Featured Projects
SciMetrika has a proven track record of successfully providing scientific, technical and logistical support services. These include advanced statistical programming, surveillance tracking, database management, and technical assistance/consultation utilizing epidemiologic, statistical, and web-enabled technologies.
We have conducted public health research projects for such agencies as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Department of Defense (DoD) and currently hold a number of IDIQ contracts with the CDC providing comprehensive scientific and technical support services.
- Statistics and Epidemiology
- Health Behavior and Health Education
- Program Development and Program Evaluation
- Technical Assistance
- Environmental Consulting
- Management Consulting
Private Well Initiative (PWI): Environmental Surveillance and Public Health
SciMetrika, LLC is working with the Division of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects (DEHHE) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to conceptualize and organize the development of a national well data repository for public health research and surveillance. Approximately 13 percent of the U.S. population relies on private wells for their drinking water. In marked contrast to public water supplies, the U.S. does not have a comprehensive public health program focused on ensuring the safety of private well systems through surveillance, intervention, education, and evaluation. The Private Well Initiative (PWI) addresses this deficiency, in part, by empowering private well owners to ensure the quality and safety of the water their wells produce. DEHHE and SciMetrika plan to organize data and information about the current status and conditions of private well systems and identify interventions to address public health issues associated with private well systems.
In collaboration with DEHHE, SciMetrika will work toward the goal that the 39 million Americans relying on private well systems will drink clean, safe water. A National Workgroup, comprised of stakeholders from federal, state and local agencies and organizations, is working to formulate the vision and goals of the PWI and to advance progress toward these goals. Specifically, SciMetrika is tasked with the responsibility of 1) overseeing strategic planning, process management and facilitation of PWI activities; 2) management of the PWI National Workgroup; 3) coordination of state pilot projects to assess the feasibility of locating, compiling and making available well data; and 4) providing epidemiological and informatics expertise to develop a sustainable private well data resource.
Availability of Gynecologic Oncologists for Ovarian Cancer Care
SciMetrika is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion to assess the availability of gynecologic oncologists in the United States. This information will be used to gauge the feasibility of making a recommendation to visit a gynecologic oncologist as part of the Inside Knowledge: Get the Facts About Gynecologic Cancer campaign* and to correlate the availability of a gynecologic oncologist with referral patterns and survival rates for ovarian cancer patients.
In order to describe the availability of gynecologic oncology providers for ovarian cancer patients in the United States, SciMetrika has obtained lists of gynecologic oncologists from the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists (SGO) and the National Provider Identifier (NPI) Registry. Data on ovarian cancer has been gleaned from the National Cancer Institute (NCI)'s Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) data, CDC's National Program of Cancer Registries (NPCR) data, Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA)'s Area Resource File (ARF) data and county-level, nation-wide data from additional resources.
Using SAS and ArcGIS to examine spatial relationships of availability, SciMetrika will address the results of the geographic availability of gynecologic oncologists using geographic information system (GIS) methods and other spatial measures. SciMetrika will also work to explain the relationship between the availability of a gynecologic oncologist and referral patterns and survival of ovarian cancer patients. SciMetrika will obtain linked SEER-Medicare data from NCI and the American Medical Association (AMA) to examine referral patterns and survival for Medicare patients. Results of this study will be disseminated via two peer-reviewed manuscripts, one conference poster presentation and through a website that is accessible to the general public.
Human Papillomavirus Modeling in Low Income U.S. Populations
HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with an estimated 6.2 million people becoming infected with genital HPV each year. Data on the long-term impact of HPV vaccination are not yet available, and although there are several international studies of the impact of HPV vaccination in low-resource settings, no prior models of the long-term impact of HPV vaccination have been developed for the medically underserved and low-income population in the United States. This project will help fill gaps in knowledge of the long-term impact of HPV vaccination in age-cohorts that may qualify for enrollment in the CDC's National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP). The majority of the work for Phase I has been completed. An Initial Meeting and then a face-to-face Kickoff Meeting took place in Atlanta in order to finalize both the objectives and the direction of the project. Although originally a literature review had been requested and started, upon the understanding that expert consultant Dr. Brisson had undertaken a similar literature review, it was decided to use his review paper and the Marra et al. 2009 paper as the basis of the methodological review and a powerpoint presentation was created reviewing this material. Phase II started with creation of a diagram which illustrated all of the parameters to be used to develop a combined module of the Natural History of HPV infection and Screening and an additional Vaccination module. The resulting parameters table was created and parameter estimates were abstracted from various existing databases or the literature. Any outstanding parameter estimates were decided upon by a group of opinion leaders. These parameters were then used to create individual models for each of these modules. After working on the calibration of this module, we ensured approval from consultants and CDC staff. Super computing resources need to be obtained to run the models that were developed in this phase.
