Children's Health Services Research

Operating one of the largest and most active pediatric informatics program in the country, CHSR has physician scientists and software engineers from the Child Health Informatics Research and Development Lab (CHIRDL) who use data to develop information systems for routine clinical practice to capture and analyze health information. Child Health Improvement through Computer Automation (CHICA), a computer-based pediatric clinical decision support system which improves the delivery of primary care to children, is an example of a system created by a faculty member in CHSR.  

Other examples in pediatric research include:

• Utilization of geostatistical data to study how physical and social environments impact children's health

• Creation a cell phone application for glucose monitoring to increase self-management behaviors in adolescents with diabetes

• Development of global positioning systems to track the movement and context associated with risky behaviors among adolescent women

Faculty within the Children's Health Services Research Division are involved in implementation work across the globe. This includes the implementation of telemedicine services for children and youth with chronic diseases, improved screening programs for developmental disabilities and the development of maternal-child HIV health services implementation in resource-constrained settings. A robust implementation science research program has been developing through our behavioral health work. Our group is conducting hybrid implementation projects in over 40 Indiana counties focused on interventions for suicide, addiction services and implementation of behavioral health services into pediatric and family medicine primary care. 

Collaboration efforts with patients, caregivers, healthcare providers and community members are an integral part of CHSR research. Faculty members have access to a patient engagement core called Research Jam, a multi-disciplinary team composed of health services researchers, human-centered design researchers and visual communication design experts. Research Jam engages with patients, caregivers and health care providers through human-centered design research methods to explore, create and test solutions to difficult problems around research, health and wellness. 

Faculty members actively serve on committees that generate local and national health care guidelines and frequently present research evidence to legislators, community partners and organizations. For instance, faculty members lead and collaborate with the Wellbeing Informed by Science and Evidence in Indiana (WISE Indiana) initiative. This partnership between Indiana Clinical and Translational Science Monon Collaborative and Indiana Family and Social Service Administration engages Indiana faculty to guide practices, programs and policies at a state level. Other faculty members serve in leadership roles in the American Academy of Pediatrics Partnership for the Policy Implementation program, integrating health information technology functionalities into AAP policy and for national polices regarding reproductive health and maternal and child health.