Iowa PCA Awarded NIH Grant to Build Fairness-Aware AI/ML Model for Community Health Centers

The Iowa Primary Care Association (Iowa PCA) was recently awarded a $523,750 National Institute of Health AIM-AHEAD grant for year 1 of a projected 2-year project, to develop, train and pilot a “fairness-aware” artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) model with the goal of improved health outcomes for patients served by Iowa’s community health centers (CHCs). The Iowa PCA was one of six awardees out of more than 70 applicants throughout the United States.

“The NIH AIM-AHEAD grant will enable us to develop advanced tools for community health centers so they can more quickly and effectively care for patients with medically complex, high-risk conditions,” says Aaron Todd, CEO of the Iowa PCA.

The Iowa PCA is a nonprofit association that supports the state’s 14 CHC organizations and their 110 locations through advocacy, workforce development, and specialized training and technological services.

Iowa’s nonprofit CHCs offer a safety net of crucial primary care services to Iowans, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay for services. This includes coordinated, comprehensive medical, dental, behavioral health, and pharmacy services. Patients of CHCs often face complex, co-occurring conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders.

“Studies have found that significant numbers of patients with chronic diseases also experience depression or anxiety,” says Sarah Dixon, Chief Strategy Officer with the Iowa PCA, who added that behavioral health concerns can often go unseen or undiagnosed, ultimately leading to poor health outcomes and higher healthcare costs.

The NIH grant will enable the Iowa PCA and its partners to develop, train and ultimately integrate AI/ML models that act as workhorses in CHCs’ electronic health records systems to swiftly recognize patients at risk of experiencing both chronic medical conditions and behavioral health concerns – and quickly connect those patients to comprehensive care and proactive support.

The NIH AIM-AHEAD grant will leverage the Iowa PCA’s statewide health IT infrastructure and extensive expertise in electronic health record and analytics platforms.

In addition to the Iowa CHCs participating in this project, the Iowa PCA will work closely with respected partners committed to the advancement of responsible AI for this research project. Foresight Health Solutions (FHS) will provide expertise in AI powered analytics focused on community health with their Caliper Tool, NOLA AI will provide their proprietary Atomic AI framework and technology, and Huzefa Dossaji and his team at Vivyo will contribute their combined AI and healthcare expertise to the project.

“We have deliberately built an approach that prioritizes patient privacy, mandates responsible and transparent practices, and supports the great outcomes of Iowa’s CHCs,” Todd says. He added all data used in the project would be handled in compliance with standards from HIPAA, NIH Genomic Data Sharing and the federal Institutional Review Board. “We’re especially thankful for the assistance of Chrystal Matthews at Elite Program Specialists and Huzefa Dossaji at Vivyo for their insights and assistance in writing for this grant.”

The Iowa Primary Care Association (Iowa PCA) provides technical assistance to Iowa’s community health centers (CHCs) to support their ongoing commitment to provide quality, affordable primary and preventive health care services. Our work focuses on our vision of “a future where communities achieve their greatest health potential.” With our two sister companies – IowaHealth+, a clinically integrated primary care network engaged in value-based care and INConcertCare, a health information technology arm focusing on data analytics and population health – we provide a wide range of support and are strong partners throughout the healthcare system. The Iowa Primary Care Association (Iowa PCA) serves in a statewide capacity as the Administrative Service Organization for the State of Iowa’s redesigned Behavioral Health System. Learn more at www.iowapca.org.

Acknowledgement - This research was, in part, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Agreement No. 1OT2OD032581. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the NIH.