong Stay Healthy, to address social and occupational engagement, and physical strength/ mobility; for at-risk populations, currently social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. This partnership will focus on the development, outcomes, and sustainability of this comprehensive program through virtual delivery and minimal in-person contact.