Center for Evaluation of Practices and Experiences of Patient-centered Care (CEPEP)
The main goal of this center grant, CEPEP, is to evaluate the processes and outcomes of approaches to implementing patient-centered care and cultural transformation at the patient, family/caregiver, provider/employee, and system levels within and across the Veterans Health Administration Centers of Innovation to identify the most effective ways to change (improve) culture throughout the organization.
Funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Patient-Centered Care and Cultural Transformation (OPCC&CT) and Quality Enhancement Research Initiative
Primary Investigator: Sherri L. LaVela, PhD, MPH, MBA

R03 Grant
Chronic Stress in Preganacy:  Self-Support, Biomarkers and Birth Outcomes.
The goal of the proposed research is to create a more efficient and effective scale to measure self-reported stress in pregnancy by applying Item Response Theory modeling to the responses to multiple stress surveys already collected from 2,006 pregnant women in the Pregnancy, Infection and Nutrition (PIN) Study and, then, to investigate associations between self-reported stress, measured by the optimized stress scale, and stress biomarkers and preterm birth for women in the PIN Study.  
Funded by National Institutes of Health
Principal Investigator: Ann Borders, MD

Using Workforce Practices to Drive Quality Improvement
The study team is identifying human resource practices with the potential for enhancing safety and quality in health care and conducting case studies of successful applications of one of these practices. The team will develop recommendations for implementing a promising human resource practice within interested health care organizations.
Funded by the Health Research and Educational Trust
Principal Investigator: Megan McHugh, PhD

U01 subcontract
Women’s Interagency HIV Study
Dr. Evans will provide analytic support to the Chicago WCHS Consortium, including assisting investigators on methods and statistical analyses for WCHS concept sheets, conducting statistical analyses, providing summaries of results, and assisting in manuscript preparation.
Principal Investigator: Charlesnika Evans, PhD, MPH

Improving Patient Flow and Reducing Emergency Department Crowding
Between 2008 and 2010, we conducted an evaluation of six hospitals’ efforts to improve patient flow and reduce ED crowding.  Based on those results, we are developing a hospital guide with step-by-step instructions for planning and implementing patient flow improvement strategies. 
Funded by the Health Research and Educational Trust
Principal Investigator: Megan McHugh, PhD

The Association between Healthcare Risk Management Staffing Arrangements and Organizational Performance
Using data from an ASHRM survey, we are developing a manuscript to explore the relationship between hospital risk management staffing arrangements and performance on publicly available quality measures.
Funded by the Health Research and Educational Trust
Principal Investigator: Megan McHugh, PhD

NCS Health Measurement Network
Funded by National Institute of Child Health and Development
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

R03 Grant
Quality of Informed Consent for Adult-to-Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation
The proposed study aims to develop a new tool (Evaluation of Donor Informed Consent Tool (EDICT)) that measures living liver donor candidates’ comprehension in the informed consent process for adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation. This tool will help to improve the informed consent process for living liver donation by identifying living donors’ comprehension deficits and prompting targeted donor-clinician communication. Promoting an ethically optimal informed consent process will help to provide assurances to transplant clinicians that the donation may ethically proceed, promote living liver donor programs, and help save lives.
Funded by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
Principal Investigator: Elisa Gordon, PhD, MPH

U18 subcontract
Pediatric Measurement Center of Excellence (PMCoE)
The major goal of this project is to advance and improve children’s healthcare quality measures that make a difference by both informing policy decisions and actual clinical performance in inpatient and ambulatory settings using proven methodologies.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Principal Investigator: Donna Woods, EdM PhD

F32 Grant
Critical Areas for Improvement in Care Delivery of ED Severe Sepsis Resuscitation
The overall objective of these projects is to utilize innovative risk assessment techniques to identify factors in the system and processes of care that contribute to variations in compliance with the Sepsis Resuscitation Bundle, across three hospital emergency departments.  There is scientific overlap with the proposed career development award, but no budgetary overlap.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Emergency Medicine Foundation
Principal Investigator: Emilie Powell, MD, MBA