In Phase III, the models developed in Phase II will be applied to women who are eligible to participate in NBCCEDP. A cost-effectiveness analysis will be preformed. In addition, the optimal screening strategies will be evaluated. The exact strategies tested will be agreed upon after further consideration. Based on the results of the simulation model on the super computing resources, we will recommend an optimally cost effective screening plan that incorporates starting age, frequency of screening and ending age by race and ethnicity.
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Health Behavior and Health Education
Reducing Asthma Disparities through Utilization of Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Service (CLAS) Standards in Asthma Programs
The Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch (APRHB) at the National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) contracted with SciMetrika to develop a self-study toolkit for state-level grantees that provides steps and guidance to addressing disparities in asthma, with particular emphasis on cultural and linguistic sensitivity. APRHB provides funding for 37 state-level asthma control programs and many of these programs are experiencing challenges in addressing disparities in asthma among the populations they serve. To enhance grantee ability to address disparities in asthma, CDC requested that SciMetrika incorporate the culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS) standards into the development of the grantee toolkit.
SciMetrika is responsible for developing the toolkit to guide grantees in assessing their capabilities and progress in reducing asthma disparities and meeting the CLAS standards. The toolkit also includes instruction on developing a strategic plan to address asthma disparities. SciMetrika will review background materials, perform a literature review, conduct preliminary discussions with grantees, and get input from a grantee work group and CDC in developing the toolkit. SciMetrika has previous experience working with state-level programs to develop a grantee toolkit to improve performance, as well as expertise in identifying audience needs and developing targeted materials to meet needs. The knowledge of qualitative research methods and literature reviews for gathering information will also be beneficial to SciMetrika's work on this project.
Adapting School-Based Youth Violence Prevention Strategies for Efficacy Evaluation in Community Settings
Under this contract, SciMetrika was tasked with identifying, adapting, and/or evaluating school-based youth violence prevention programs for adaptation and implementation in community settings. The tasks associated with this contract will complete Phase I of a three phase process undertaken in partnership by two branches of the CDC Division of Violence Prevention (DVP): the Program Development and Evaluation Branch (PDEB) and the Program Implementation and Dissemination Branch (PIDB).
This project involves: (1) identifying key and essential components of evidence-based youth violence prevention strategies in structured environments (i.e., schools), including collecting evidence on organizational capacity, resources, and infrastructure needed to implement and sustain the model; (2) comparing the findings from item one for commonalities and differences in content, delivery, and implementations components; (3) creating a list of evidence-based programs that are best suited to community implementations, a list of content and delivery components, and a list of implementation components; (4) conduct an in-person meeting of content and implementation experts to collect opinions about the feasibility of implementing evidence-based youth violence prevention projects in community settings, the challenges and barriers to potential solutions, required organizational infrastructure and sustainability, and recommendations for next steps.
The Road to Health/El Camino hacia la Buena Salud Community Health Worker Toolkit Phase III
For the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDHP) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), SciMetrika is assisting in the development of a "train the trainer" toolkit. During pilot testing of the Road to Health/El Camino Hacia La Buena Salud toolkit, the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) was repeatedly asked if it would be providing training on use of the final kit. Because NDEP does not have the resources to support continuous, ongoing training sessions, the organization decided instead to offer a limited number of trainings to evaluate use of the toolkit. These evaluations would be used to capture lessons learned and to develop a final Train the Trainer tool. SciMetrika has been hired to help NDEP develop a curriculum that will ultimately be available online and on a DVD that will have lessons on training others to use the toolkit. These materials will be used to train community health workers (CHWs) and promoters to increase knowledge and skill sets in order to prevent and control diabetes among people in their communities who have or are at risk for diabetes. The project is very much in early formative stages of developing the concept, and the progression of the project will depend on what is learned in the first few training experiences.
