Vision Health Initiative
SIGHT Studies Coordinating Center
Columbia University | Westat
Coordinating Center Staff
Principal Investigators:
Staff:
Coordinating Center Description
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vision Health Initiative has funded a Coordinating Center for the Screening and Intervention for Glaucoma and eye Health through Telemedicine (SIGHT) Studies. The SIGHT Studies Coordinating Center represents a partnership between Columbia University and Westat. Together we offer deep scientific expertise and leadership in ophthalmology (Columbia), combined with strong capabilities that come from more than 50 years of serving as a coordinating center for more than 100 Federal programs and managing numerous complex multi-study programs (Westat).
The SIGHT Studies Coordinating Center supports the activities of CDC awardees by providing:
- Infrastructure to facilitate information sharing, collaboration, and communication among awardees and the CDC;
- Expertise in evaluation, development of common measure, and protocols;
- A repository for study materials and aggregated data for common measures;
- Logistical support and coordination of committees and working groups; organization of meetings and conference calls; and maintenance of the SIGHT Studies website;
- Dissemination of research findings from SIGHT Studies through website, webinars, conference presentations, reports/fact sheets, and peer-reviewed journal articles
Working Groups
Common Evaluation Measures Working Group
(Chair: Saloni Sapru, PhD)
Description: Using a consensus-based process to facilitate collaboration among the awardees, this working group aims to identify common measures across the awardees’ studies for the development and implementation of a common evaluation protocol. To guide the identification of the common evaluation measures, the Reach, Efficacy, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework is employed and serves as a conceptual model to assess the planning and implementation of processes and outcomes involved in the different study interventions.
Economic Analysis Working Group
(Chair: Laura Pizzi, PharmD, MPH)
Description: Members of this working group, representing each of the awardee studies, collaborate on identifying common and specific measures for the cost study of their respective community-based projects. By developing an inventory of cost analysis measures or a “cost map,” they are identifying the data that will be captured in their studies over the 5-year period to assess outcomes, including cost per case detected of glaucoma, glaucoma suspect and other eye diseases and the cost of adherence to recommended follow up care of study participants.
Publications and Dissemination Working Group
(Chair: Lisa A. Hark, PhD)
Description: This working group will facilitate translation and dissemination plans among awardees over the 5-year grant period. Protocols, consent forms, study materials, educational materials, and publications generated from the SIGHT Studies at each institution will be available, with the aim to scale and replicate these community-based interventions with vulnerable populations to detect, manage, and follow-up people with glaucoma, vision impairment, cataracts, and other eye diseases who are least likely to seek eye care.
