Funded Projects

Palliative Care Certificate

Principal Investigator: Carrie Cormack
Sponsor / Type: The David R. Clare and Margaret C. Clare Foundation
Project Period: 09/09/2019 – 06/30/2025

MUSC CON will develop a post-Master of Science in Nursing to Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) palliative care track and post-graduate certificate.

Elder Abuse Assessment Training and Mental Health Services Program

Principal Investigator: Tatiana M. Davidson
Sponsor / Type: S.C. Office of the Attorney General/Dept. of Crime Victim Assistance Grants
Project Period: 10/01/2020 – 09/30/2025

Health care personnel and other professionals such as professional caregivers (CNAs, PCAs) etc., are in a pivotal position to help victims of elder mistreatment because they see virtually every adult over age 60 each year. However, they frequently fail to do so because they are not trained to consistently recognize, assess, and refer to services.

Evaluation of Trauma Center-Based, Technology Enhanced Stepped Care Intervention for Adolescent Traumatic Injury Survivors

Principal Investigator: Tatiana M. Davidson
Sponsor / Type: NIH/NICHD
Project Period: 09/01/2021-08/31/2025

Pediatric traumatic injury is the leading cause of death and morbidity among US adolescents and is associated with mental health and health risk outcomes. Pediatric traumatic injuries are associated with medical and societal costs of $87 billion and elevate risk for a wide range of health risk consequences that affect quality of life, physical recovery, social functioning, and return to previous activities.

Mobilizing Behavior Change to Promote Occupational Health and Wellness Among Firefighters

Principal Investigator: Tatiana M. Davidson
Sponsor / Type: Dept. of Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Project Period: 09/09/2022 - 03/08/2025

Firefighter health and safety is a widely recognized, high-priority concern. Many programs target specific risk areas, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, behavioral health, and injury, but many are highly segmented and compartmentalized. What these priority areas share in common is that front-line preventative measures are directly dependent on behavior change relating to activity, sleep, diet, social engagement, and alcohol intake.

Technology Resources for Improving Sleep Among Firefighters

Principal Investigator: Tatiana M. Davidson
Sponsor / Type: Dept. of Homeland Security/Federal emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Project Period: 08/09/2023 - 08/08/2025

Sleep is a significant complicating issue in many, if not most, firefighter behavioral health conditions as well as a risk factor in a wide range of health, safety, injury, and performance issues. It is also baked into the fabric of the enterprise. Our prior FPS initiatives have prioritized needs such as stigma, depression, alcohol use, and suicide risk, but the health concern most often reported is sleep deprivation and poor sleep quality (reported by 59% of firefighters). Poor sleep quality threatens safety, impairs performance, and compromises decision-making. Apps utilizing proven cognitive behavior therapy elements have proven successful in promoting use of effective sleep strategies, resulting in lasting positive change. There is a critical need for resources to improve sleep quality in the fire service and this project will address a critical emerging identified need to help firefighters remain safe, healthy, and able to succeed in their critical missions.

Improving Access and Quality of Mental Health Care for Trauma-Affected Youth and Young Adults in the Carolinas

Principal Investigator: Tatiana M. Davidson
Sponsor / Type: The Duke Endowment
Project Period: 01/01/2024 – 12/31/2026

Ensuring access and quality mental health care for youth and young adults is a top national priority. We are facing a mental health crisis. Over 40% of young people are struggling with persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness. Violence, trauma, and social risk factors are key drivers. Nearly 2 in 3 young people have experienced violence or trauma. Firearm violence is the leading cause of death for children in the United States. Annually, US trauma centers provide acute care to hundreds of thousands of youth and young adults who are at most significant risk for mental health disorders and socioenvironmental stress.

Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training-Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults (BHWET-CAY) Program for Professionals

Principal Investigator: Joy A. Lauerer
Sponsor / Type: HRSA
Project Period: 09/30/2023 - 09/29/2025

This application requests funds to support an innovative interdisciplinary academic-practice partnership for psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) students in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) College of Nursing (CON). With children's behavioral health being declared a national crisis, the purpose of this project is to expand behavioral health services in rural communities to specifically address the behavioral health needs of children, adolescents and young adults.

COPD Management in Rural South Carolina

Principal Investigator: Sarah Miller
Sponsor / Type: South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare
Project Period: 01/01/2023 – 06/30/2025

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a prevalent chronic respiratory disease and currently, the fourth leading cause of death and the fourth main cause of disability in the United States. COPD exacerbations are a significant clinical problem associated with impaired lung function, decreased quality of life (QOL), and compromised mental health.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of Electroconvulsive Therapy versus Usual Care for the Acute Management of Severe Agitation in Alzheimer's Dementia (ECT-AD)

Principal Investigator: Martina Mueller
Sponsor / Type: Sub. McClean Hospital/NIH/NIA
Project Period: 09/30/2018 – 05/31/2025

Alzheimer's dementia (AD), the most prevalent neurodegenerative disease of aging, affects cognition, emotion, and behavior. Agitation is a common behavioral syndrome that frequently emerges during the middle to late stages of AD and is characterized by psychomotor hyperactivity, aggression, irritability, yelling, resistance to care, and insomnia.