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Program Development and Evaluation
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CDC Office on Smoking and Health External Peer Review
SciMetrika assisted the CDC OSH with the development, implementation, and follow-up of this first internal peer review. SciMetrika was responsible for: (1) conducting partner and customer assessments; (2) coordinating and facilitating the on-site peer review meeting; (3) authoring a lessons learned document; and (4) aiding in the preparation of a final panel report submitted to high-level OSH personnel. SciMetrika prepared and conducted two focus groups with OSH and OSH partners, analyzing and summarizing qualitative results in a document for use during the peer review meeting. In addition, SciMetrika managed the logistical aspects of the on-site peer review meeting. SciMetrika staff will coordinate the final peer review. SciMetrika demonstrated technical expertise in facilitating focus groups and analyzing qualitative information. We also showed flexibility in meeting the unique logistical needs of each customer and familiarity with government guidelines for assembling expert panels as well as GSA guidelines for travel.Development of a Quality Improvement (QI) Framework and Professional Development Resources for the CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP)
SciMetrika was responsible for reviewing the quality assurance/quality improvement (QA/QI) and professional development/provider intervention literature as it pertains to public health and clinical screening. We also were responsible for developing a QA/QI framework based on a literature review, key informant discussions, and consultant expertise and also for both writing a grantee manual describing this new framework and outlining tested professional development activities. Phase II of the project involves the review and revision of the grantee manual by subject matter experts, by experts internal to CDC, and by program grantees. Additionally, SciMetrika is developing PowerPoint training presentations for the manual and creating an evaluation plan to assess training effectiveness. This project allows SciMetrika to contribute to the subfield of QA/QI within public health, as it leads to the creation of a unique QA/QI framework specific to a public health, outpatient screening environment. In turn, this guides the development of training resources for use by NBCCEDP grantees. SciMetrika’s technical assistance benefited grantees by demonstrating expertise in conducting literature reviews and key informant discussions, in writing technical summary documents, and in developing instructional materials. We also demonstrated an in-depth understanding of QA/QI principles through our multidisciplinary approach and our integration of business QA/QI concepts to address public health needs.Getting to Outcomes (GTO) – The Primary Prevention of Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence for the CDC’s Division of Violence Prevention
SciMetrika is providing labor, consulting, and logistical support services to the CDC Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) for diverse tasks. These include evaluation assistance to grantees, meeting facilitation, development of measures and guidelines, writing/editing, and meeting logistics related to three programs: DELTA (Domestic Violence Prevention Enhancements and Leadership through Alliances), EMPOWER (Comprehensive Prevention Program Planning and Evaluation Capacity for Rape Prevention and Education Funded Programs), and RPE (Rape Prevention and Education). SciMetrika is facilitating the adaptation of the Getting To Outcomes framework for use by intimate partner violence and sexual violence planning groups at the state and community level. We also are developing indicators and practice guidelines for the RPE program. Other responsibilities include (1) providing assistance to the empowerment evaluation group; (2) providing expert meeting facilitation and consultation for the DELTA and EMPOWER programs; and (3) arranging all logistical aspects of grantees meetings.Identification and Evaluation of Nonsomatic Sensitive Anxiety and Depression Measures for Health Surveillance among Adults with Chronic Disease
SciMetrika provided technical expertise and logistical support services to the CDC’s Arthritis Program. This included 1) convening an expert panel knowledgeable in population health surveillance and measures of mental health (i.e., depression and anxiety); 2) identifying and reviewing measures of anxiety and depression from the published literature; and 3) describing and analyzing the psychometric properties and potential applications of the identified anxiety and depression scales. SciMetrika also assessed anxiety and depression measures for their sensitivity to somatic complaints and feasibility for use on population health surveillance surveys and developed recommendations to be incorporated in national and state chronic disease surveillance. SciMetrika managed the logistical aspects of a one-day on-site expert panel meeting, including arranging for attendees’ travel and coordinating catering. Final reports communicated overall project results that led to decision making and originated a document for a peer reviewed scientific publication. SciMetrika provided technical expertise in both public health and clinical psychology and also provided staff members dedicated solely to the coordination and logistical aspects of the project.
Preparation of Provisional Toxicity Value Documents
The purpose of this work assignment is to provide services to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA), in preparing Provisional Toxicity Value documents (PTVs). PTVs are utilized by the Superfund Technical Support Center (STSC) of NCEA in support of the EPAs Superfund Program (SF). The information contained in the PTVs is necessary for developing risk assessments at SF sites (or SF managed sites) throughout the U.S. The PTV documents provide provisional toxicity values (subchronic and chronic reference doses, subchronic and chronic reference concentrations, oral slope factors and inhalation unit risks) if existing data are adequate for developing values. Guidance for preparing the toxicity values is identical with EPA methods for developing Integrated Risk Information (IRIS) values. PTVs do not provide toxicity values to replace those currently existing in IRIS. Scimetrika has been subcontracted by ICF (prime contract holder) to author scoping documents and PTV draft documents for this work assignment. Scimetrika has been assigned one chemical (Acrolein, CAS # - 107-02-8) to date, has completed the scoping document, and is currently preparing the PTV draft document.
