NEWS & EVENTS

Training the Next Generation of Implementation Researchers for Health Equity

August 30 - 31 , 2017
NIH Main Campus, John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center
35A Convent Drive, Main Floor, Rooms 610-630, Bethesda, MD 20892

Description

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) partnered with several NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices [National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), National Institute on Aging (NIA), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), and the NIH Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)], as well as  the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health to host a workshop titled, “Training the Next Generation of Implementation Researchers for Health Equity.”  

An important part of the NHLBI mission is the commitment to research training, mentoring, and career development, especially for early-stage investigators. Thus, scientific experts and thought leaders in the fields of implementation science, prevention science, health inequities research, training, and research workforce development convened to stimulate discussions about approaches and strategies to increase participation in implementation research that addresses health equity.  Findings from the workshop will help inform NHLBI’s Strategic Vision Implementation Plan for health inequities research which can ultimately have significant impact on improving population level health for all.

The workshop also featured the Inaugural Dr. Elijah Saunders & Dr. Levi Watkins Memorial Lecture.  The lecture, titled “Training and Mentoring the Next Generation of Health Equity Researchers:  Insights from the Field”, was delivered by Dr. Lisa A. Cooper, M.D., MPH, FACP, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, James F. Fries Professor of Medicine, Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health. An archived video of Dr. Cooper’s lecture is available at https://go.usa.gov/xRwHT.

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Recap

Presentations

Workshop objectives were 1) to identify best practices in research training for health inequities research in heart, lung, blood, and sleep (HLBS) disorders, and 2) gain an understanding of unique needs of early-stage investigators pursuing careers in health inequities research and implementation science. 

In order to take full advantage of the wide range of perspectives, presentations were brief, and the majority of each day focused on extensive, follow-up discussion.  The five workshop session topics were:  1) Building a Cadre of Implementation Researchers Who Conduct Research to Eliminate Health Inequities, 2) Key Partnerships and Collaborations for Training Implementation Researchers Who Address Health Equity, 3)   Fostering Research Mentors to Address Health Equity, 4) Retaining the Next Generation of Implementation Researchers Who Address Health Inequities, and 5) Ensuring a Diverse Implementation Science Workforce.  These sessions were followed by enlightening dialogue with a panel of early-stage investigators (ESIs) currently working in the field of implementation research for health equity, as well as a discussion of the research gaps and opportunities moving forward. Conversations from each of the sessions generated a set of challenges, opportunities and strategies to facilitate the growth of this promising, yet nascent, field.

Emergent themes and ideas from the discussions highlighted the need to 1) initiate training for implementation researchers earlier in the educational path, 2) increase partnerships and collaborations with non-traditional partners (e.g., scientific professional societies, business schools, and local departments of public health), 3) improve cultural and linguistic competency within the implementation science workforce, 4) define core competencies for mentoring, 5) incentivize peer mentoring strategies, and 6) leverage current NIH-funded research and training infrastructure investments in workforce diversity (e.g., NHLBI Diversity Supplement Program, National Research Mentoring Network, etc.) to diversify the field of implementation research for health equity. 

NHLBI Contacts

Dr. Melissa C. Green Parker, Ph.D. and CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S.

Center for Translation Research and Implementation Science

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

National Institutes of Health

Melissa.GreenParker@nih.gov OR Helen.Cox@nih.gov 

Workshop Session Chairs, Session Moderators, and ESI Panelists

Session Chairs

  • Janie Bowie, Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Barbara Krimgold, M.A., Institute for Alternative Futures
  • Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco
  • Roland Thorpe, Jr., Ph.D., Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions
  • Margo Edmunds, Ph.D., AcademyHealth
  • RADM Helena O. Mishoe, Ph.D., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH

Session Moderators

  • CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., CTRIS, NHLBI, NIH
  • Pamela L. Thornton, Ph.D., NIDDK, NIH
  • Jacqueline Lloyd, Ph.D., M.S.W., NIDA, NIH
  • Carl V. Hill, Ph.D., M.P.H., NIA, NIH
  • LCDR Xinzhi Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., NIMHD, NIH
  • Andrea Horvath Marques, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., NIMH, NIH

ESI Panelists

  • Anubha Agarwal, M.D., Duke University School of Medicine
  • Ana A. Baumann, Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis
  • Danielle Beatty Moody, Ph.D., University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • Tennielle Marley, Ph.D., M.P.H., Arizona State University
  • Glenn E. Simmons, Jr., Ph.D., University of Minnesota Medical School

