Community Health & Chronic Disease

Using novel analytic methods with systemwide Health Information Exchange (HIE) data, we will explore new risk factors relevant to Multiple Chronic Conditions (MCCs) in older adults. This pilot study is also using a participatory patient-care partner approach to gain insight on MCC patient experiences and ensure the relevance of risk factors developed for future patient-provider interactions.  

This project will conduct a 10-year cohort study of 38,000 residents of Tonawanda and Grand Island to examine the health effects of industrial environmental pollutants.

With an interdisciplinary team, including but not limited to biochemists, epidemiologists, mathematicians and computer scientists, we aim to develop and implement a robust system to detect signs of a potential pandemic in our environment and within our populations. Early detection is key to responding to public health crises like the COVID-19 pandemic quickly, effectively, and thoughtfully as a community. This requires true partnership and trust among researchers, public health officials, government and the public. We actively, continuously engage and partner with members of diverse community groups to directly inform each other and provide feedback about what changes in the community should be monitored as part of this predictive system. We consider the unique needs of different communities in the event of a future pandemic to promote community strengths and proactively allocate resources. 

As part of this collaborative initiative, led by Dr. Renee Cadzow of D'Youville University, PCRI's role is to create an advanced community health worker (CHW) training for workforce in research and in primary care using a participatory approach. This training will follow guidelines set forth by CoNECT: The Community Health Network of Buffalo and the Patient Voices Network.

The main goal of our seed project is to work with teen leaders and local health professionals to develop and pilot interactive, school-based food literacy sessions that empower teens with the knowledge and skills to be engaged in their food choices and the impact on their health. Since we know that teens seek independence, novelty and are motivated by many factors rather than their future health, we aim to focus on experiential learning and building lasting food skills.

The primary goal of this grant is to reduce substance use among youth and, over time, reduce substance abuse among adults by addressing the factors in a community that increase the risk of substance abuse and promoting the factors that minimize the risk of substance abuse. We will accomplish this by strengthening collaboration among communities, public and private non-profit agencies, and federal, state, local, and tribal governments to support the efforts of community coalitions working to prevent and reduce substance use among youth.

The current study will capitalize on existing food prescription programs and use a mixed methods implementation science approach to understanding determinants of food prescription program implementation and participation. This research will be guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, a determinant framework focused on understanding how characteristics of the intervention and the setting as well as individuals running and participating in the intervention impact implementation.

The chief aim of this grant is to evaluate new and ongoing produce prescription programs being offered at Neighborhood Health Center in partnership with the Massachusetts Avenue Project’s Growing Green Mobile market and FreshFix. This research will use focus groups with patients to help determine barriers and facilitators to program usage at both mobile produce markets and a new delivered produce prescription model. These programs have shown significant promise across the country for improving diet and health and reducing health care costs, particularly for those living in food insecurity or with chronic health conditions.

Buffalo, NY, the second largest city in New York State (population 276,807), located in Erie County (population 950,683) is one of the poorest cities in the US (31% in poverty). One of the most pressing problems in metropolitan Buffalo is adverse health outcomes in urban neighborhoods, a condition shared with many American metropolitan areas. The life expectancy of people who reside in under-resourced neighborhoods live 10 to 12 years shorter and are 300% more likely to have chronic, often preventable, diseases compared to those who live in well-resourced neighborhoods. In response to this crisis, in 2014, a group of visionary community leaders created a Task Force, which includes leaders and stakeholders from multiple sectors of the Buffalo community, including community leaders, community non-profits, health care providers, payers, University at Buffalo (UB) faculty, representatives from the Erie County Department of Health and more. The Task Force has met monthly since 2015. Leaders of organizations that represent a broad range of community stakeholders continue to meet monthly as part of the Task Force. This community-university-government partnership has enormous reach and influence throughout the community, positioning us to disseminate research findings and work with policy makers and community stakeholders to promote sustainable improvements in public health and health outcomes. The mission of our NIMHD Center of Excellence in Investigator Development and Community Engagement is to train and develop the next generation of investigators to perform innovative research in partnership with our community and to the benefit of the community. The Center of Excellence will include faculty from all 12 UB schools, creating a transdisciplinary framework that cuts across scientific and organizational silos to integrate disciplines to address the full range of public health issues and to mentor early-career investigators in research in improving health outcomes. Our Center of Excellence will inspire, train, and mentor a new generation of scientists from multiple disciplines to perform innovative research and advance their careers (Aim 1). We will nurture our enduring community-university partnerships to perform transdisciplinary research to develop and test innovative solutions to improve health outcomes in Buffalo and the region (Aim 2). Finally, we will advance collaborations with community partners to translate our research into sustainable, community changes toward improving health in Buffalo communities (Aim 3). Our enduring community-university-government partnership is a strong foundation for an NIMHD Center of Excellence, an exceptional advance in our environment to train and mentor a new generation of researchers to perform research that will create sustained improvements in health outcomes in communities in Buffalo and the nation. 

This study will examine two novel food prescription interventions against a standard of care mobile market for increasing utilization of food prescription programs among older adults, in collaboration with two primary care clinics and a grocery delivery service in Buffalo, N.Y.

This project will begin to study how adolescents' eating autonomy might be related to their health (diabetes risk, weight status, and diet quality). We will also look at how parents and others help teens to build these skills. Both teen- and adult-involved community advisory boards will help pinpoint which adolescent eating factors and skills should be prioritized to support teen health.