The objectives are to (1) provide a definitive test of activity space versus residential neighborhood environmental explanations for diet/physical activity (PA) variations during mid-life, (2) employ cutting-edge geographically-explicit ecological momentary assessment to address environmental mis-measurement ubiquitous in prior research, and (3) for the first time, provide evidence on activity space environmental contributions to within-person daily/momentary variations in diet/PA, and how they interact with personal trait and state factors.
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Project Duration
2023-09-25 — 2028-05-31
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) continue to be a major public health problem for Black girls in the United States. Each year 1 in 4 Black girls, 14-19 years old acquires an STI, placing them at risk for poor sexual and reproductive health outcomes (SRH) (i.e., pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, HIV/AIDS). In Chicago, STI rates are highest among 13- to 29-year-old Black girls, and they represent 56% of new HIV diagnoses compared to other racial groups, making adolescence an exceptionally vulnerable period. These racial disparities require new and innovative strategies to reduce Black girls’ negative SRH outcomes...
The overall goal of the project is to evaluate the effect of a multi-level health information technology (MHIT) intervention that addresses patient-, provider-, and socioeconomic-related barriers to hypertension management for Black people with hypertension. The MHIT intervention leverages the patient portal (MyChart), electronic health record (Epic), and community resource referral system (Unite Us) to improve hypertension outcomes...
National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive & Kidney Disorders
Project Duration
2024-02-15 — 2026-11-30
Major goals of this study are to: 1) determine if time-restricted eating is safe, feasible, and acceptable in pregnancy; 2) determine the preliminary effect of TRE on maternal body weight and cardiometabolic risk markers; and 3) explore the preliminary effect of TRE on perinatal health outcomes
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Project Duration
2021-08-20 — 2026-04-30
African American population is projected to increase up to 18% by 2060 in the US and as the population increases, the deleterious effects of maternal hyperglycemia will also. Sleep disparities exist in African American pregnant women and can lead to disparities in maternal hyperglycemia and related maternal and fetal complications of pregnancy. This innovative study using individually tailored, culturally adapted intervention has the potential to advance science, reduce hyperglycemia, improve glucose metabolism, and improve maternal-fetal well-being by demonstrating the effectiveness of sleep BETTER intervention.
Physical inactivity is associated with poor asthma control and quality of life, and greater health care utilization. Rates of physical inactivity, asthma, and asthma mortality among African American (AA) women are higher than those of their White counterparts. Our formative work identified barriers to PA among African American women with asthma including a lack of social support, self-efficacy, unsafe neighborhood and fear related to experiences with life-threatening asthma exacerbations. Given the unique barriers to PA and high rates of physical inactivity that are associated with poor asthma outcomes in African American women, there is an urgent need to optimize PA interventions for this population...
Black adults are disproportionately affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD) and have some of the worst health outcomes among those with CKD. Sedentary behavior is associated with poor health outcomes and is an extremely common behavior in those with CKD. This project will adapt and test an intervention to reduce sedentary behavior for Black adults with CKD, which will inform the development of a future large-scale trial to reduce sedentary and improve health outcomes in this at-risk population.
Our goal is to examine whether Melanated Group Midwifery Care (MGMC), a culturally-adapted, patient-centered maternity care model, attenuates the impact of structural racism on Black pregnant and postpartum women by assessing whether increased health system trust leads to enhanced patient engagement.
There is an urgent need for innovative approaches that support the use of Preexposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a daily pill preventing HIV that is empowering and user-controlled. Using a participatory implementation science framework, I will test whether an adapted and community empowered group healthcare model, Centering PrEP+, is a feasible and acceptable health system intervention to improve the health of sex workers and their clients by increasing PrEP adherence.
American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities suffer from high rates of trauma, post-traumatic stress, and poor mental health outcomes. Our program of research aims to develop a community-driven, evidencebased intervention, Narrative Exposure Therapy, with Yurok peer counselors in the Yurok tribe, the largest surviving federally recognized tribe in California.
This project will investigate how disruptions in the body’s internal 24-hour sleep wake rhythms affects obesity and diabetes risk. We are interested in understanding how disrupted rhythms along with short sleep duration affects eating behavior behaviors (e.g. decreased ability to withstand temptation), metabolism and weight gain over a 12-month period. Results of this study will advance knowledge of the complex relationship between sleep/circadian rhythms providing the basis for new behavioral interventions.
