The VetResearchHub is an interactive webpage where veterans and their loved ones can learn about the processes of research participation and discover opportunities to take part in research available within their community. We have created a space where veterans are able to access modules within the Veteran-Driven Research Participation Program that demystify the procedures associated with research. After completing these modules, veterans have the opportunity to directly contact researchers focused on Patient-Centered Outcome Research (PCOR) and Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) they are interested in potentially collaborating with. These modules narrated by, created with, and improved with the help of veterans aims to provide our veterans with a secure and informative space to connect with other stakeholders to further advance veteran-centered research. The VetResearchHub is focused on improving health outcomes to align with the everyday needs of veterans around the nation. By helping our veterans become active participants in research, we are able to bridge together the gap that exist between effective treatment and access for all veterans.
Below is a list of research participation opportunities within your area.
Veteran Canine Rescue Missions: A New Program That will Pair Veterans with Shelter Dogs
The Veteran Canine Rescue Mission (VCRM) is a new and innovative program pairing Florida Atlantic University (FAU) student, alumni and community veterans with shelter dogs. This program is being offered through a partnership with a trusted animal shelter in our community, the Humane Society of Broward County (HSBC) and the FAU’s Military and Veterans Student Success Center. The Mission provides veterans with a dog that has been pre-selected under the guidance of a veteran who is a certified dog trainer. Dog adoptions will be followed with a 10-day board and train training regimen for each dog, prior to the dog going to its new home. This is followed by eight sessions of private dog training lessons. The Mission decreases the number of shelter dogs in our community, while providing a non-pharmacological therapeutic intervention for veterans with sub-optimal mental health and wellness. In addition, biopsychosocial assessments will be collected at multiple time points throughout the animal-assisted intervention.
Contact information:
For more information, please contact a research team member, cpaww@health.fau.edu
Pet Dogs, Resilience, and Well-being in Military Adolescents
Our study "Pet Dogs, Resilience, and Well-being in Military Adolescents” is designed to utilize the viewpoints of military teenagers to learn about the relationship between resilience and well-being for military teenagers who own a pet dog and military teenagers who do not own a pet dog. Military teenagers who participate in the study will complete a 30-minute electronic survey from the comfort of their own homes three times over a nine-month period. Participants will earn a $20 gift card at the completion of each survey session for $60 in total if all three survey sessions are completed.
Participants must be 12-18 years old, have a parent or guardian provide parental permission to participate if <18 years old, either own a pet dog or not, have a parent or guardian in the military (active duty, Reserve, National Guard, or a Veteran), and have access to a tablet, computer, or smartphone with Wi-Fi.
If the participant is under 18 years of age, the parent or guardian will first complete the permission form and then the survey will be sent to the adolescent to complete.
Below is a list of the outcomes from our projects funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).
Mind Over Matter: A Veteran-driven Roadmap to Research on Traumatic Brain Injury
Mind Over Matter (MOM) provided a platform that gave veterans with a mild TBI (mTBI) and their caregivers an active voice in developing a clear pathway for increasing relevance of TBI Patient Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) and Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) and outcomes that were important to them so they can live their healthiest lives. The input from mTBI and their caregivers was used to develop a MOM Roadmap for Research on TBI featuring PCOR topics and CER questions that mattered most to veterans which was be translated into a publicly accessible resource. Virtual meetings lasted up to one hour and ran monthly through May 2023. As a token of appreciation for participation, the veteran and/or community stakeholder received a $10 gift card, a $10 meal card, and a challenge coin.
This program is funded through a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award (21037-FAU).
Veterans’ Action League 2.0: A White Paper on Patient-Centered Chronic Pain Management
Veterans Action League (VAL) 2.0 provides a neutral platform for key stakeholders to share opinions, obstacles, and research ideas for improving chronic pain management and treatment. VAL Units formed in Georgia, Illinois, Florida, and Virginia led by Veteran Unit Leaders (Unit-L’s) will drive the creation of a National Veteran-Centered Chronic Pain Research Agenda (NV-CCPA). Together, we created a White Paper to outline our projects objectives, as well as shed insight on approaches for chronic pain management and treatments for Veterans.
Operation PCOR: A Community Engagement Project Preparing Veterans as Full Partners in PTSD-Related Research
This project outlines the outcomes of the community engagement project, Operation PCOR, designed to train veterans as full partners and join forces with researchers on PTSD-related patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR) and comparative effectiveness research (CER).
To access the manuscript of the project, you can access it in the Journal of Veteran Studies.
Toward Veteran-Centered Research: A Veteran-Focused Community Engagement Project
This publication details the Veteran Action League project, which was developed with the purpose of this U.S.-based multi-state, veteran-focused community engagement project was to create a platform from which U.S. veterans could dialogue and identify their (1) research priorities; (2) barriers to research partnerships and participation; (3) recommendations for engaging other veterans in the research enterprise; and (4) preferences for how they would like to receive research findings.
To access the manuscript of the project, you can access it in the Journal of Veteran Studies.
Protective Factors for Suicide: A Multi-Tiered Veteran-Driven Community Engagement Project
This project was designed to employ community engagement methods in order to accomplish two objectives: uncover accessible, existing factors protective against suicidality in veterans and develop a related comparative effectiveness research (CER) question.
To access the manuscript of the project, you can access it in the Journal of Veteran Studies.
At 59:20 during the VAL 2.0 Town Hall Video, an individual referenced Jodi Lott; her official title is Representative Jodi Lott of the Georgia House of Representatives.
Veterans Action League 2.0 Toolkit
A Capacity-Building Toolkit For Engaging Veterans In Patient-Centered Outcomes Research and Dissemination of Findings During the COVID-19 Pandemic Description: This publication was developed as part of the Veterans Action League (VAL) 2.0 project to be utilized as a resource for other awardees, potential awardees, for individuals interested in a PCOR/CER project, and the research community. Specifically, these recommendations are beneficial to those partaking in PCOR/CER within the veteran community or those whose decisions or policies directly impact this community. The authors of this Toolkit worked collectively to provide highly insightful information to promote successful engagement with the veteran community.
