Researchers in this area focus on investigating the effective integration of evidence-based practices and interventions into real world settings. Research topics include Health System Care Delivery (e.g. evidence based research, cost reduction and quality) and Adoption and Application of new and best practices.
Andres Azuero, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Azuero's focus is on the design, management, and analysis of clinical trials and health interventions, and the use of statistical and machine learning techniques for modeling treatment response and observational data. He is experienced in a broad spectrum of classical statistical and machine learning techniques. He collaborates in several research projects within and outside UAB. His research interests include multivariate models: general and generalized linear models, linear and generalized linear mixed models, recursive partitioning and ensemble models, dimension reduction techniques, cluster analysis, structural equation models, large scale testing, and power and sample size estimation.
Marie Bakitas, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Improving Health Across the Lifespan (iHEAL) T32 Training Program (Contact MPI)
NIH/NINR/T32NR021681-01
This award is to establish the inaugural University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Nursing T32 training program, Improving HEalth Across the Lifespan (iHEAL), which will be one of the first few Deep South nurse scientist training programs addressing comprehensive healthy living from a life-course lens. This program aims to cultivate the next generation of nurse scientists who can address a wide variety of health challenges through lenses of health disparities, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Through high-quality mentorship, experiential learning, and required coursework, pre- and postdoctoral trainees will acquire in-depth knowledge about transdisciplinary research, research ethics, professional development, and leadership skills.
A Community-Developed, Culturally-Based Palliative Care Tele-Consult Program for African American and White Rural Southern Elders with A Life-limiting Illness
NIH/NINR/NR017181
This study compares a robust, culturally-based Palliative Care Tele-consult program to usual hospital care to determine whether a culturally-based Palliative Care Tele-consult program leads to lower symptom burden (primary aim) and higher patient and caregiver quality of life, care satisfaction, and lower caregiver burden at Day 7 post-consultation, and lower resource use 30-days post-discharge (secondary aim) in hospitalized African American and White older adults with a life-limiting illness.
SWOG NCORP Research Base
NIH/NCI NCORP
The SWOG Cancer Research Network is a global, publicly-funded clinical trials network that designs and conducts trials to improve cancer treatment, prevention, and survivorship care. SWOG committee Co-Chairs are expected to work with the committee chair to provide strategic direction within their committees, contribute to the strategic planning of SWOG, and participate regularly in the management of the group. Committee specific activities include oversight and input regarding developing and ongoing protocols, mentoring investigators, trial monitoring, analysis and reporting or results, partnering with committee patient advocates, evaluating and incorporating diversity and disparities and leveraging SWOG resources.
Learn more about the SWOG Cancer Research NetworkOpens an external link.
Comparative Effectiveness Trial of Early Integrated Telehealth versus In-Person Palliative Care for Patients with Advanced Lung Cancer (REACH PC)
PCORI/Mass. General Hospital
The purpose of this project is to serve as a recruitment site with target enrollment and retention of sixty (60) subjects at baseline and follow-up.
InSPIRe:CF (Integrating Specialist PC to Improve care and Reduce Suffering: CF): A Multi-Site Study
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation/Emory University/KAVAL20Q10
This phase III, multisite, randomized clinical trial, sponsored by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, compares care as usual by a CF clinic team, versus usual care plus palliative care by a palliative care specialist.
Introducing Palliative Care within the Treatment of End-Stage Liver Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial
PCORI (PLC-1609036174)
Comparative effectiveness of 2 possible palliative care (PC) models for patients with end-stage liver disease in improving quality of life (QoL) from baseline to 4 months as assessed using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Hepatobiliary (FACT-HEP).
Felesia Bowen, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for Children
HRSA/H17MC48968
This funding is to lead an initiative to reduce childhood obesity and its associated poor health outcomes in the Birmingham area.
Read more about Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for ChildrenOpens an external link.
