How is Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Contributing to The Fight Against COVID-19?

August 19, 2020

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) has approved over $20 million in funding for seven studies assessing different healthcare strategies to improve outcomes among people infected by COVID-19 and to minimize the impact of the infection on patients, health care workers and communities.

According to PCORI Executive Director Nakela L. Cook, MD, MPH, “These comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER) studies on optimizing health care and health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic complement and enhance the research and development of new therapies and vaccines against the novel coronavirus.”

The seven approved studies are:

$5 million for the University of California at San Francisco to study the impacts of policy decisions related to COVID-19- on people’s health and financial well-being.
$4.9 million for a RAND Corporation study of strategies to improve physical and mental well-being of health care workers.
$3 million for a Cornell University study on the different approaches to providing primary care during the pandemic via telehealth.
$2.5 million for a University of Pennsylvania study to evaluate COVID Watch, a home monitoring program for people with COVID-19 who self-isolate at home.
$2.5 million for a State University of New York study to compare a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) group intervention via teleconference in improving mental well-being among adults living in low-income racial and ethnic minority neighborhoods who lack access to mental health care.
$2.5 million for a University of Southern California study to examine the effectiveness of housing and support services located in group housing facilities versus independent housing.
$2.3 million for a Penn State University Hershey Medical Center study on effective infection control in nursing homes.