Healthy at Home for COPD: An Integrated Digital Monitoring, Treatment, and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Intervention.

Background: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Frequent exacerbations result in higher use of emergency services and hospitalizations, leading to poor patient outcomes and high costs.

Objective: Demonstrate the feasibility of a multimodal, digitally enhanced remote monitoring, treatment, and tele-pulmonary rehabilitation intervention among patients with COPD.

Unveiling readability challenges: An extensive analysis of consent document accessibility in clinical trials.

Background: Clinical research trials rely on informed consent forms (ICFs) to explain all aspects of the study to potential participants. Despite efforts to ensure the readability of ICFs, concerns about their complexity and participant understanding persist. There is a noted gap between Institutional Review Board (IRB) standards and the actual readability levels of ICFs, which often exceed the recommended 8th-grade reading level.

Implementing virtual desktops for clinical research at an academic health center: a case report.

Objectives: To address the challenges of sharing clinical research data through the implementation of cloud-based virtual desktops, enhancing collaboration among researchers while maintaining data security.

Materials And Methods: This case study details the deployment of virtual desktops at UMass Chan Medical School (UMass Chan). The process involved forming a Research Informatics Steering Executive workgroup, identifying key requirements, implementing Amazon WorkSpaces, and establishing configurable data management for research support.

Factors associated with non-adherence to dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry screening during the COVID-19 pandemic in an academic medical center.

Unlabelled: This study explored why some elderly females do not adhere to their bone density tests. It found that factors like age, race, marital status, insurance type, social vulnerability index, and vaccination status influence completion of these tests. Addressing these differences could improve the management of bone health in older adults.

Rationale and Design of Healthy at Home for COPD: an Integrated Remote Patient Monitoring and Virtual Pulmonary Rehabilitation Pilot Study.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a common, costly, and morbid condition. Pulmonary rehabilitation, close monitoring, and early intervention during acute exacerbations of symptoms represent a comprehensive approach to improve outcomes, but the optimal means of delivering these services is uncertain. Logistical, financial, and social barriers to providing healthcare through face-to-face encounters, paired with recent developments in technology, have stimulated interest in exploring alternative models of care.

Association of neighborhood-level sociodemographic factors with Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) distribution of COVID-19 rapid antigen tests in 5 US communities.

Background: Many interventions for widescale distribution of rapid antigen tests for COVID-19 have utilized online, direct-to-consumer (DTC) ordering systems; however, little is known about the sociodemographic characteristics of home-test users. We aimed to characterize the patterns of online orders for rapid antigen tests and determine geospatial and temporal associations with neighborhood characteristics and community incidence of COVID-19, respectively.

Methods: This observational study analyzed online, DTC orders for rapid antigen test kits from beneficiaries of the Say Yes! Covid Test program from March to November 2021 in five communities: Louisville, Kentucky; Indianapolis, Indiana; Fulton County, Georgia; O'ahu, Hawaii; and Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Performance of Rapid Antigen Tests to Detect Symptomatic and Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infection : A Prospective Cohort Study.

Background: The performance of rapid antigen tests (Ag-RDTs) for screening asymptomatic and symptomatic persons for SARS-CoV-2 is not well established.

Objective: To evaluate the performance of Ag-RDTs for detection of SARS-CoV-2 among symptomatic and asymptomatic participants.

Design: This prospective cohort study enrolled participants between October 2021 and January 2022.

Design and implementation of a digital site-less clinical study of serial rapid antigen testing to identify asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Background: Rapid antigen detection tests (Ag-RDT) for SARS-CoV-2 with emergency use authorization generally include a condition of authorization to evaluate the test's performance in asymptomatic individuals when used serially. We aim to describe a novel study design that was used to generate regulatory-quality data to evaluate the serial use of Ag-RDT in detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus among asymptomatic individuals.

Methods: This prospective cohort study used a siteless, digital approach to assess longitudinal performance of Ag-RDT.

Performance of Rapid Antigen Tests Based on Symptom Onset and Close Contact Exposure: A secondary analysis from the Test Us At Home prospective cohort study.

Background: The performance of rapid antigen tests for SARS-CoV-2 (Ag-RDT) in temporal relation to symptom onset or exposure is unknown, as is the impact of vaccination on this relationship.

Objective: To evaluate the performance of Ag-RDT compared with RT-PCR based on day after symptom onset or exposure in order to decide on 'when to test'.

Design Setting And Participants: The Test Us at Home study was a longitudinal cohort study that enrolled participants over 2 years old across the United States between October 18, 2021 and February 4, 2022.

Performance of Rapid Antigen Tests to Detect Symptomatic and Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Background: Performance of rapid antigen tests for SARS-CoV-2 (Ag-RDT) varies over the course of an infection, and their performance in screening for SARS-CoV-2 is not well established. We aimed to evaluate performance of Ag-RDT for detection of SARS-CoV-2 for symptomatic and asymptomatic participants.

Methods: Participants >2 years old across the United States enrolled in the study between October 2021 and February 2022.

Finding a Needle in a Haystack: Design and Implementation of a Digital Site-less Clinical Study of Serial Rapid Antigen Testing to Identify Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Background: Rapid antigen tests (Ag-RDT) for SARS-CoV-2 with Emergency Use Authorization generally include a condition of authorization to evaluate the test's performance in asymptomatic individuals when used serially.