Crystal Chapman Lambert, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Feasibility of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Intervention for Black Women Living with HIV
NIH/ National Center for Complementary & Integrative Health/5K23AT01056
African American women (AA), living with HIV are at higher risk for experiencing stressful life events which can lead to deleterious health outcomes. Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction offers a complementary and integrative approach for reducing stress as a mechanism for improving HIV treatment adherence behaviors, HIV viral load suppression and survival. The objective of this study is to culturally adapt an existing Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction intervention to meet the needs of African American women living with HIV and assess the feasibility and acceptability of the adapted intervention among the target population.
Enhance social support for Black women with HIV Using Technology
Betty Irene Moore Foundation Fellowship
Learn more about the 2023 Betty Irene Moore FellowsOpens an external link.
Jessica Corcoran, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Exploring Adolescent Healthcare Providers’ Sexual Health Discussions and STI Screening Process
Internal Funding/Dean’s Scholar Award
The purpose of this internal pilot study is to examine adolescent healthcare providers’ knowledge, practices, experiences, and attitudes surrounding sexual health discussions and sexually transmitted infections screening at routine well-child visits. This pilot study will inform the development of a larger study to develop and test an intervention to increase healthcare providers’ sexual health discussions with adolescents and improve screening rates for sexually transmitted infections.
Tracey Dick, PhD
Scholarly Projects
US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Quality Scholars Program
Dr. Dick is Associate Director of the VA Quality Scholars Program at the Birmingham VA Health Care System. The Veterans Health Administration (VA) National Quality Scholars (VAQS) Fellowship Program is a two-year, post-residency fellowship for physicians and pre-doctoral and post-doctoral fellowship for nurses. It promotes leadership in quality improvement research; participants learn to develop and apply knowledge for the ongoing improvement of healthcare services for the VA and the nation.
Learn more about the Veterans Affairs (VA) National Quality Scholars ProgramOpens an external link.
US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Nursing Services
Dr. Dick is leading a VA multi-site team to complete an operational improvement project for the VA National Office of Nursing Services.
Karen Heaton, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Deep South Occupational Safety and Health Education Research Center
NIOSH/T42OH008436
The purpose of this project is to prepare occupational health nurses in both master’s and doctoral programs. The Deep South Center offers students rigorous studies to prepare for full interaction with other occupational health and safety professionals in planning and implementing occupational health and safety programs.
Firefighter Cardiovascular Risk Reduction Using a Kiosk and Telehealth Approach: The Redline Study
Dean’s Scholar Award/Internal Funding
The purpose of this study is to examine the efficacy and feasibility of using a kiosk and telehealth coaching to optimize hypertension and obesity management among a sample of full-time, paid, career fire fighters.
Allison Jones, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Feasibility and Acceptability of Stop the Bleed® Training Among Truck Drivers
Deep South Center for Occupational Health & Safety Pilot/Small Projects Research Training Program
Though large trucks account for <5% of registered vehicles in the U.S., commercial truck drivers comprise a workforce of an estimated size of 2.2 million and are involved in roughly 9% of fatal motor vehicle crashes. Among those critically injured, uncontrolled bleeding is the primary preventable cause of death. The purpose of this pilot study sponsored by the Deep South Center for Occupational Health and Safety is to assess current emergency preparedness practices among commercial truck drivers, and determine their willingness to complete Stop the Bleed® training and provide bleeding control aid if they witness or experience injury on the roadway.
Preparing Emergency Responders to Control Bleeding: The PRESS Study
2023 UAB School of Nursing Dean’s Scholar Award
Firefighters and police (emergency responders) are typically among the first to reach patients who are critically injured, making receipt of standardized, evidence-based bleeding control training essential for patient survival. The Stop the Bleed® (STB) campaign was launched by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in 2015 to disseminate standardized, evidence-based bleeding control training for civilians. The purpose of Preparing Emergency Responders (PRESS) pilot study is to evaluate STB training outcomes and assess current adoption and implementation practices among emergency responders.