Inaugural Dr. Elijah Saunders & Dr. Levi Watkins Memorial Lecturer

Lisa Cooper, M.D., M.P.H., Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Health and Healthcare Equity and James F. Fries Professor of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Workshop Planning Committee

  • Courtney Ferrell Aklin, Ph.D., NIMHD, NIH
  • CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., NHLBI, NIH (Workshop Co-Chair)
  • Dionne Godette, Ph.D., ODP, OD, NIH
  • Melissa C. Green Parker, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH (Workshop Co-Chair)
  • Carl V. Hill, Ph.D., M.P.H., NIA, NIH
  • Andrea Horvath Marques, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., NIMH, NIH
  • Charisee Lamar, Ph.D., NICHD, NIH
  • Jacqueline Lloyd, Ph.D., M.S.W., NIDA, NIH
  • LeShawndra N. Price, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Rebecca A. Roper, M.S., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH
  • Pamela L. Thornton, Ph.D., NIDDK, NIH
  • LCDR Xinzhi Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., FACE, FRSM, NIMHD, NIH

Meeting Participants

Non-Federal Workshop Participants

  • Anubha Agarwal, M.D., Duke University School of Medicine
  • Parag Aggarwal, Ph.D., Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
  • Philip M. Alberti, Ph.D., Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)         
  • Margarita Alegria, Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Ana A. Baumann, Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis     
  • Danielle Beatty Moody, Ph.D., University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • Betty Bekemeier, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.N., FAAN, University of Washington School of Public Health
  • Harolyn M.E. Belcher, M.D., M.H.S., Kennedy Krieger Institute
  • Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, Ph.D., M.D., M.A.S., University of California, San Francisco
  • Janice Bowie, Ph.D., M.P.H., The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Lisa Cacari-Stone, Ph.D., M.A., M.S., University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center
  • Lisa Cooper, M.D., M.P.H., FACP, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Margo Edmunds, Ph.D., AcademyHealth
  • Nabila El-Bassel, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Mohamed Omar Elasri, Ph.D., The University of Southern Mississippi
  • Abby Gold, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.D., North Dakota State University 
  • Terone Green, M.P.A., The Sullivan Alliance
  • Jacqueline Halladay, M.D., M.P.H., University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine
  • Denise Herrera, Ph.D., MCHES, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
  • Karen H. Kim Yeary, Ph.D., University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
  • Barbara Krimgold, M.A., Culture of Health Equity Network
  • Sunil Kripalani, M.D., M.Sc., Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  • Rafael Luna, Ph.D., Boston College
  • Tennille L. Marley, Ph.D., M.P.H., Arizona State University
  • Elaine Morrato, Dr.P.H., M.P.H., Colorado School of Public Health
  • K.M. Venkat Narayan, M.D., M.Sc., M.B.A., Emory University
  • Lucia Santa Cruz, Ph.D., Bowie State University
  • Glenn Simmons, Jr., Ph.D., University of Minnesota Medical School      
  • Kim Smith-Whitley, M.D., Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
  • Roland J. Thorpe, Jr., Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  • Madeleine Ullman-Shalowitz, M.D., M.B.A., FAAP, North Shore University Health System
  • Gail E. Wyatt, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles        

