Be Well Fund

HealthVault Be Well Fund 2008

Microsoft® Health Solutions Group is pleased to announce the recipients of the Be Well Fund 2008 RFP totaling $4,500,000 in funding. The HealthVault Be Well Fund is designed to assist academic and research health organizations in the creation of innovative online health applications for patients. These applications should make use of shared health data and connected home health devices to improve the potential for positive health outcomes for patients.

Read the original RFP.

Be Well Fund 2008 RFP Award Recipients

Medication Reconciliation & HealthVault™ Integration

Principle investigator(s): Sam Adams, Doug Lauterbach, Lindsey Jarrell
Institution: Baycare Health System, Tampa FL

The Joint Commission has identified medication reconciliation as one of its 2008 National Patient Safety Goals (Hospital Program Goal 8). The advantages of creating a patient centered tool using Microsoft® HealthVault™ to track medication history are enormous. Many times patients present to hospitals, physician offices, and emergency departments without a strong understanding of what medication they are taking or how frequently they are taking medications. This lack of understanding increases the patient risk because needed therapies might be discontinued or incorrect information could be given by the patient to the caregiver

Managing Immunization Information Using HealthVault

Principle investigator(s): David Vawdrey, Melissa Stockwell, Adam Wilcox, et al.
Institution: Columbia University, New York NY
Affiliations: Columbia University Department of Biomedical Informatics; New York Presbyterian Hospital; Columbia University Division of General Pediatrics and Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health

By providing access to information, improving record management, and sending parental reminders, the myEzVAC HealthVault portal will enhance childhood immunization. Over time, these benefits will help parents ensure that their children have up-to-date immunizations, which will protect not only the health of individual children, but also the health of entire communities.

The Columbus Model for Childhood Obesity Intervention: A Computer-Based Initiative Integrated into HealthVault

Principle investigator(s): Steven Leichter
Institution: Columbus Research Foundation, Columbus GA
Affiliations: Center for Health Transformation, Columbus Regional Medical Center

Childhood obesity is growing and its associated medical problems are recognized as one of the most important health issues in children and adolescents in the United States. From 1995 to 2004, the prevalence has increased in boys from 14% to 24% and in girls from 15% to 26%. As obesity increases, rates of diabetes and pre-diabetes, hypertension and cholesterol (lipid) disorders are increasing. It is also particularly alarming that the blood pressure of children and adolescents has increased over the past decade. Our Microsoft® HealthVault™ application, and associated web resources, will offer the opportunity for 7th grade students in Columbus to learn positive lifestyle choices and follow and record their own personal lifestyle modifications and compete in a city-wide program for lifestyle improvement in Columbus, Georgia.

Capturing Electronic Family Health History Data to Improve Patient Care

Principle investigator(s): Grant Wood, Marc Williams
Institution: Intermountain Healthcare Clinical Genetics Institute, Salt Lake City, UT

Family health history information has long been used in clinical care, but not by every provider, and not utilized to its fullest potential. With the combination of consumer-based healthcare and personalized medicine, family history will play a critical role in the area of clinical genomics. The key component of this project is to create a basic family history application and test a connection between Microsoft® HealthVault™ and the Clinical Data Repository of Intermountain Healthcare - leveraging AHIC and HL7 standards for structured data terminology and electronic messaging. This work will provide an opportunity to increase both patient and provider education on the value and use of family history information.

Remote Monitoring of Body Weight and Food Intake in Free-Living Individuals

Principle investigator(s): Sai Krupa Das
Institution: Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Boston, MA

Affiliations: Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University

Modifying diet and lifestyle remains to be the cornerstone of obesity and diabetes management and self-monitoring is a critical step in the behavior modification process. Self monitoring involves the systematic recording of health related information such as body weight and food intake to raise awareness in the patient and provides valuable feedback to the healthcare provider. The purpose of this proposal is to use wireless sensor devices and a remote monitoring system with integrated wireless networking technology to remotely monitor body weight and food intake data as it is collected using cellular compatible diet software program and Microsoft's Microsoft® HealthVault™ platform.

The Impact of Automated Dosing Reminders on Medication Adherence using HealthVault

Principle investigator(s): Michael Boland
Institution: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
Affiliations: Johns Hopkins University

The nature of chronic and initially asymptomatic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, HIV and glaucoma contributes to a person's tendency to not take their medication regularly. Such non-compliance is known to lead to progression of disease and the prevalence of the diseases above is sufficiently high to make non-compliance a significant problem in terms of cost and health. Based on the work of others as well as our own recent study of non-compliance in glaucoma, we propose to study patient compliance behaviors using a Microsoft® HealthVault™ enabled application that will allow patients to choose the method by which they would be reminded to take their medications using voice and text messaging.

LSUHN Medication Reconciliation Evacuation Response

Principle investigator(s): Jane Olds, J. Brent Wallis MD
Institution: LSU Healthcare Network, Shreveport, LA
Affiliations: LSU Health Sciences Center, AllScripts

With an accurate personal health record populated with clinically relevant data derived from our Allscripts ePrescribing (formerly known as eRx NOW™) and electronic health records (EHR) solutions and using an enabling technology like HealthVault, patients can take their medical records with them wherever they go, no matter what potentially catastrophic conditions occur. This critical medical information could then return to the city with the patient once they are ready to re-establish treatment with their original physician saving millions of dollars in re-treatment and redundant care.

eHealth2Go

Principle investigator(s): Michelle F. Magee, MD
Institution: MedStar Diabetes Institute at Washington Hospital Center, Washington DC

This project will examine how "eHealth2Go" - a user friendly, culturally appropriate patient portal, with various associated applications can be developed and applied in a large tertiary care hospital and other community venues to improve the health outcomes of persons with diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Through its community and social health applications, the project will also explore how a uniquely tailored portal can be used for primary and secondary prevention. Findings will be used to advance the current state of knowledge in this field and establish best practices for the expansion of Microsoft® HealthVault™ patient portals that target underserved, hard to reach populations.