Emma Kay, PhD
Scholarly Projects
A Harm Reduction Approach to Addressing the HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Substance Use Syndemic Among People Engaging in Sex Work in Alabama
NIH/UAB Centers for AIDS Research/P30AI02776
There are currently no CDC-recognized evidence-based interventions focused on sex workers despite their dramatic vulnerability to HIV and other sexually transmitted infection (STIs). We intend to directly address the needs of this severely underserved population by leveraging the expertise of Birmingham AIDS Outreach (BAO), which has a compelling track record of reaching and providing services to individuals engaging in sex work. In response to “Ending the HIV Epidemic” EHE Priority 1a of this NOSI, we will use syndemic theory as our framework to develop a PrEP intervention for sex workers that responds to and addresses salient barriers as well as co-occurring health concerns.
Using Geospatial Mapping and Epidemiologic Methods to Identify and Support Persons Who Inject Drugs (PWID) at Risk for HIV in Alabama
NIH/UAB Centers for AIDS Research/P30AI027767
The objective of this application is to 1) leverage hospital and community-level data to identify AL counties at greatest risk for an HIV outbreak among people who inject drugs and 2) engage community partners to identify needs and opportunities to build community capacity. The overall goal of this proposal is to inform implementation strategies to integrate person-centered HIV, harm reduction, and addiction services for people who inject drugs in AL.
Drive to Zero: Developing a digital cohort to understand the drivers of non-sustained viral suppression in the Deep South
NIH/NIAID/1UG3AI176566-01
Leveraging our previous HIV surveillance work with health departments, the goal of this study is to refine an mHealth app based on community feedback, WiseApp, to recruit, screen, enroll, and retain a large digital cohort of people with HIV (PWH) aged ≥ 18 years old (n=1000) who are either virally unsuppressed or who have no evidence of HIV labs within the past 12 months. The study will be conducted in the Deep South, the area of the country with the highest rates of morbidity and mortality, including the states of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The findings from this study will inform efforts to recruit large, digital cohorts of people with HIV, will be among the first to demonstrate effective methods of retaining digital cohorts for HIV as well as other health conditions, and help identify multilevel factors that contribute to non-sustained viral suppression in the Deep South, thereby elucidating areas for intervention in future research.
Joan Grant Keltner, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Grant is a Professor of Nursing in the UAB School of Nursing. She has more than 30 years of experience working with neuroscience and other populations with disabilities. She is an expert in family caregiving and those with disabilities who experience psychosocial problems. Dr. Grant’s previous funding efforts relate to telehealth interventions using social support and problem-solving skills to manage psychosocial problems in the home and other settings. She publishes on stroke, heart failure, and diabetes mellitus.
Mirjam-Colette Kempf, PhD
Scholarly Projects
UAB-MISS MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study (MACS/WIHS-CCS)
NIH/NHLBI/ U01HL146192
The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) / Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) Combined Cohort Study (MACS/WIHS-CCS) is a collaborative research effort that aims to understand and reduce the impact of chronic health conditions including heart, lung, blood, and sleep (HLBS) disorders that affect people living with HIV.
UAB Center for AIDS Research – Core B – Developmental Core
NIH/NIAID/P30AI027767
The primary purpose of this center is to support interdisciplinary AIDS research efforts. This Center is responsible for the planning, evaluating, managing and documenting a broad array of research activities within the two institutions. The purpose of this project is linking clinical and basic science studies through the use of shared facilities and to translate as quickly as possible fundamental knowledge about AIDS and its related disorders into clinical treatment and prevention programs.Learn more about Developmental Core at UAB's Center for AIDS ResearchOpens an external link.
Examining social ecological and network factors to assess epidemiological risk in a large national cohort of cisgender women
Columbia University/NIH/NIAID/R01AI172469
Cisgender women account for approximately 20% of annual HIV diagnoses in the United States; yet, there is limited information on the combination of factors that contribute to HIV incidence in these women. In response, our study team proposes to develop a knowledgebase of integrated data including biomarker data from a cohort of cisgender women behaviorally vulnerable to HIV infection paired with network data and big data from disease surveillance and social determinants of health databases. At the conclusion of the knowledgebase construction and the cohort and network analysis, we will have identified individual, social network, geospatial, and public policy factors that increase a women’s risk for HIV and/or sexually transmitted infection acquisition, providing intervention opportunities to reduce women’s vulnerabilities to HIV infection.