Laboratory Services to Support the Epidemiological Activities of the Health Studies Branch
Part of the Health Studies Branch's (HSB) mission is to assess the extent of human exposure to emerging environmental threats. HSB conducts rapid epidemiologic investigations in response to outbreaks that are believed to have environmental causes and responds to natural and technologic disasters. HSB also conducts extended research studies to more accurately define the relation between human health and environmental exposures. One of the activities often undertaken in the course of conducting epidemiologic investigations is the collection of biologic and environmental samples, such as blood and urine, and soil, water, animal tissue, over the counter medications or other material, which require laboratory analysis to assess levels of contamination. While the CDC/NCEH laboratory can perform laboratory analyses on human biologic samples, they have their own research agenda and often cannot accommodate analyses of samples collected from other groups within NCEH in as timely a manner as is appropriate for community response and public health action. This frequently necessitates the use of contract personnel with the essential capacities to conduct the analyses, prepare a dataset, review results for accuracy and appropriateness, and prepare a report of results.
The goal of this project is to aid the CDC in finding the appropriate laboratory to conduct tests for contaminants in environmental samples and to analyze and summarize the data. SciMetrika is to help coordinate laboratory services for the following sub tasks:
1) Assessing contaminant levels in people exposed to the Akaki River, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
2) Assessing the level of contamination in water collected from the Akaki River, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
3) Investigation of Drinking Water Contamination in Cisterns in the Navajo Nation.
4) Effect of floods on private well water quality, waterborne diseases, and associated gastrointestinal illness.
5) Study of Kidney Function in Natural Occurring Uranium Exposed Community.
6) Systematic Water Quality Assessment in Rural West Virginia.
SciMetrika has been coordinating the desired services between the CDC project officers and various labs. Testing has recently been initiated on Sub Task V.
Developing a Public Health Agenda for Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis: Phase I
CDC's Arthritis, Epilepsy, and Quality of Life (AEQOL) Branch received federal appropriations to begin developing a public health agenda for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. The arthritis program within AEQOL aims to improve the quality of life of people affected by arthritis, including psoriatic arthritis. Psoriatic arthritis is an inflammatory disease which occurs among people with psoriasis. It can be severe and disabling, sometimes requiring the use of expensive biological agents to provide a measure of control. SciMetrika has been tasked with (1) providing logistical support to CDC as they meet with experts in the fields of dermatology and rheumatology and (2) conducting a literature review to help guide the discussions between CDC and the experts. SciMetrika has organized a steering committee, an initial teleconference call with the full group of experts to discuss the aim and direction of the project, an in-person meeting in Atlanta, Georgia to discuss key issues, and is in the process of arranging two to three additional teleconferences. The project has focused on six key issues related to psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis: burden, case definitions, comorbidities, health disparities, natural history of the disease, and severity. The literature review addresses these six issues by discussing what is currently known about psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis from a public health perspective; identifying gaps in the public health understanding of these two diseases; developing a prioritized list of recommendations and activities to address those gaps; and discussing the role of CDC and other organizations in addressing the recommendations and activities.
Developing a Public Health Agenda for Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis: Phase II
SciMetrika provides logistical support to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP), Division of Adult and Community Health (DACH), Arthritis, Epilepsy, and Quality of Life (AEQOL) Branch as the branch meets with experts in the fields of dermatology and rheumatology to develop a public health agenda for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. SciMetrika is also conducting a literature review to: (1) Determine what is currently known about psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis from a public health perspective, (2) Identify gaps in the public health understanding of these two diseases, (3) Develop a prioritized list of recommendations and activities to address those gaps, and (4) Discuss the role of CDC and other agencies and organizations in addressing these recommendations and activities. This project is the second in a multi-phase project with AEQOL.
