Mentored Research to Improve Care for Complex Patients with Diabetes



 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The overarching goal of this application is to develop innovative approaches to improving the care of complex patients with type 2 diabetes, including the growing number of Latinos with diabetes. I am the principal investigator for an NIDDK R01 that is implementing and evaluating a tool to help complex patients with diabetes identify and prioritize their top concerns in preparation for a scheduled visit with their primary care provider (PCP). This R01 will help form the foundation for the new mentored research proposed for this K24 award. Specific aims for the K24 include to: Aim 1: Examine the relationship between patient visit priorities and PCP care plans; Aim 2: Adapt pre-visit prioritization for Low-English-Proficiency and Spanish-speaking Latinos; Aim 3: Learn how to effectively implement alternative health IT platforms such as smart phones, interactive voice response, and other novel modalities for pre-visit prioritization. I am the Director of the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research Delivery Science Fellowship Program and I am a core faculty member for the UCSF Translational Sciences Institute K Scholars Program for junior faculty with career development awards. I have a track record of successfully mentoring research trainees, including medical residents, clinical fellows, MD and PhD post-doctoral trainees, and junior faculty. Coupled with the proposed K24 Career Development training activities, the proposed mentored research will enhance my career goals to build research skills in the areas of Latino cultural health and health IT design, generate novel preliminary data to support subsequent R01- level applications to advance the field of diabetes patient-oriented research, and provide abundant mentored research opportunities for highly promising mentees with an interest and passion for patient-oriented research to improve the care of patients with type 2 diabetes.