PrEP Demonstration Project among Women at Risk for HIV Infection
NIMH/R34MH118044
The objective of this application is to pilot test PrEP implementation among African American women at high-risk for HIV-infection in the rural South, specifically those seeking care at a Federally Qualified Healthcare Center in rural Alabama, and to explore perceptions, facilitators, and barriers to the delivery and uptake of PrEP in this patient population.
Improving PrEP Uptake and Adherence among Minority Men who have Sex with Men through Tailored Provider Training and Adherence Assistance in Two High Priority Settings
Columbia University/CDC 6U01PS005229-02-01
Men who have sex with men (MSM), especially young Black and Latinx MSM, have the highest rates of HIV diagnoses in the United States. The goal of the proposed Type II Hybrid Study is to improve pre-exposure prophylaxis screening, counseling, initiation, adherence, and persistence in young Black and Latinx MSM in two high-priority settings.
Social Connections, Risk for COVID-Era Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders, and HIV Control
SUNY Downstate Medical Center/NIMH R01MH128955-01
This project will examine understudied pathways linking social connections to substance use disorders and depression, and to HIV outcomes. A better understanding of these mechanisms will address a critical gap in the literature on social connections and will advance the ability to design effective interventions in this important area.
Stigma and the Non-Communicable Disease Syndemic in Aging HIV Positive and HIV Negative Men who have Sex with Men
Rutgers University/7R01HL160326
The non-communicable diseases diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia are highly prevalent among people living with HIV (PWH), especially among multiply marginalized populations such as racial/ethnic minorities. We will study how intersecting stigmas contribute both directly and indirectly to the incidence, prevalence, and control of this comorbidity cluster in a diverse cohort of HIV positive and HIV negative sexual minority men. Our findings will provide valuable data for health providers, public health researchers, and policymakers to more effectively intervene across the complex pathways between marginalized social position, stigma, psychosocial health, and non-communicable disease outcomes.
Christian Ketel, DNP
Scholarly Projects
Rural Maternal Disparities Consortium (RMDC)
HRSA D04RH55114
Rural Maternal Disparities Consortium (RMDC) is a 2025-2029, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded, statewide Alabama initiative to reduce rural maternal and infant morbidity and mortality through coordinated, nurse-led services, a mobile maternal health clinic, nurse home visitation, and a shared data/Clinical Quality Index backbone. With state agencies, rural providers, and communities, RMDC works toward integrating standardized referrals with closed-loop care coordination and rolls out from a Year-1 pilot in the Southwestern District to full statewide coverage by Year 4. Quarterly metrics include first-trimester prenatal care, preterm birth, breastfeeding initiation, postpartum depression screening/treatment, and 14-day referral completion. Long-term sustainability will leverage Medicaid reimbursement, value-based arrangements with rural hospitals/clinics, targeted grants, and formal Memoranda of Understanding.
Peng Li, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Li's major research interests include design, management, conduct, analysis and interpretation of clinical trials, epidemiologic studies and evaluation research, with particular expertise in cluster-randomized trials. He has broad collaborative experience with researchers from multidiscipline including clinicians and biologists, involving in study design, power and sample size calculation, data management and analysis.
Ada Markaki, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Building Capacity for Educational Quality Improvement in Latin America: An International Multicentric Pilot
Florence Nightingale Endowed Award for Scholarly Work
The purpose of this project is to translate, culturally adapt, and pilot test the Education Quality Improvement (EQI) Toolkit (English version) in Spanish and Portuguese languages through a WHOCC partnership with institutions in Chile, Colombia, and Brazil. The overarching goal for this international multi-centric project is to meet select educational quality improvement needs of nursing and midwifery students, faculty and administrators in Latin American higher education institutions.
Learn more about the Florence Nightingale Endowed Award for Scholarly WorkOpens an external link.
