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Site Primary Investigator
Boston University
I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.
Personal Statement
My work and training lie at the intersection of social work and public health, partnering with people living with complex health conditions across the life course to improve the healthcare systems’ capacity to meet their essential, interconnected health and social needs. My areas of expertise include project management, knowledge translation, consumer-based participatory research (CBPR), program design and evaluation, and education. I have co-developed and tested innovative person-led, peer health coaching interventions for people living with spinal cord injury (SCI), partnered with a co-investigator living with SCI, using CBPR. The goal is to create an evidence-based sustainable, scalable and feasible program model that builds peer-led organization capacity as a healthcare workforce. Our phone-based model, My Care My Call (MCMC), was effective in a mixed methods randomized trial at reducing social role limitations and increasing patient activation. Several other educational programs I co-developed also demonstrated similar effective outcomes. Current work is adapting and testing feasibility of MCMC for youth with disability, and for adults with SCI via a virtual live coaching and educational platform, SCI&U. I garnered expertise in interprofessional collaborative partnership as associate director of 1 of 14 federally funded National SCI Model Systems Centers over 10 years. The CMC CoIIN has been a natural extension, in directing training and technical assistance and further elevating partnership with families of CYSHCN. My 20+ years improving complex care provision allows me to guide this exciting project to success as co-PI.
B. Current Funding
9/1/19-8/31/21 Deborah Munroe Noonan Memorial Research Fund (Blauwet PI); Virtual Peer
Health Coaching as an Effective Intervention for Increasing Physical Activity in Adolescents with Physical Disability; $160,000; Spaulding Rehab Hospital (SRH); Role: Co-Inv/Senior Project Advisor
5/1/19-4/30/21 Craig H. Neilsen Foundation (CHN) Psychosocial Research Grant (Jaglal PI); An
Online Self-Management Program for SCI: SCI&U; $199,519; Greater Boston Chapter of United Spinal Association (US); Role: Site PI
11/30/18-11/29/21 CHN Foundation Health Care Transformation Grant (Slocum PI); Closing the
Primary Care Gap: Building Healthcare Provider Capacity to Better Serve Women with
Spinal Cord Injury; $450,000; SRH; Role: Co-Inv/Community Engagement Specialist
08/01/17-07/31/21 HRSA, Maternal and Child Health Bureau (Comeau PI); Collaborative for
Improvement and Innovation Network to Advance Care for Children with Medical Complexity (CMC CoIIN); $10,800,000; Center for Innovation in Social Work & Health, BU School of Social Work; Role: Project Director
C. Selected Publications:
1. Gassaway J, Vergo Houlihan B, Skeels SE, Jones ML. (2018). Force of Peer Mentorship for Persons with SCI. Archives of PM&R. 2018 Aug;99(8):1691-1692.
2. Skeels SE, Pernigotti D, Houlihan BV, Belliveau T, Brody M, Zazula J, Hasiotis S, Seetharama S, Rosenblum D, Jette AM. (2017). SCI peer health coach influence on self-management with peers: a qualitative analysis. Spinal Cord 2017 55: 1016-1022.
3. Houlihan BV, Brody MS, Skeels SE, Pernigotti D, Burnett S, Zazula J, Green C, Hasiotis S, Belliveau T, Seetharma S, Rosenblum D, Jette AM. Randomized Trial of a Peer-Led, Telephone-based Intervention for Persons with Chronic SCI Improves Health Self-Management. Archive of PM&R. 2017 Jun;98(6):1067-1076. [FEATURED ARTICLE]
4. Houlihan BV, Skeels SE, Gutnick D, Pernigotti D, Zazula J, Mercier HW, Hasiotis S, Brody MS, Green C, Cuevas P, Seetharama S, Belliveau T, Rosenblum D, Jette AM. Empowering Adults with Chronic SCI to Prevent Secondary Conditions. Archives of PM&R; 2016 Oct;97(10):1687-1695.
5. Houlihan BV, Brody MS, Plant A, Skeels SE, Zazula J, Pernigotti D, Green C, Hasiotis S, Jette AM. Healthcare Self-Advocacy Strategies for Negotiating Healthcare Environments: Analysis of Recommendations by Satisfied Consumers with SCI and SCI Practitioners. Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil; 2016; 22(1):13–26.
6. Houlihan B, Jette A., Friedman R, Pengsheng N, Paasche-Orlow M, Ducharme S, Wierbicky J, Zazula J, Rosenblum D, Williams S (2013). A Pilot Study of a Telehealth Intervention for Persons with Spinal Cord Dysfunction. Spinal Cord. 51(9): 715-20.
7. Houlihan B, Jette A, Paasche-Orlow M, Wierbicky J, Ducharme S, Zazula J, Cuevas P, Friedman R, & Williams S. (2011) Telerehabilitation Intervention for Persons with Spinal Cord Dysfunction. AJ PM&R, Sep; 90(9):756-64.
D. Selected Other Positions and Honors
Other Positions
2018-2019 Acting Principal Investigator, Enhanced Peer Mentoring Program
Implementation Evaluation, Greater Boston Chapter of US
2015-2021 Elected Member, Maynard, MA School Committee (Chair 2019-2020)
2015 Program Evaluation Consultant, US National Peer Mentor Program
2015-2017 Project Manager/Lead Developer/Co-Inv, Development and Pilot
Testing of the SCI Virtual Coach for Pressure Ulcers, Health & Disability
Research Inst, BUSPH
2000-2018 Recent Positions: Associate Director (‘11-‘16); Co-Director of
Dissemination/KT (’16-’18), New England Regional SCI Ctr, SRH, Boston, MA
Honors and Related Experience
2017 Chair, Consumer-Based SCIMS End-of-Cycle Dissemination Committee
2014-2017 Member, Research Advisory Team, PCORI dual-eligible demonstration project
in MA for people with disabilities
2013-Present Invited Reviewer, multiple journals & Paralyzed Veterans Association grant panel
2013-2019 Co-Chair, Health & Disability Partnership, MA Dept of Public Health
2004-2019 Board Member/Grant Writer, Greater Boston Chapter of US