Seed Grant
Refugee Communities: Disability, Health, & Inclusion Partnership Project
Funded by ARCC
Principal Investigator: Mansha Mirz, PhD

R01 Grant
A2ALL- Patient Safety System Improvements in Living Donor Liver Transplantation
This ancillary study of the Adult-to-Adult Living Liver Transplantation Cohort Study (A2ALL) will focus on conducting a proactive, systematic, and comprehensive assessment of the vulnerabilities in the systems and process of LDLT care to reduce medical errors and preventable complications thereby improving the safety of LDLT care.
Funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
Principal Investigators: Donna Woods, EdM PhD and Daniela Ladner, MD

R39 Grant
Evaluation of a Culturally Competent Website on Living Kidney Donation for Hispanics
The study aims to increase understanding about living kidney donation (LKD) among Hispanic/Latino patients and public by increasing knowledge and positive attitudes about LKD. The study proposes to: develop, test, and evaluate a culturally sensitive, web-based, multimedia educational resource on LKD in Spanish and English tailored to Hispanics.
Funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration
Principal Investigator: Elisa Gordon, PhD, MPH

Development of an Educational Resource on Live Kidney Donation for Hispanics
Funded by Eleanor Prince Wood
Principal Investigator: Elisa Gordon, PhD, MPH

Institutional National Research Service Award
The purpose of this project is to train postdoctoral fellows in the area of health services research.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

Northwestern Center for Patient Safety
The aims of this project are to develop a comprehensive Center for Patient Safety to enhance patient safety by conducting innovative research and providing creative education through interdisciplinary collaboration with affiliated institutions.
Funded by Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

R03 Grant
This grant supports the study "Quality of Informed Consent for Adult-to-Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation" within theChronic Disease Care and Outcomes Center.
Funded by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease & National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Principal Investigator: Elisa Gordon, PhD

The National Children’s Study: Greater Chicago Study Center
This application proposes to conduct the National Children’s Study in the four primary sampling units selected by the National Children’s Study.

    NCS: Alternative Recruitment Strategies
    PI: Jane Holl

    NCS: A Self-Reported Stress and Cortisol Measurement
    PI: Ann Borders

    NCS: Using "video voice" to enhance National Chidlren's Study (NCS) community
      engagement efforts
    PI: Ruchi Gupta

Funded by National Institute for Child Health and Human Development
Principal Invesitgator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

The Effect of Physical Activity Guidelines on Arthritis-Related Disability
The goal of this project is to evaluate whether a tailored physical activity intervention improves health by reducing disability progression in persons with knee osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
Funded by the National Institutes of Health
Principal Investigator: Dorothy Dunlop, PhD

The Effect of Physical Activity on Disability Progression in Knee OA
The goal of this project is to investigate if increased amounts of physical activity of at least moderate intensity reduces disability progression in subjects with knee OA as defined by symptomatic and radiographic data.
Funded by the National Institutes of Health
Principal Investigator: Dorothy Dunlop, PhD

The National Children’s Study: Greater Chicago Study Center - DuPage
This application proposes to conduct the National Children’s Study in the four primary sampling units selected by the National Children’s Study.
Funded by National Institute for Child Health and Human Development
Principal Invesitgator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

Risk-Informed In-Situ Simulations for Pediatric Emergency Transfers
This proposal will also integrate specific TeamSTEPPS™ skill categories to address the identified clinician communication, teamwork, and micro-system risks.4 By conducting the simulations in-situ -- in the operational environment of healthcare units and floors -- both micro-system as well as organizational systemic or process risks are likely to be revealed.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

