An essential resource for the Northwestern OAIC, the Data Analytics Core (Analytics Core) will 1) provide high quality, timely and specialized expertise on research design & analytic methods to `Pepper Scholar' junior faculty trainees and other affiliated investigators; and 2) develop new methods for determining older adults' health status and care complexity to better inform clinical decision making and primary care services. Our Analytics Core will include both quantitative and qualitative support in order to provide OAIC investigators a comprehensive suite of tools for research aimed at primary care innovations in caring for older adults with multiple chronic conditions (MCC). The framework for delivering research support will be drawn from the Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NUCATS) and it's Biostatistics Collaboration Center. We will model two NUCATS programs: Mentors, and Vouchers. Analytics Core mentors will build robust scientific teams by matching Pepper Scholars with specially selected faculty who have relevant methodological expertise (quantitative and qualitative; e.g. biostatisticians, health economists, interpretivism/ phenomenology experts). Vouchers will provide OAIC investigators with right-sized, quantitative and qualitative expertise to fund data analysis and programming support on innovative projects related to our OAIC mission to address MCC in primary care.
The specific aims and Development Projects (DPs) of the Analytics Core are to:
Aim 1 Enhance research on older adults with MCC by providing individualized, relevant, and robust quantitative and qualitative methodological support.
Aim 2 Advance research on older adults with MCC by developing analytic methodology optimized for examining populations who have multiple and complex morbidities. DP1 will adjudicate accurate diagnosis states for older adults with MCC using multiple sources of data, including structured and unstructured content from electronic health records (EHRs) and patient self-report. Models will be developed to estimate a patient's `true condition'. DP2 will leverage data available with the EHR to develop an accurate estimate of an older patient's `care complexity', quantifying the impact of MCC on older adults' risk of functional decline. Our Core will also support other Resource Core (Design, Measurement) DPs and Eps.