Integrated Mobile Health Solution for Diabetes Care

Principle investigator(s): Elizabeth Ofili
Institution: Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta GA

According to the American Diabetes Association, the estimated annual cost of $132 billion for diabetes significantly underestimates the true costs and burden of diabetes. The proposed application will enable patients with Type II diabetes to control their risk factors (blood pressure, cholesterol, blood glucose, weight, physical activity levels) using a Microsoft® HealthVault™ enabled mobile personal health record (PHR) application and data from home monitoring devices collected through HealthVault Connection Center. Patients will receive on-the-go reminders for medication adherence and coaching sessions, share information through social networking, and have mobile access to their health data and trend analysis for coaching sessions and disease management.

Utilization of HealthVault in a Patient-Centric Diabetes Management Program

Principle investigator(s): Alice Watson
Institution: Partners Healthcare, Boston, MA
Affiliations: Center for Connected Health at Partners Healthcare, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital

Effective glycemic control is the cornerstone of diabetes therapy. However, national surveys and data from our own institution indicate that many patients with type 2 diabetes do not meet evidence-based goals of care. It is a shocking fact that in the U.S. less than 2% of adult patients reach all goals recommended by the American Diabetes Association. This proposal seeks to perform a randomized clinical trial of this web-based application that will enable home-based glucose monitoring results to be readily incorporated into clinical glycemic management. A key component of this clinical trial is the seamless acquisition and integration of patient data into and out of our proprietary diabetes application and our clinical systems.

Increasing Autonomy in Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes

Principle investigator(s): Joyce Yi, Jared Roach, Catherine Pihoker, Eugene Kolker, et al.
Institution: Seattle Children's Hospital Research Institute, Seattle WA
Affiliations: Seattle Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center

Adolescence is an important period of transition in any young person facing chronic illness. In order to counteract risky behaviors and high rates of poor metabolic control leading to increased risk of complications they need age-specific interventions targeting self-management and health. This proposal will test the effectiveness of a Microsoft® HealthVault™ "Passport Application" for adolescents with type 1 diabetes focused on improving autonomy and self-care through the period of adolescence. The Passport Application will provide education, self-care feedback between visits, and preparation for the transition between pediatric and adult providers. We will study the effectiveness of the Passport Application as a tool for preparation, management, and continuity.

Be Well From Birth - e-BabyBook

Principle investigator(s): Clyde E. Wesp, Jr., MD, MAOM
Institution: St. Joseph Health System, Orange, CA

Future generations will expect to have medical information on demand, rapidly and accurately with privacy and confidentiality. However, the current state remains fragmented, paper-based, and clinician. Through "Be Well From Birth", a Microsoft® HealthVault™ enabled patient portal, over 12,000 newborns will begin their lifetime personal health repository with the ability to share, edit and deposit information as they choose. We are ready to help our patients build a digital legacy on the HealthVault platform enlisting an entire generation to the digital health record supporting interactive communication, improving outcomes and growing Healthiest Communities.

EMS Bridge

Principle investigator(s): Eldon Mahoney, Lori Nichols
Institution: St. Joseph Hospital Foundation, Bellingham WA
Affiliations: Whatcom Health Info Network, PeaceHealth, Critical Junctures Institute, Bellingham Technical College, Western Washington University

This project proposes to deliver pertinent health information from a PHR to Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel while in the field. Recently discharged patients living with diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, transplants, immune system deficiencies, and the elderly tend to be higher than normal users of EMS services. In participation with community emergency and health resources focused on promoting the safety benefits of the EMS Bridge PHR we intend to demonstrate positive health outcomes for consumers in the form of reduced mortality, reduced morbidity, and a reduction in subsequent 911 call rates.

St. Vincent's Birmingham successful management of OB population

Principle investigator(s): Timothy Stettheimer Ph.D., Theresa Meadows RN
Institution: St. Vincent's Birmingham, Birmingham AL

The goal of our project is to improve the access to this clinical information and to share it among the mother's caregivers. By implementing electronic monitoring equipment integrated with Microsoft's HealthVault, mothers could record and upload their self-tests. This information would then be available to be shared with physicians and other care-givers. Physicians could proactively monitor results as they felt appropriate. Mothers could ask about abnormal readings via the phone eliminating the need to schedule a visit to share results. Sharing this data through a web interface has the potential to reduce complications and improve response times when complications do occur.

Using Mobile Technologies to Uncover Barriers to Healthy Behavior in Heart Disease Patients

Principle investigator(s): Wanda Pratt
Institution: University of Washington, Seattle WA
Affiliations: AMIA, ACM

In this project, we have two main aims: the first is to leverage mobile technology and Microsoft® HealthVault™ to help patients, providers, and researchers use personalized information to improve cardiac patients' post-surgical lifestyle changes, aimed at reducing the risk of another cardiac event. We will employ mobile phones and wearable sensors to capture information about specific aspects of patients' daily lives that act as obstacles and enablers of patients' efforts to make and maintain recommended health behavior changes. The success of our work could help to reduce the over 800,000 deaths in the U.S. each year from cardiovascular disease as well as provide a foundation for future work in other chronic disease.