Risk Informed Clinical Information Network for Safe Pediatric Emergency Transfers
The transfer of pediatric patients from an emergency department to another hospital has been repeatedly shown to be a high risk transition.  Accurate patient assessment and communication of pertinent clinical information are key challenges to the safe transfer of pediatric patients.  Through this study we propose to develop and test a standardized process and tools for effective communication in the context of pediatric emergency transfers.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Principal Investigator: Donna Woods, EdM PhD

Strategies for Improving Pediatric Clinician Communication: Phase III-In-Situ Simulation
This project will extend the work of the Risk Informed In-Situ Simulation Project to the four pediatric healthcare institutions that comprise the Pediatric Patient Safety Consortium in Chicago, IL.
Funded by Micheal Reese Trust
Principal Investigators: Jane Holl, MD MPH and Donna Woods, EdM PhD

The Impact of Community Factors on Childhood Asthma
Study to further my characterization of the effect of positive and negative community factors on childhood asthma and asthma severity.
Funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Principal Investigator: Ruchi Gupta, MD MPH

Discovering the power of OB teams and their impact on system processes and quality care at Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Conduct in-situ simulation techniques, specifically focusing on the NMH Obstetrics (OB) unit, by performing a minimum of six (6) OB in-situ simulations on the unit. Pre-assessment and assessment stages will involve data review, direct observation, analyze patient safety concerns, and M&M conference participation.
Funded by Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH

Alvin H. Baum Clinical Simulation Research Grants
Improving teamwork, efficiency, and reliability of care in the treatment of severe sepsis and septic shock in the emergency department with risk-informed targeted in situ simulation.
Funded by Northwestern Memorial Foundation
Primary Investigator: John Vozenilek, MD

Translating Accelerometer readings into Physical Activity measures in Knee OA
This study will provide a benchmark approach to translate objective accelerometer recordings of physical activity into valid meaningful measures of physical activity for the entire OA research community.  In addition, this study will also release a robust set of physical activity outcomes to the OAI public clinical and imaging data set. Taken together, the two parts of this study will accelerate evidence-based physical activity research in knee OA population. 
Funded by National Institute of Arthritis and Muskuloskeletal and Skin Dieseases
Principal Investigator: Dorothy Dunlop, PhD

Advancing Equity in Healthcare
This project proposes to establish a partnership between the Aetna Foundation and the Program for Healthcare Equity to facilitate the development and implementation of research and community outreach projects, educational and leadership tools, and national webinars to stimulate improvements in health care equity and overall quality of care for all populations.
Funded by Aetna Foundation
Principal Investigator: Romana Hasnain-Wynia, PhD

Improving ED Quality and Safety by Enhancing Operations and Quality Management
The long-term goal of this project is to develop Dr. Khare as an independent investigator with a primary focus on improving the care for patients coming to the Emergency Department (ED) with time-sensitive diseases. The objectives of this project are to further evaluate specific ED operational quality management characteristics to identify and implement generalizable process improvements to enhance quality and safety in EDs.
Funded by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Principal Investigator: Rahul Khare, MD

Patient Safety System Improvements in Living Donor Liver Transplantation
This study builds on the strength of two unique collaborations:  1) NUTORC a multidisciplinary collaboration of investigators which brings together expertise in safety research (Drs. Woods and Holl) and extensive clinical knowledge LDLT (Drs. Ladner, Abecassis and Skaro); and the 2) A2ALL Deux Study which involves nine large LDLT centers and will provide sufficient numbers of LDLT to achieve adequate power to study the effectiveness of the solutions designed to reduce medical errors and preventable complications. 
Funded by National Institutes of Health and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
Principal Investigators: Donna Woods, EdM PhD and Daniela Ladner, MD

Child Asthma Care Utilization: Role of Maternal Work, Welfare, and Source of Care
This study seeks to understand the role of maternal work and welfare status and the role of the primary care provider site on the healthcare utilization of low-income, young children with asthma -- the leading childhood chronic illness in the United States. 
Funded by NIH and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Principal Investigator: Jane Holl, MD MPH