Federal Workshop Participants

  • David Abram, NHLBI, NIH        
  • Whitney Barfield, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Deshiree Belis, M.S., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH
  • Cheryl Boyce, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Josephine Boyington, Ph.D., M.P.H., CNS, NHLBI, NIH
  • Courtney Coombes, OD/OSP/SPCCR, NIH
  • CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., NHLBI, NIH    
  • Anthony Crampton, NHLBI, NIH
  • Mishe Croom, NHLBI, NIH
  • Janet de Jesus, M.S., R.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • CAPT Michael Engelgau, M.D., M.S., FACP, NHLBI, NIH
  • Courtney Ferrell-Aklin, Ph.D., NIMHD, NIH
  • Lindsey Garvin, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH       
  • Dionne Godette, Ph.D., ODP, OD, NIH
  • Melissa C. Green Parker, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Carl V. Hill, Ph.D., M.P.H., NIA, NIH
  • Roslyn Holliday-Moore, M.S., Office of Policy Planning and Innovation, SAMHSA
  • Andrea Horvath Marques, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., NIMH, NIH
  • Charisse Lamar, Ph.D., NICHD, NIH
  • Rodney Lattisaw, NHLBI, NIH
  • Jacqueline Lloyd, Ph.D., M.S.W., NIDA, NIH     
  • Tiffany Love, Ph.D., A.P.R.N., CHE, GNP, ANP-BC, CCA, CRCST, VHA-CM, Overton Brooks VA Medical Center
  • Janetta Lun, Ph.D., OD, NIH
  • George Mensah, M.D., FAHA, NHLBI, NIH
  • RADM Helena O. Mishoe, Ph.D., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH
  • Tab Morgan, NHLBI, NIH
  • Brad Newsome, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Mark Parker, NHLBI, NIH
  • Emmanuel Peprah, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, M.D., NIMHD, NIH
  • LeShawndra N. Price, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Nicole Redmond, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH
  • Rebecca Roper, M.S., M.P.H., NHLBI, NIH
  • Ilsa Rovira, M.S., NHLBI, NIH
  • Mercedes Rubio, Ph.D., NIGMS, NIH     
  • Andrew K. Sanderson II, M.D., M.P.H., FASGE, The Office of Minority Health, HHS
  • Jane Scott, Sc.D., M.S.N., FAHA, NHLBI, NIH
  • Sue Shero, M.S., B.S.N., NHLBI, NIH
  • Sharon Smith, Ph.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Dan Stimson, Ph.D., J.D., NHLBI, NIH
  • Pamela Thornton, NIDDK, NIH
  • Jenelle Walker, OD, NIH
  • Xinzhi Zhang, NIMHD, NIH

Agenda

8:00 a.m.
-
Registration

8:30 a.m.
-
Greetings, Welcome, Goals of the Workshop, and Participant Introductions

Greetings

Workshop Co-Chairs: Melissa Green Parker, Ph.D., Health Scientist Administrator and CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., Program Management Officer, CTRIS, NHLBI

Welcome

  • George Mensah, M.D., FAHA, Director, CTRIS, NHLBI
  • Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, M.D., Director, NIMHD

Goals of the Workshop

  • George Mensah, M.D., FAHA, Director, CTRIS, NHLBI

Participant Introductions

9:00 a.m.
-
SESSION 1: Building a Cadre of Implementation Researchers Who Conduct Research to Eliminate Health Inequities

Session Chair

Janice Bowie, Ph.D., Professor in Health, Behavior and Society, The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Session Moderator

CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., Program Management Officer, CTRIS, NHLBI

Session 1 Discussion Questions:

  1. What strategies have been most useful for attracting, developing, and sustaining a robust community of implementation researchers in health inequities?
  2. What best practices are available to guide a research training curriculum for implementation researchers and implementation practitioners who focus on health equity?
  3. How are those who make a purposeful career shift to pursue implementation research encouraged to address health inequities?
  4. What new and innovative activities can be put in place when implementing successful, evidence-based training programs? What works and what doesn’t work?

10:30 a.m.
-
BREAK

10:45 a.m.
-
SESSION 2: Key Partnerships and Collaborations for Training Implementation Researchers Who Address Health Equity

Session Chair

Barbara Krimgold, M.A., Founding President, Culture of Health Equity Network and Senior Health Program Director, Institute for Alternative Futures, Institute for Alternative Futures

Session Moderator

Pamela L. Thornton, Ph.D., Program Director, NIDDK

Session 2 Discussion Questions:

  1. What partnerships and collaborations (e.g., private and academic, academic and federal, etc.) have been or would be most useful in supporting a training agenda for late-stage translation researchers who address health inequities?
  2. What are the best practices used to incorporate team science approaches into implementation research focused on health inequities?
  3. Are there training strategies and approaches that have proven to be effective for integrating diverse disciplinary, stakeholder and community perspectives into a cogent intervention design for research that will address health inequities?
  4. What innovative examples of inter-institutional partnerships exist for research training in health inequities?

 

12:15 p.m.
-
LUNCH BREAK

1:00 p.m.
-
The Inaugural Dr. Elijah Saunders & Dr. Levi Watkins Memorial Lecture
“Training and Mentoring the Next Generation of Health Equity Researchers: Insights from the Field”

(also streaming live via NIH webcast: https://go.usa.gov/xRwHT)

Introduction of Speaker:

George Mensah, M.D., FAHA, Director, CTRIS, NHLBI

Lecturer

Lisa Cooper, M.D., M.P.H., Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Health and Healthcare Equity and James F. Fries Professor of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health

2:00 p.m.
-
BREAK

2:15 p.m.
-
SESSION 3: Fostering Research Mentors to Address Health Equity

Session Chair

Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, Ph.D., M.D., M.A.S., Chair of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and Inaugural Vice Dean for Population Health and Health Equity, University of California, San Francisco

Session Moderator

Jacqueline Lloyd, Ph.D., M.S.W., Deputy Branch Chief, NIDA

Session 3 Discussion Questions:

  1. How can a robust and diverse mentoring pool be developed and sustained for late-stage translation researchers who address health inequities?
  2. Because of the multidisciplinary nature of implementing evidence-based interventions, what mentoring models are best suited to support the growth of late-stage translation researchers devoted to heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders?
  3. Can existing mentoring platforms be useful in connecting implementation science research mentors with mentees/trainees?
  4. What are the specific characteristics of mentors that contribute to future career success of their trainees?

