In March 2023, OSF HealthCare and Illinois State University signed an agreement to foster research, innovation, and economic development across Illinois. The program, called Connected Communities Initiative (CCI), was designed to bring together clinicians, researchers, and students to focus on innovation in clinical and patient education, health care engineering, data science, and cybersecurity. During fall 2023, the following five research projects were chosen to receive support from this new program:
Simulation To Address Rural Telehealth Education Development
- Ann Willemsen-Dunlap, CRNA, Ph.D., OSF HealthCare, and Susie Watkins, Ph.D., RN, Illinois State University
Semi-automated tool for healthcare data structure alignment
- Roopa Foulger, OSF HealthCare, and Rishi Saripalle, Ph.D., M.S., Illinois State University
Developing New Opioid Intervention and Outreach Resources in Rural Illinois
- Scott Barrows, M.A., OSF HealthCare, and Joanna Willett, M.S.N., RN, CNE, CEN, Illinois State University
GAI-Secure: Transforming Cybersecurity Training with Cutting-Edge AI
- Tom Caldera, M.S., OSF HealthCare, and Dmitry Zhdanov, Ph.D., MBA, Illinois State University
Pill Passport: optimizing patient education tools through usability testing
- Rachel Gonzalez, OSF HealthCare and Patricia Pence, Ed.D, M.S.N., RN, CNE, Illinois State University
The project Simulation To Address Rural Telehealth Education Development seeks to develop and deliver simulation-based education for undergraduate, graduate, and health care practitioners on effective telehealth practices. According to Dr. Watkins, associate dean for academics at Mennonite College of Nursing at Illinois State, “This would help us provide some care in a community like that where they don’t otherwise have access to health care, and that could potentially avoid them having to use the emergency room for things like ear infections and strep throat.”
Investigators can now apply for the next round of funding from the CCI program. Selected projects will receive one year of funding up to $75,000 with the option to reapply for additional funding after the project is successfully completed. Proposals must include at least two co-investigators: one faculty member from Illinois State and one health care provider at OSF HealthCare.
