2023 Fall Projects

Pill Passport: Optimizing Patient Education Tools Through Usability Testing

• Rachel A. Gonzalez, OSF HealthCare
• Patricia Pence, Ed.D, MSN, RN, CNE, Illinois State University

The Pill Passport project aims to improve patient medication education and adherence by creating a user-friendly tool that bridges the gap between health care-based education and at-home medication management. Initially developed and piloted as part of a 2022 OSF Trailblazer Challenge, the Pill Passport includes a medication list, dosage chart, indication for use and reference pill samples, along with space for essential health information. This study will refine the tool through an iterative design process, incorporating user feedback to develop three prototypes: a plastic pill sample case, a written description section and a digital version. The most user-friendly prototype will be further optimized and tested to enhance usability and effectiveness, ultimately aiming to reduce medication nonadherence among older adults.

GAI-Secure: Transforming Cybersecurity Training with Cutting-Edge AI

• Dmitry Zhdanov, PhD, MBA, Illinois State University
• Tom Caldera, MS, OSF HealthCare

This research project proposes developing a generative AI (GAI)-driven environment to enhance cybersecurity awareness training (CAT). By incorporating GAI tools like interactive chatbots, the project aims to make CAT more engaging and user-driven, breaking training into smaller, ongoing tasks and gamifying the experience. This approach leverages the architecture recommended by OpenAI and uses a cybersecurity-specific data corpus to create an effective training application. The goal is to empower employees to be proactive in defending against cyber threats while maintaining human oversight, with findings to be published in technology and health care journals.

Developing New Opioid Intervention and Outreach Resources in Rural Illinois

• Scott Barrows, MA, OSF HealthCare
• Joanna Willet, MSN, RN, CNE, CEN, Illinois State University

This research project aims to address the opioid epidemic in rural Illinois, where drug overdose deaths are significantly higher than in urban areas. By leveraging human-centered design and engaging community residents through focus groups, the project will develop and test new outreach and therapeutic interventions, including the use of Naloxone (Narcan). The initiative seeks to reduce opioid overdose deaths, addiction and substance abuse by introducing Community Health Promoters and creating new health access points using various communication technologies. The project aligns with existing initiatives from the Rural Health Access Innovation Network and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals to enhance health care access in underserved rural communities.

Semi-Automated Tool for Health Care Data Structure Alignment

• Rishi Saripalle, PhD, MS, Illinois State University
• Roopa Foulger, OSF HealthCare

This research project aims to develop a tool to automate the alignment of data structures between health care organizations and various vendor tools, addressing a common integration challenge. The project involves three key objectives:

• Exploring existing techniques from fields like databases and ontology to identify relevant methods
• Designing and developing a semi-automatic tool using clinical natural language processing, machine learning and generative AI to assist developers in mapping data structures
• Evaluating the tool's performance and usability in real-world health care scenarios

This tool is expected to enhance developers' productivity and support seamless data integration, ultimately benefiting health care organizations.

Simulation To Address Rural Telehealth Education Development (STARTED)

• Susie Watkins, PhD, RN, Illinois State University
• Ann Willemsen-Dunlap, CRNA, PhD, OSF HealthCare

The STARTED project aims to develop and deliver simulation-based telehealth education for undergraduate, graduate and health care practitioners to enhance care for patients with chronic diseases in rural Central Illinois. This one-year initiative will educate at least 120 nursing undergraduates and 24 family nurse practitioner graduates at Illinois State University using virtual interactive telehealth active learning (VITAL) modules. The project will employ simulation scenarios, standardized participants and various telehealth technologies to teach effective, person-centered and culturally sensitive telehealth practices. By improving telehealth training, the project seeks to address health care access barriers and improve health outcomes in underserved rural communities.