Description of Core
The purpose of the Pilot & Feasibility Core is to provide junior and/or new investigators with funds to establish their programs of research in self-management interventions that are transdisciplinary in approach.
We aim to mentor potential pilot investigators in the development of their research proposals and provide a rigorous proposal review and approval process to enhance the likelihood of obtaining funding. Furthermore, we oversee and support Center pilot investigators’ efforts to obtain regulatory approvals, meet specific aims identified in their studies, and help them use pilot study findings to build their program of research. Pilot investigators are also supported in publishing and presenting their research findings, as part of their academic research development.
Pilot & Feasibility Administration Core
Director
Sharon Brown, PhD, RN, FAAN
Dr. Brown is the director of the Center for Health Equity Research Pilot & Feasibility Core. Her research is focused on diabetes self-management in Mexican Americans and other populations at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes. She has had ongoing research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 1992. A recent study, funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research/NIH, involved a relatively novel type of meta-analysis. The study was designed as a model-driven meta-analysis aimed at testing an explanatory diabetes model in order to more clearly identify those factors that are most predictive of positive health outcomes, considering race/ethnicity, age, and gender.
Co-Director
Mary Marden Velasquez, PhD
Dr. Velasquez is the co-director of the Center for Health Equity Research Pilot & Feasibility Core. Her program of research focuses on the development and implementation of interventions using the Transtheoretical Model and Motivational Interviewing. With over 20 years of support from the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Velasquez has developed and studied behavioral interventions in the areas of integrated primary care, screening and brief interventions, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, alcohol and other drug abuse, prenatal health, HIV prevention, and smoking cessation.
Consultant
Suzanne Bakken, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI
Dr. Bakken is the consultant of the Center for Health Equity Research Pilot & Feasibility Core. The goal of Dr. Bakken’s program of research is to promote health and reduce health disparities in underserved populations through application of innovative informatics methods. A major focus of her current grant portfolio is visualization of healthcare data for community members, patients, clinicians, and community-based organizations. A major focus of her current grant portfolio is visualization of healthcare data for community members, patients, clinicians, and community-based organizations.
Consultant
Nancy L. McCain, PhD, RN, FAAN
Dr. McCain is the consultant of the Center for Health Equity Research Pilot & Feasibility Core. Her research in biobehavioral science focuses on testing intervention strategies for stress management in persons with HIV infection and in women receiving chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer. Through this work, Dr. McCain has significantly contributed to the advancement of knowledge related to biobehavioral mechanisms, measurement systems, and patient outcomes as well as biobehaviorally focused nursing interventions.