People with Type 1 diabetes are disproportionately affected by cardiovascular disease (CVD). Short and irregular sleep have been associated with cardiovascular risk in this population. Improving sleep regularity has been associated with improved glycemic markers however mechanisms by which improving sleep regularity improves metabolic and cardiovascular health is not known. We propose to conduct a mechanistic study using a sleep stability manipulation. This proposal will advance the understanding of mechanisms by which improving sleep regularity influences glycemic control and cardiovascular risk in T1D.
The primary objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of complementary and integrative health (CIH) therapies on pain and pain-related outcomes among a large, heterogeneous sample of active-duty service members . Aim 1: Assess the clinical effectiveness of CIH alone vs. conventional therapies alone vs. a combination of approaches on pain impact (primary), anxiety, depression, opioid use, quality of life, and military readiness (secondary). Aim 2: Evaluate pain catastrophizing as a moderator of pain management interventions on pain impact. Aim 3: Explore the relationships between pain-related symptoms.
Illinois Cancer Health Equity Research (I-CHER) Center
Project Duration
2023-03-01 — 2024-06-30
We propose examining the feasibility and acceptability of a FIM intervention for hypertensive Black BCS with obesity to increase access to healthy foods and promote healthy eating and blood pressure control. Our intervention, FIM+BCS, is adapted from an existing FIM program called Mi Care DM conducted at UIC’s Mile Square federally qualified health centers (FQHCs).17 Mi Care DM provided a prescription for fresh produce grown at a local farm in parallel with chronic disease risk reduction education to patients with type 2 diabetes. The program demonstrated a trend toward decreasing blood pressure and a decrease in BMI for 53.1% of the patient participants...
Avoidance of advance care planning (ACP) discussions and failure to complete advance directives can delay the introduction of palliative and hospice care and risk patients receiving costly and aggressive care at the end of life. ACP is a process to facilitate decision-making for future medical care and document values and preferences. Despite the proven benefits of ACP—in achieving satisfying, goalconcordant care at the end of life, better communication, and better quality of death—less than 15% of Chinese Americans complete advance directives. That is less than half of the 37% completion rate in the US general population. This disparity in the use of ACP between White Americans and Chinese Americans may extend to disparities in end-of-life care, including rates of hospice use and prevalence of unwanted aggressive treatments...
Despite a notable 32.7% decline in mortality from ischemic heart disease (IHD) since 1999,the prevalence of stable angina has not decreased. Stable angina is defined as predictable chest pain on exertion or under mental or emotional stress. Stable angina signifies partial obstruction of coronary flow or microvascular changes and comes with substantial lifetime consequences including heart failure, atrial fibrillation, reinfarction, and cardiac arrest. Nearly 9 million Americans have stable angina and heart disease is now the leading disability-adjusted disease globally. Stable angina is associated with multiple symptoms, impaired functional status, and reduced health-related quality of life (HRQoL)...
Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy (UIC)
Project Duration
2025-07-01 — 2026-06-30
LGBTQ+ people experience heightened rates of intimate partner violence (IPV). There is significant lack of knowledge of IPV experiences among LGBTQ+ Arab Americans, in part because the U.S. government has historically categorized Arabs as “white.” The purpose of this study is to explore how experiences of IPV impact the lives of LGBTQ+ Arab Americans and to allow for the recommendation of future programs and allocation of resources to assist LGBTQ+ Arab American survivors of IPV.
Patients with advanced cancer experience high levels of anxiety and depression and other barriers that affect their advance care planning discussions with their family caregivers. There have been few clinical trials focusing on resilience-building interventions for empowering patients with advanced cancer and their family caregivers to initiate advance care planning discussions and sustain engagement. This research will provide new insights into the barriers and facilitators associated with advance care planning while developing and evaluating a resilience-building intervention to improve knowledge, self-efficacy, resilience, anxiety, and depression for patients with advanced cancer and their family caregivers.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
Project Duration
2022-08-23 — 2025-05-31
People attending federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) typically have limited access to acupuncture, an evidence-based symptom management intervention. This study will assess the feasibility of implementing acupuncture at an FQHC to alleviate multiple symptoms experienced by breast cancer survivors during endocrine therapy. Long-term, this study is the first step toward ensuring equal access to this evidence-based intervention. Results will provide the foundation for rigorous studies to test the effectiveness of integrating acupuncture into FQHC oncology clinic to support medically underserved breast cancer survivors.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
Project Duration
2024-09-18 — 2027-08-31
It is common for adults with end stage kidney disease (ESKD) to experience fatigue, at a level that influences whole person health. With the support of a patient advisory board, this project will develop and test a progressive muscle relaxation and walking intervention to reduce fatigue for adults with ESKD. Results will inform the development of a large-scale trial to reduce fatigue and promote whole person health for adults with ESKD.