Center for Healthcare Innovation, Implementation, and Policy

Research Areas

Our areas of research are those in which we have extensive prior productivity, strong theoretical and empirical knowledge, service experience, implementation capacity and the dedicated investigators needed to improve routine care for Veterans through a program of partnered research. Our research areas also reflect partnered research with potential for improving VA care through impact-oriented strategic planning.

Impact Areas

Complex Care

Our research in Complex Care addresses Veterans' complex care needs, including chronic physical and mental health conditions, military exposures, and social needs, and places Veteran well-being at the Center of the Enterprise. Our goal is to create and/or evaluate pathways to improve timely access to care, care coordination, and health outcomes among high-risk/high-need Veterans through innovative care models in primary and specialty care.

Research Area Leads:

Women's Health

Our research in Women's Health continues to be foundational to VA research, practice, and policy, from conducting the first evaluation of organization of care for women Veterans, to leading development of the VA women's health research evidence base through the VA HSR-funded Women's Health Research Network (WHRN), to developing quality metrics that center women Veterans’ health conditions, care needs, and healthcare experiences. Our goal is to improve access to and delivery of timely, appropriate women’s health care through novel interventions and advances in health services research, implementation science, and quality improvement.

Research Area Leads:

Population Health, Homelessness, and Other Health-Related Social Factors

Our research on Population Health, Homelessness, and Other Health-Related Social Factors focuses on a variety of factors that influence health outside of medical care, with housing as a key component. Our goal is to develop, tailor, and implement effective practices to improve population health, homelessness, and other health-related social factors.

Research Area Leads:

Additional Areas of Contribution

Our other contribution areas reflect partnered research with potential for improving VA care through impact-oriented strategic planning. These additional research areas include Health Informatics (e.g., telehealth, mobile applications, wearables and artificial intelligence), and Workforce (e.g., burnout, job resources, and physical safety).

Health Informatics

This contribution area in health informatics and artificial intelligence (AI) supports all three impact areas. In addition to methodologic expertise in informatics/AI, our research content spans telehealth access, utilization, and patient experience; electronic health record (EHR) modernization and EHR-based tools; internet-based and mobile application interventions; and informatics/AI policy, pilot testing, implementation and dissemination and governance.

Research Area Leads:

Workforce

This contribution area spans CSHIIP’s Impact Areas and builds on prior work to characterize the VA workforce by developing interventions to address system-level inefficiencies and drivers of burnout. Interventions include improving health workforce recruitment, engagement, and retention; reducing administrative workloads; improving physical and psychological safety; and enhancing workforce well-being in ways that optimize VA’s direct health care capabilities and Veteran access to timely and high quality care.

Research Area Lead:

For more information about our research areas, email us at: VHAGLACSHIIP@va.gov