Linda Moneyham, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Moneyham is Professor and Senior Associated Dean for Academic Affairs in the UAB School of Nursing, with appointment as University Professor in Nursing. Dr. Moneyham, also has appointments as a Senior Scientist in the Center for AIDS Research, the Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Center, the Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research, and the Center for Clinical and Translational Science. Dr. Moneyham’s research interests include women's Health, Chronic Illness, HIV/AIDS, Aging, psychological stress, cognitive appraisal and coping.
Heather Nelson-Brantley, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Optimizing Open Notes in Palliative Care for Minoritized Populations with Cancer
Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Nurse Leaders and Innovators, Betty and Gordon Moore Foundation
As of April 2021, the 21st Century Cures Act Information Blocking Rule (IBR) requires healthcare systems to provide patients with full, rapid, electronic access to their health information. Yet, strategies to support IBR implementation are sparse. Without evidence-based guidelines, health systems, palliative care providers, and patients have been left to navigate the IBR on their own. This convergent parallel mixed methods study aims to identify equity-focused organizational strategies for implementing the IBR in ways that support palliative care providers and Black/African American persons with cancer in the Deep South region of the U.S.
The Relationship between Social Media Use, Nurse Characteristics, and Job Decision-Making
Association for Leadership Science in Nursing & Versant Center for the Advancement of Nursing
Social media use continues to grow exponentially, with 72% of Americans reporting daily use of some type of social media. Platforms such as Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and others have become important avenues for sharing information and powerful tools for connecting, building relationships, and influencing thought. Despite the explosion in social media use, nurse leaders express minimal experience with effectively using social media to influence the profession. Consequently, nurse leaders miss critical opportunities to connect with, attract, and retain nurses. To effectively connect, recruit, and retain a diverse and inclusive workforce, nurse leaders need to understand which social media platforms nurses are on and for what purpose. The purpose of this 3-phase study is to examine nurses’ use of social media and the relationship between social media use, nurse characteristics, and job decision-making.
Care Delivery Models in Acute Care Hospitals: A Mixed Methods Descriptive Study
American Organization for Nursing Leadership Foundation & Association for Leadership Science in Nursing
A care delivery model is the way patient care is organized. It includes clinician roles and skill sets, the care setting, and the expected outcomes for patients and families. Many health systems are transforming their care delivery models to meet the myriad of challenges in containing costs, workforce shortages, and quality care outcomes. The purpose of this study is to: (a) provide acute care settings with best practices for care delivery models, (b) identify unit level, hospital level, and system differences in care delivery models, (c) identify care delivery strategies perceived as cost-effective, and (d) develop a future study to test effectiveness and implementation outcomes of care delivery models informed by this study.
James Nicholas Odom, PhD
Scholarly Projects
A Mixed Methods Exploration of the Values Elicitation Experiences of Patients with an LVAD and their Family Caregivers
Sigma/HPNA
Co-PI: Avery Bechthold
This convergent mixed methods dissertation study focuses on exploring facilitators and barriers to values discussions between patients with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD), their family caregivers, and the healthcare team.
BMT-Care: Randomized Trial of a Psychosocial Intervention for Caregivers of Patients Undergoing Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
R01CA282182/Massachusetts General Hospital
The purpose of this study is to test the effectiveness of a multimodal psychosocial intervention for improving quality of life and reducing caregiving burden for caregivers of patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Decision Support Training for Advanced Cancer Family Caregivers: The CASCADE Factorial Trial
NIH/NCI/R01CA262039
A priority focus in oncology and palliative care is preparing the 3.2 million US family caregivers of persons with cancer to effectively partner with patients in health-related decision making from diagnosis to the end of life, particularly in underserved settings. Over 70% of patients with cancer involve relatives, friends and partners in healthcare decisions, including choices about cancer treatments, surgery, transitions, location of care, accessing palliative and hospice care, and many others. Patients making healthcare decisions with unprepared family caregivers may experience inadequate family decision support leading to heightened distress and receipt of care inconsistent with their values and preferences, which may in turn increase distress for family caregivers.
