MGH EQUITY INNOVATION GRANT PROGRAM
As part of MGH Equity and Community Health 10-point Structural Equity Plan, the goal of Initiative 4 is to improve access to care and identify and eliminate disparities in health care delivery. The MGH Equity Innovation Grant Program provides a funding mechanism for interventions that address racial and ethnic disparities in health care. This program is designed to attract applicants from within MGH to develop, test, and implement innovative solutions to improve quality and address gaps in care for our diverse population.
We invite employees across MGH with dedication and passion for improving diversity, equity, and inclusion to apply. Funded projects will be developed and administered as small pilots of change to identify interventions that are successful and sustainable.
FUNDING
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Microgrants of up to $5,000 are awarded to MGH employees committed to the design and implementation of quality improvement projects based on a defined area of need.
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Funds do not include effort for time, but rather expenses related to quality improvement or research projects.
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Funds may faciliate interviewing processes with project participants
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ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
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All MGH employees are eligible to apply for funding. Grant funding is available for MGH employees only.
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Applicants must propose a quality improvement or research project that is focused on health disparities, diversity, equity, and/or inclusion.
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APPLICATION PROCESS & TIMELINE​
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Applications are completed online and reviewed by the MGH Equity and Community Health team on a rolling basis.
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Eligible applicants can expect a response to their proposal within 3 to 4 weeks of submission.
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CONTACT INFORMATION
Contact Esteban Barreto at eabarreto@mgh.harvard.edu with questions about the program.
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Grants are for MGH employees only
MGH EQUITY INNOVATION GRANT PROJECTS
Disparities in NTSV C-Section Quality Improvement Project
Project Lead: Allison Bryant, MD, MPH, Obstetrics and Gynecology
IRB Protocol Number: 2020P003877
The OB/Gyn Department, the Disparities Solutions Center, the Center for Quality and Safety, and MGH Equity and Community Health are collaborating on a Qualitative Improvement initiative to better understand and address high NTSV Cesarean rates among Black patients. Staff are conducting qualitative interviews with 25 NTSV C-section patients to explore their experience with their delivery and the care they received at Mass General. Findings from this investigation will inform improvement plans.
Making Basic Life Support (BLS) Basic
Project Lead: Anezi Uzendu, MD, Cardiology
The Make BLS Basic Team piloted a virtual CPR training platform for community members and students predominantly of color to examine whether this approach could build knowledge and confidence in delivering bystander CPR. In total, this team trained 150 families, and Portable Hands Only CPR training kits were sent to each family before the Zoom sessions, which they kept to pass along the training to loved ones.
Prospective GI Symptoms Assessment (ProGISA) during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Project Lead: Christopher Velez, MD, Gastroenterology
IRB Protocol Number: 2020P001813
This study aimed to assess and track functional gastrointestinal disease (FGID) symptoms and psychological distress. The study staff conducted surveys with patients who visited an outpatient respiratory illness clinic and found a high burden of chronic GI symptoms associated with females and depression/anxiety. This study found an association between GI symptom severity and psychological distress. This finding is suggestive of FGID-development in communities heavily impacted by COVID-19.
Read: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8529223/pdf/main.pdf
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Experience of Patients with Functional Dyspepsia in Medically Underserved Areas
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Project Lead: Christopher Velez, MD, Gastroenterology
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IRB Protocol Number: 2019P000227
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This study aims to understand how functional dyspepsia impacts quality of life to identify barriers to care and how patients feel and think about their GI symptoms. To achieve this goal, study staff will conduct interviews in English and Spanish with patients in medically underserved areas (MUAs) who have functional dyspepsia and visit a gastroenterologist or primary care physician at a Mass General Brigham Healthcare facility.
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