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Technical Support for Prevention Research Branch Task Order 2 (ARND)
SciMetrika, LLC is working with the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD), at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to perform work in order to establish diagnostic criteria guidelines for Alcohol Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder (ARND) that can be used uniformly in assigning diagnosis to individuals with a history of prenatal alcohol exposure. The cause of birth defects from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) is well known and documented. As the name suggests, FASD refers to a range of disorders, the most severe of which is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). FAS is a permanent condition characterized by abnormal facial features, growth deficiencies, and central nervous system problems. In 2004, CDC released a set of uniform guidelines for the referral and diagnosis of FAS. These guidelines were developed after discussion between experts in relevant scientific and clinical fields, service professionals, and families affected by FAS. Under contract 200-2008-23703, SciMetrika will collaborate with CDC to establish diagnostic criteria specifically for ARND. SciMetrika's technical approach for this project consists of providing experienced, well-qualified public health research and communications professionals with the required experience in managing and coordinating small to large work groups/subgroups in support of scientific research. SciMetrika proposes to accomplish the objectives of this task order by (1) ensuring our approach complies with the previously used approach, (2) providing project coordination support, (3) incorporating a collaborative work environment, (3) utilizing conference technologies allowing for remote meeting participation; (4) utilizing Web-based technologies to facilitate meeting and travel logistics; (5) employing a tailored literature review process based on quality assurance and control and (6) incorporating lessons learned.
Support Implementation and Training Activities Specific to Project CHOICES Intervention Model
SciMetrika, LLC is working with the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) at CDC to support broad-based dissemination of the intervention Changing High-Risk Alcohol Use and Increasing Contraception Effectiveness Study (Project CHOICES) into public healthcare systems serving women at high risk for an alcohol-exposed pregnancy (AEP) prior to pregnancy. Ultimately, this project will reduce fetal alcohol exposures prior to pregnancy and potentially increase the number of women who abstain from alcohol use during their next pregnancy. Under this contract, SciMetrika is responsible for developing, implementing and evaluating a plan to provide brief intervention or motivational interviewing training support to CDC funded sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic grantees and other sites. Following the initial training SciMetrika will continue to provide technical assistance to the grantees in order to ensure successful implementation of the Project CHOICES intervention. And finally, SciMetrika will develop a report addressing the feasibility of providing the Project CHOICES intervention training to other STD clinics based upon the training implementation, lessons learned from technical assistance provision, and health professionals' preparedness to deliver the intervention. SciMetrika is subcontracting with individuals with expertise in brief interventions or motivational interviewing techniques to assist with training the STD clinic health professionals.
Policy Task Order - MCTA Task Order 3
SciMetrika, LLC is working with the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to perform work to support the implementation of immunization activities funded through The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), including reaching more children and adult with immunization; enhancing information, education and communications about immunization; and strengthening the evidence base for immunization programs and policies. NCIRD oversees the Section 317 Immunization Program, which provided funding and federally-purchased vaccines to 64 grantees, including all 50 States, the District of Columbia, five urban areas, U.S. Territories, and selected Pacific Islands. One-time additional funds for the Section 317 Immunization Program were appropriated to CDC through ARRA.
Under contract 200-2009-28540/0003, SciMetrika will provide technical assistance, analytical and operational support to NCIRD in support of the goals outlined by ARRA Section 317. This task order requires SciMetrika staff to provide technical and operational assistance within the Assessment Branch, Immunization Services Division, NCIRD. More specifically, this task aims to ensure the development, implementation, and evaluation of a system to monitor all ACIP-recommended vaccinations upon kindergarten entry, including the development of 'Best Practices' for monitoring school vaccination coverage and exemption rates, communicating with project areas, identifying implementation issues, and tracking progress toward objectives. Secondly, technical, operational and analytical assistance will be provided to the Immunization Information Systems Support Branch (IISSB), the primary contact to state and local immunization program grantees, to support the implementation of ARRA Immunization supported projects (i.e. IIS sentinel site project), including the enhancement of data quality, assessment, and analytical capacities of the grantee. An additional task required under Task Order 3 involves the provision of technical assistance to the Program Operations Branch, which is responsible for vaccine forecasting, allocation and usage activities. These activities will include reviewing and analyzing grantee ARRA 317 vaccine spend plans and orders, as well as identifying variances between spend plans and orders, programmatic assistance to grantees, constructing graphs based on vaccine reporting and spending reports, and data entry and analysis. Lastly, SciMetrika will provide technical assistance, consultation, and operational management support to the Office of the Director, Immunization Services Division (ISD) through oversight of the Division's ARRA activities. This will include implementing procedures for monitoring financial and programmatic status of internal and extramural projects, as well as recommendations for the appropriate and effective use of Division personnel and resources.
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