Lay Coach-led Early Palliative Care for Underserved Advanced Cancer Caregivers
NIH/NCI/R37CA252868
The burden placed on family caregivers and the toll on their mental and physical health have never been greater and will continue to rise; by 2026 the number of individuals with cancer is expected to be over 20 million and in 2019, the number in their last year of life was over 600,000. Healthcare clinicians should be concerned with the health of family caregivers for their own sake, but also because these caregivers deliver over 80% of the home care to community-dwelling patients with advanced illness. It is thus imperative that interventions be developed that keep caregivers healthy and functioning, not only for their own sake, but also so they can provide the best care possible to patients with cancer.
Shea Polancich, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Shea Polancich, PhD has been practicing in quality and patient safety for more than a decade. The primary focus of her work is understanding errors in the clinical environment Her work focuses on using the best evidence to redesign the workflow and improve processes in order to prevent patient harm and improve the quality of care. Her research interests include quality and patient safety; process redesign; evidence based practice; translation; human factors.
Frank Puga, PhD
Research Site: Puga StAR LabOpens an external link.
Scholarly Projects
Improving Health Across the Lifespan (iHEAL) T32 Training Program
NIH/NINR/ T32NR021681-01
This award is to establish the inaugural University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Nursing T32 training program, Improving HEalth Across the Lifespan (iHEAL), which will be one of the first few Deep South nurse scientist training programs addressing comprehensive healthy living from a life-course lens. This program aims to cultivate the next generation of nurse scientists who can address a wide variety of health challenges through lenses of health disparities, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Through high-quality mentorship, experiential learning, and required coursework, pre- and postdoctoral trainees will acquire in-depth knowledge about transdisciplinary research, research ethics, professional development, and leadership skills.
The Mental Health Experiences of Sexual and Gender Minorities Living with Cancer and their Intimate partners
UAB Center for Palliative and Support Care (PREP)
The Cancer Support and Well-Being Study: The purpose of this study is to learn about the experiences of LGBTQ+ cancer survivors and their intimate partners. LGBTQ+ cancer survivors and their partners often experience stress that can impact their mood and well-being. We are interested in learning about these experiences, resources to overcome challenges, and things that improve how one feels over time
Nuestros dias (Our Days) - The Mental Health Experiences of Hispanic and Latinx ADRD Caregivers
NIH/NIA/R01AG072569
The Day-to-Day Experiences of Latinx Dementia Caregivers: The purpose of this study is to learn about the daily experiences of Hispanic and Latinx dementia caregivers. We are specifically interested in examining contextual, individual-level, and cultural factors that promote resilience and mitigate the adverse effects of caregiving-related stress on one's mental health.
Julie Schexnayder, DNP
Scholarly Projects
Exploring Psychosocial Stress and Executive Function as Modifiable Factors Influencing Weight Gain among Women Living with HIV and Obesity
UAB MWCCS
As of April 1, 2019, the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) and Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) cohorts combined to form the MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study (MWCCS). The MWCCS is a collaborative research effort that aims to understand and reduce the impact of chronic health conditions—including heart, lung, blood, and sleep (HLBS) disorders—that affect people living with HIV.
Learn more about the MWCCS Pilot Research InitiativesOpens an external link.
Maria Shirey, PhD, Dean UAB School of Nursing
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Shirey is an internationally recognized expert in nursing leadership and management. Her research focuses on studying nurse manager work complexity to better understand and influence authentic leadership practices. Dr. Shirey’s research identifies structures and processes required to maximize outcomes associated with nursing leadership. She teaches leadership, management, health policy, and scholarly writing in the DNP program. A prolific author and editor, Dr. Shirey is a mentor to developing authors. Dr. Shirey’s research interests include authentic leadership; healthy work environments; nurse manager work complexity; transitional care coordination and interprofessional practice and health services outcomes research.
Gwen Childs Sims, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Gwendolyn Childs’ research focuses on approaches for reducing the risks of sexually transmitted infections in adolescent African American girls with an emphasis on sexual decision-making and risk-taking among African American girls ages 12 to 14 years living in the Deep South region of the U.S. Using community-based participatory and qualitative research methods, Dr. Childs’ work has documented the age of onset of sexual activity in this population of young adolescents, as well as common cognitive representations of adolescent pregnancy, virginity, romantic relationships, adolescent sexual norms, sexual behavior of peers, and peer pressure to be sexually active, all of which informed the next stage of her program of research aimed at relationship decision-making. Dr. Childs has served as a national board member of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, which sets the agenda for HIV/AIDS nursing nationally and internationally for research, education, practice, and public policy efforts. She is also a member of the editorial board for the Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care.
