Jump ARCHES Spring Grants focus on COVID-19 vaccination and testing challenges and strategies

4/19/2021 10:12:14 AM

Seven research projects, one involving ITI's Subhonmesh Bose, are sharing slightly more than $400,000 in funding through the Jump ARCHES research and development program to address challenges and expand on lessons learned about COVID-19 vaccinations and testing. 

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A medical professional draws a COVID-19 vaccine from a vial.Seven research projects, one involving ITI's Subhonmesh Bose, are sharing slightly more than $400,000 in funding through the Jump ARCHES research and development program to address challenges and expand on lessons learned about COVID-19 vaccinations and testing. The Jump ARCHES program is a partnership between OSF HealthCare and the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I) and its College of Medicine in Peoria.

The funding supports research involving clinicians, engineers and social scientists to rapidly develop technologies and devices that could revolutionize medical training and health care delivery. A requirement of the grant applications was for solutions that could be deployed quickly, within four to six weeks. Investigators were also encouraged to consider how to best mitigate the impact of age, location, and social barriers in delivering quality health care to vulnerable populations.

“As we develop new vaccines and treatments for COVID-19, it’s also important to take into account societal factors such as age, race, location, infrastructure, and how to best provide for underserved populations. We expect significant changes in how health care is delivered so that it is more accessible for all and are proud to fund projects that spearhead these developments,” said T. Kesh Kesavadas, Ph.D., director of the Health Care Engineering Systems Center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

“The outcomes of these projects will help with issues arising from the current pandemic and help physicians apply lessons learned in the post-COVID health care landscape,” said Seth Stutzman, coordinator for the Jump ARCHES grant program.

Here are summaries of some key projects, with a full list of spring 2021 projects available on the Jump ARCHES website.

How to design and operate end-to-end vaccine deployment using social media, addressing supply chain allocations constraints and Subhonmesh Boseutilizing telemedicine

Investigators: Anton Ivanov, PhD, U of I; Subhonmesh Bose, ITI, PhD, U of I; Albert England III, MD, FIDSA, U of I, UICOMP, OSF HealthCare; Ashen Eren Mehmet, PhD, U of I; Ujjal Mukherjee, PhD, U of I; Sridhar Seshadri, U of I; Sebastian Souyris, Postdoctoral Fellow, U of I; and Yuqian Xu, PhD, U of I

This idea aims to provide a comprehensive vaccine deployment strategy using data analytic frameworks. These frameworks will (1) shape population attitudes towards vaccination by reducing their uncertainty via social media channels, (2) provide a dynamic inventory management tool for perishable or sensitive goods, and (3) develop telemedicine-based solutions for convenient and sufficient post-vaccination patient support.

 Summaries of the all the projects are available on the Jump ARCHES website. 


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This story was published April 19, 2021.