3:45 p.m.
-
SESSION 4: Retaining the Next Generation of Implementation Researchers Who Address Health Inequities

Session Chair

Roland Thorpe, Jr., Ph.D., Associate Professor and Deputy Director, Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions

Session Moderator

Carl Hill, Ph.D., M.P.H., Director, Office of Special Populations, NIA

Session 4 Discussion Questions:

  1. What barriers to retention exist in implementation research training, and how might they be addressed?
  2. What supplemental training (e.g. training in leadership development, organizational transformation, genomics and personalized medicine, non-technical skills, etc.) promotes the development of implementation researchers focused on health equity?
  3. What are the best practices used to equip implementation science trainees with the right clinical and public health expertise to conduct health inequities research?
  4. What resources currently exist to support organizational adoption of successful retention strategies for implementation researchers?

5:15 p.m.
-
Adjourn

8:15 a.m.
-
Registration Opens

8:30 a.m.
-
SESSION 5: Ensuring a Diverse Implementation Science Workforce

Session Chair

Margo Edmunds, Ph.D., Vice President, Evidence Generation and Translation, AcademyHealth

Session Moderator

LCDR Xinzhi Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., Program Director, NIMHD

Session 5 Discussion Questions

  1. Are there actionable steps that could be taken to enhance diversity and inclusion within the implementation science workforce?
  2. Are there effective ways to ensure diversity and inclusion are prioritized for late-stage translation research for health equity?
  3. How well do the current training structures for implementation researchers in health equity broaden participation of early-stage investigators from diverse groups?
  4. What are the optimal and sustainable training models for fostering a diverse and robust cadre of implementation researchers focused on health inequities?

10:00 a.m.
-
BREAK

10:15 a.m.
-
SESSION 6: Early-Stage Investigator Panel: Journeys of Success

Session Chair

RADM Helena O. Mishoe, Ph.D., M.P.H., Associate Director for Research Training and Diversity and Special Advisor to NHLBI Director

Session Moderator

Andrea Horvath Marques, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., Chief, Mental Health Disparities Research, NIMH

Early-Stage Investigator Panelists

a) Anubha Agarwal, M.D., Internal Medicine Resident, Duke University School of Medicine
b) Ana A. Baumann, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor, Washington University in St. Louis
c) Danielle Beatty Moody, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, University of Maryland Baltimore County
d) Tennielle Marley, Ph.D., M.P.H., Assistant Professor, Arizona State University
e) Glenn E. Simmons, Jr., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota Medical School

Session 6 Questions for Panelists

  1. What are the needs of early stage investigators who are pursuing implementation research?
  2. What more is needed in a training program for implementation researchers focused on health equity?
  3. What barriers do early-stage investigators encounter on their quest to pursue implementation science research goals?
  4. What kind of mentoring or mentoring structures have been helpful to you?
  5. What activities can be leveraged for enhanced training of the next generation of implementation researchers who will address health inequities?
  6. What specialized training activities should be included for late-stage translation and health equity research?

11:45 a.m.
-
LUNCH BREAK

12:45 p.m.
-
Recap of Key Session Themes

CAPT Michael M. Engelgau, M.D., M.S., FACP, Deputy Director, CTRIS, NHLBI

1:15 p.m.
-
Synthesis of Gaps and Opportunities Going Forward

Workshop Co-Chairs

Melissa Green Parker, Ph.D. and CDR Helen Cox, M.H.S., CTRIS, NHLBI

  • What gaps remain in research training for health equity?
  • What haven’t we talked about? What else do we need to know?
  • Are there specific suggestions for early-stage investigators currently in the field?
  • What are the immediate opportunities?
  • What are the long-term opportunities?

2:45 p.m.
-
Closing Remarks

LeShawndra Price, Ph.D., Branch Chief, CTRIS, NHLBI

3:00 p.m.
-
Adjourn