Ellen Smith, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Cancer Control and Prevention T32 Training Program Competitive Renewal: Focus on Health Disparities
2T32CA047888: Institutional Research Training Grant
The overall objective of the T32 Training Grant is to develop scientific research capacity through training of pre- and post-doctoral scholars with interest in building careers in cancer prevention and control research and addressing associated health disparities.
Duloxetine to Prevent Oxaliplatin-Induced Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase II to Phase III Study
NIH/NCI/R01CA235726
This randomized controlled trial will test a well- tolerated, widely available, non-opioid, preventive treatment for a debilitating chemotherapy side effect (oxaliplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy (OIPN)) experienced by millions of cancer survivors, for which there is no good treatment.
ICE COMPRESS: Randomized Trial of Limb Cryocompression versus Continuous COMPRESSion versus Low Cyclic Compression for the Prevention of Taxane-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy
SWOG S2205 – NCT#05642611
The main objective of this 3-arm randomized study is to test ccyrocompression to prevent taxane-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients with breast and GYN cancers.
International Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neurotoxicity (CIPN) Assessment and Validation Study (CAVS)
UAB Intramural Funding
The purpose of this study is to test the psychometric properties of varied assessment approaches for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicy in diverse neuropathy types.
Tedra Smith, DNP
Scholarly Projects
Dr. Tedra S. Smith is a pediatric nurse practitioner with a specialization in primary care. She has more than 13 years of experience as a pediatric nurse including primary, emergency and preanesthesia care. Her interest includes utilizing simulation as a pediatric clinical rotation to enhance communication with children and their caregivers. This also includes using simulation to decrease student anxiety related to caring for pediatric patients. Her research interests include pediatrics, simulation, flipped classroom and active learning.
Macy Stockdill, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Formative Development and Evaluation of a Palliative Care Intervention Concept for Individuals with Glioma Dealing with Uncertainty and their Family Caregivers
The goal of this qualitative, formative development and evaluation study is to develop a palliative care intervention that aims to help patients with grade 2-4 glioma and their family caregivers manage uncertainty related distress. Future directions will include incorporating patient, caregiver, and clinician input to pilot test the proposed intervention, titled ASSURED (Alleviating distreSS and UnceRtainty rElated to a glioma Diagnosis).
Rachel Wells, PhD
Scholarly Projects
Optimizing an Early Palliative Care Intervention for Advanced Heart Failure Patients
NIH/R00NR01984
The overall R00 goals are to gain advanced research training in developing behavioral interventions, conducting randomized controlled trials using the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST), and advanced research ethics to refine and pilot test components of a lay navigator-led early palliative care intervention for underserved persons with advanced heart failure in the Southern U.S. The goal of the UPHOLDS intervention (Utilizing Palliative Care for Heart Failure Optimized using Lay Navigators to Decrease Suffering), will be to improve quality of life (QOL) by activating advanced heart failure patients through trained lay navigators coaching.
ADAPT HF (Addressing pain through A navigator-led Palliative care optimized for Heart Failure)
Alex and Rita Hillman Foundation
Co-PI: Shena Gazaway, PhD
Over 80% of the 6.2 million U.S. adults with heart failure (HF) report frequent pain with nearly 75% indicating that pain interferes with their daily living; yet pain is often unaddressed. The goals of this study are two-fold: 1) to develop and refine community-based, navigator-nurse led palliative care pain intervention components to address pain disparities in older Black adults with heart failure and 2) to determine feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of the refined intervention components. These findings will directly inform a fully-powered optimization trial leading to an optimized palliative care pain intervention to improve pain outcomes for older Black adults with heart failure.
Learn more about ICAR Pilot Funding ProgramOpens an external link.