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Current and Prior Projects
Below is a sampling of current and prior Health and Disability Working Group projects:
• The Evaluation Center on HIV and Oral Health (ECHO)
The HIV Oral Health Initiative is a 5-year multi-site evaluation and support center funded through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – Division of HIV/AIDS Bureau – Special Projects of National Significance. There are significant numbers of HIV+ people who experience barriers to comprehensive oral health care services. These barriers and the subsequent unmet oral health need can have an adverse impact on the quality of life for those living with HIV, particularly with regard to treatment regimens, nutritional intake and health outcomes. Consequently, 15 demonstration sites have been charged with establishing innovative models of oral health care for underserved HIV populations in both urban and rural settings to increase access to oral health care and services. The multi-site evaluation will be conducted by the Health and Disability Working Group at the Boston University School of Public Health under the project titled ECHO (The Evaluation Center on HIV and Oral Health).
• The Catalyst Center: Improving Financing of Care for Children and
Youth with Special Health Care Needs. A cooperative agreement with the Maternal
and Child Health Bureau to help advance work around the Healthy People 2010
objective that all children with special health care needs have access to
adequate financing for their care. Health and Resource Service Administration
(HRSA).
• Facilitate workgroups with selected Medicaid managed care plans
– one group to improve the quality of care for children with special
health care needs, and one group to improve the quality of care for adults
with disabilities and chronic illnesses. The Center for Health Care Strategies.
• Center for Outreach Research and Evaluation (CORE) - National Multi-Site
Coordinating Center for an Evaluation of outreach initiatives to promote
the engagement and retention of people living with HIV in medical care.
Health and Resource Service Administration.
• Access to Health Care Services for People with Disabilities: Defining
the Barriers and Successful Strategies for Change. A three year grant to
measure access to a wide range of health care facilities and compare perceptions
of consumers with disabilities and provider perceptions of accessibility.
National Institute for Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
• National Multi-site evaluation of HIV peer educator training programs.
HealthWatch Information and Promotion Services, Inc.
• Evaluation of an innovative primary care, behavioral health and
care coordination program for people with disabilities in Springfield, MA,
financed through capitation and located at the Brightwood Community Health
Center. Center for Health Care Strategies.
• Kaleidoscope of Care: the development and implementation of a cross-disciplinary
training curriculum in HIV and substance abuse, designed for health care
providers, support service providers and substance abuse treatment providers.
• The Florida Developmental Disabilities Council: to conduct a longitudinal
study of long term supports for individuals with developmental disabilities,
and how the presence or absence of these supports affects health care status.
• The Massachusetts Department of Social Services: to conduct a study
of the health care needs of children in foster and the role of nurses within
the Department in the context of changes anticipated as a result of managed
care.
• Harvard School of Public Health: to collaborate in conducting a
study of baseline quality-monitoring activities among Medicaid managed care
programs and identify major technical assistance needs.
• The Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council: to develop
a managed care training curriculum for people with developmental disabilities,
their families, and front-line care providers.
• The Minnesota Department of Human Services: to provide technical
assistance to counties and providers in developing a demonstration project
for people with disabilities, integrating acute, behavioral health, and
long term care; and to design and conduct a managed care readiness review
• Children's Hospital Boston: to provide assistance in planning and
program evaluation of a community-based coordinated care program for children
with special health care needs..
A 5-year multi-site evaluation and support center funded through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – Division of HIV/AIDS Bureau – Special Projects of National Significance.
National Evaluation and Program Support Center to conduct a multi-site evaluation of outreach activities designed to engage and retain individuals with HIV in medical care. Funded by Health Resources and Services Administration
A national evaluation of peer education training programs for people living with HIV.
A National Center working to advance the Healthy People 2010 objective that all children with special health care needs have access to adequate health insurance and financing for their care.
A cross-disciplinary training curriculum in HIV and substance abuse, designed for health care providers, support service providers and substance abuse treatment providers.