Self-Management for Youth Living with Sickle Cell Disease (SMYLS)

Principal Investigator: Shannon Phillips
Sponsor / Type: NIH/NINR
Project Period: 04/21/2023 – 01/31/2028

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a chronic condition that affects every organ system and requires lifelong complicated treatment regimens. Adolescents and young adults (AYA) with SCD experience remarkable increases in negative outcomes (e.g., morbidity, mortality, complications, acute care utilization) following transition from pediatric to adult care. To mitigate negative outcomes, it is critical that AYA with SCD develop effective self-management behaviors before transition to adult care.

A Scalable mHealth Resource to Facilitate Behavioral and Emotional Recovery after Pediatric Traumatic Injury

Principal Investigator: Leigh Ridings
Sponsor / Type: NIH/ Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Project Period: 07/15/2020 – 06/03/2025

Pediatric traumatic injury (PTI) is a public health priority, with nearly 300,000 children incurring injuries so severe that they require hospitalization each year. Follow-up care for affected children and caregivers is critical to support behavioral and emotional recovery. Still, few trauma centers provide these services and established, scalable models of care are lacking. Cost-effective, sustainable interventions are needed to reduce barriers to care and reach families that need it most.

Improving Quality of Life and Behavioral Health Service Access for Caregivers and Young Children after Pediatric Traumatic Injury

Principal Investigator: Leigh Ridings
Sponsor / Type: NIH/NICHD
Project Period:12/01/2024-11/30/2029

Interventions that address families’ quality of life and emotional and behavioral needs after pediatric traumatic injury (PTI) are a public health priority, with nearly 120,000 children hospitalized annually for severe injuries. PTI is associated with annual individual and societal costs of $87 billion and elevates risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and other health risk consequences that affect quality of life, physical recovery, family roles and routines, and academic functioning. 

Testing a Scalable Model of Care to Improve Patients’ Access to Mental Health Services after Traumatic Injury

Principal Investigator: Kenneth J. Ruggiero
Sponsor / Type: AHRQ
Project Period: 05/01/2022 – 02/28/2026

Annually, traumatic injuries affect roughly 3 million people in the US and account for over $650B in costs. Many patients are resilient and recover well emotionally, but over 20% (~600,000 people per year) develop mental health problems such as posttraumatic stress disorder and depression, both major risk factors for social and occupational impairment; poor physical health and quality of life; and lost productivity, work, and financial resources.

Empowering Nurse Practitioner Education: Immersive Virtual Reality Cases for Holistic Geriatric Care in South Carolina

Principal Investigator: Whitney A. Smith
Sponsor / Type: The Duke Endowment
Project Period: 01/01/2025-12/31/2027

Across the United States, older adults experience significant gaps in health care and this is only expected to worsen with adults aged 65. Due to longer life expectancies, and the 78 million Americans born in the baby boomer generation (1945-1965), there is expected to be a rise in the number of adults aged 65 and older that will require primary geriatric healthcare from 12% in 2005 to almost 20% in 2030.

Augmenting Suicide Prevention Interventions for Service Members (ASPIS)

Principal Investigator: Tracy Stecker
Sponsor / Type: Ohio State University/DOD
Project Period: 09/30/2022 – 09/29/2026

The suicide rate among US military personnel remains elevated as compared to the age- and gender-adjusted general population. Researchers have identified several strategies that are effective for preventing suicidality among military personnel, but little is known about when or for whom these strategies are most likely to reduce suicidality among military personnel

The Regional Centers of Excellence in Substance Use Disorder Education Program

Principal Investigator: Tracy Stecker
Sponsor / Type: University of Rochester/HRSA
Project Period: 09/01/2022 – 08/31/2026

The Center of Excellence at the University of Rochester was established in 2019 as one of three Rural Centers of Excellence on substance use disorder (SUD) in the United States. It is funded by the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP), an initiative of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) that supports programs to address barriers to treatment for SUD in rural areas.

Nurse Faculty Loan Program

Principal Investigator: Teresa M. Stephens
Sponsor / Type: HRSA
Project Period: 07/01/2013 – 06/30/2025

Funding priority request for financial loan support for students enrolled in a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (Ph.D.) degree program and the post-Master’s Doctorate of Nursing Practice Program (DNP) at the College of Nursing (CON), Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) with a career goal to serve as nurse faculty upon graduation.

Healthy Steps

Principal Investigator: Amy Williams
Sponsor / Type: First Steps South Carolina
Project Period: 04/01/2022 – 09/30/2026

HealthySteps, is an evidence-based, team-based pediatric primary care program that promotes the health, well-being and school readiness of babies and toddlers, with an emphasis on families living in low-income communities. The program is led by a HealthySteps Specialist, who joins the pediatric primary care team to ensure universal screening(s), provide successful intervention, referrals, and follow-up care to the whole family.