The Adult & Child Center for Outcomes Research and Delivery Science (ACCORDS) at the University of Colorado School of Medicine continues to conduct impactful research across the lifespan, including the areas of early language development, pediatric sepsis, engagement in underrepresented communities, and taboo topics in aging.
These are the top stories of 2024 for ACCORDS:
The $2.1 million PCORI award will allow the team to improve engagement and equity in research. The study will bring together various underrepresented communities from refugee and immigrant communities, older adults, medically underserved populations, transgender communities, and racial and ethnic groups. The groups will participate in discussions on health topics including diabetes, mental health, dementia, caregiving, primary care, and disability services.
Lydia Altaye, a junior at the University of Colorado Boulder majoring in integrative physiology, completed her summer Undergraduate Pre-Health Program internship with the Prevention Research Center for Child and Family Health (PRC) at ACCORDS. Her participation in Research and public health work at ACCORDS inspired CU pre-med student Lydia Altaye to continue toward her goal of becoming a physician and serving patients at home and abroad.
Eliminating measles and rubella can be a reality but the effort faces challenges with misinformation spreading across social media adding to vaccine hesitancy. In a new publication, vaccine delivery researchers at ACCORDS address challenges associated with vaccine hesitancy and the uptake of measles and rubella vaccinations.
PUPPETalkTM (PUppets to Play, Praise, Educate, and TalkTM) is simple: Using low-cost finger puppets to encourage language-rich interactions and promote early relational health. Gretchen Domek, MD, leads the program, which has shown positive findings in child language development, social emotional development, improved home environments, and a decrease in maternal depression symptoms.
A team of CU researchers is making strides to advance health equity by reducing pediatric asthma disparities. Their research is part of the Disparities Elimination through Coordinated Interventions to Prevent and Control Heart and Lung Disease Risk (DECIPHeR) Alliance. This Alliance is a set of seven programs funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to eliminate cardiopulmonary health disparities. The researchers recently published three publications, which highlight the work of their DECIPHeR Alliance study.
In an article published in the New England Journal of Medicine’s Perspective section, CU vaccine-delivery researchers David Higgins, MD, MPH, and Sean O’Leary, MD, MPH, discuss the risks of normalizing vaccine hesitancy and how the health care community can continue to keep parents adequately informed.
The 20th Annual Rocky Mountain Geriatrics Conference & Community Research Symposium was a two-day event featuring presentations from medical experts, top researchers, and academic leaders in the field of geriatric care. This year’s conference theme was Current Controversies, Emerging Ethics, and Taboo Topics in Geriatric Care.
Pediatric emergency physician Halden Scott, MD, focuses her research on sepsis and the intersection of health and emergency systems to care for children. Through a number of projects, she investigates the processes and systems of emergency sepsis care, including diagnosis and treatment, and how they intersect with health systems to care for children.
Marisha Burden, MD, MBA, professor of medicine and division head of hospital medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, is studying the financial impact of burnout and mental health on hospitalist turnover, as well as the contribution of work structures and environment. Burden and her research team aim to build the evidence-base for how to optimize organizational decision making around work design.
Jerica Berge, PhD, MPH, LMFT uses whole-person health as a guide for collaboration and growth in outcomes research. During Berge’s introductory presentation, she introduced her initial vision as director highlighting the four ‘Is’: inclusion, innovation, integration, and identity.