Objective: To describe a novel study design to generate regulatory-quality data to evaluate serial use of Ag-RDT in detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus among asymptomatic individuals.

Design: Prospective cohort study using a decentralized approach.

COVID-19 Variant Surveillance and Social Determinants in Central Massachusetts: Development Study.

Background: Public health scientists have used spatial tools such as web-based Geographical Information System (GIS) applications to monitor and forecast the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic and track the impact of their interventions. The ability to track SARS-CoV-2 variants and incorporate the social determinants of health with street-level granularity can facilitate the identification of local outbreaks, highlight variant-specific geospatial epidemiology, and inform effective interventions. We developed a novel dashboard, the University of Massachusetts' Graphical user interface for Geographic Information (MAGGI) variant tracking system that combines GIS, health-associated sociodemographic data, and viral genomic data to visualize the spatiotemporal incidence of SARS-CoV-2 variants with street-level resolution while safeguarding protected health information.

Association of Mass Distribution of Rapid Antigen Tests and SARS-CoV-2 Prevalence: Results from NIH-CDC funded Say Yes! Covid Test program in Michigan.

Importance: Wide-spread distribution of diagnostics is an integral part of the United States’ COVID-19 strategy; however, few studies have assessed the effectiveness of this intervention at reducing transmission of community COVID-19.

Objective: To assess the impact of the Say Yes! Covid Test (SYCT!) Michigan program, a population-based program that distributed 20,000 free rapid antigen tests within Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, Michigan in June-August 2021, on community prevalence of SARS-CoV-2.

Design: This ecological study analyzed cases of SARS-CoV-2 from March to October 2021 reported to the Washtenaw County Health Department.

The Implementation and Acceptability of a Combined Mobile Application with a COVID-19 at-Home Test Kit.

: Testing facilities for COVID-19 were stood up around the country during the pandemic, but could not handle the demand. This study aimed to combine a mobile application (App) with an at-home test kit to facilitate home-based testing. : After integrating an App with an at-home testing service, we measured the time between sample collection and notification of results.

Synergies between centralized and federated approaches to data quality: a report from the national COVID cohort collaborative.

Objective: In response to COVID-19, the informatics community united to aggregate as much clinical data as possible to characterize this new disease and reduce its impact through collaborative analytics. The National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) is now the largest publicly available HIPAA limited dataset in US history with over 6.4 million patients and is a testament to a partnership of over 100 organizations.

Implementation of the pediatric weight management program: study protocol and baseline characteristics.

We are implementing , a primary care-based intervention to improve family-centered outcomes for children, ages 2-12 years, in organizations that care for low-income children. We will use the 'Reach-Effectiveness-Adoption-Implementation-Maintenance' framework to guide our mixed-methods evaluation to examine the effectiveness of stakeholder-informed strategies in supporting program adoption and child outcomes. We also describe characteristics of children, ages 2-12 years with a BMI ≥85th percentile and obesity-related care practices.

The Implementation and Acceptability of a Mobile Application for Screening for Atrial Fibrillation at Home.

Although patients are able to easily record electrocardiograms using consumer devices, these are typically not shared with their clinicians. This article discusses the development and acceptability of a mobile application (app) that integrates with the electronic health record to facilitate screening for atrial fibrillation (AF). After app development and implementation, we compared workflows with and without the mobile app.

Chronic disease outcomes from primary care population health program implementation.

Objectives: We implemented a health information technology-enabled population health management program for chronic disease management in academic hospital-affiliated primary care practices, then compared quality-of-care outcome measures among practices assigned a central population health coordinator (PHC) and those not assigned a PHC.

Study Design: Quasi-experimental.

Methods: Central PHCs were nonrandomly assigned to 8 of 18 practices.

Time-Course of Cause-Specific Hospital Admissions During Snowstorms: An Analysis of Electronic Medical Records From Major Hospitals in Boston, Massachusetts.

With global climate change, more frequent severe snowstorms are expected; however, evidence regarding their health effects is very limited. We gathered detailed medical records on hospital admissions (n = 433,037 admissions) from the 4 largest hospitals in Boston, Massachusetts, during the winters of 2010-2015. We estimated the percentage increase in hospitalizations for cardiovascular and cold-related diseases, falls, and injuries on the day of and for 6 days after a day with low (0.

The critical components of an electronic care plan tool for primary care: an exploratory qualitative study.

Background: A critical need exists for effective electronic tools that facilitate multidisciplinary care for complex patients in patient-centered medical homes.Objective To identify the essential components of a primary care (PC) based electronic care plan (ECP) tool that facilitates coordination of care for complex patients.

Method: Three focus groups and nine semi-structured interviews were conducted at an academic PC practice in order to identify the ideal components of an ECP.

Can Text Messages Improve Attendance to Primary Care Appointments in Underserved Populations?

We explored whether text message (TM) reminders could be used at a community health center (CHC) to improve primary care appointment attendance in adult patients. Over six months, we allocated 8,425 appointments to intervention and 2,679 to control. The proportion of no-shows in the intervention was 18.