NEA and PeDRA Awarded Highly Competitive PCORI Grant

NEA and the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance (PeDRA) have together been approved for a $250,000 funding award through the Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Awards program, an initiative of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to support their collaborative project “Making it Count: Using Gamification to Enhance Childhood Eczema PCOR and CER.”

As part of the project, NEA and PeDRA will launch a series of virtual and in-person activities to drive education and engagement of patients, families and researchers around the management of childhood eczema. Nearly 10 million U.S. children under the age of 18 are affected by eczema, with one-third affected by moderate-to-severe disease. Despite recent therapeutic advances, the burdens on these patients and their families can be significant, and many important research questions remain unanswered.

NEA and PeDRA will collaborate on a new virtual educational curriculum and gamified approach to learner engagement. The curriculum will include real-world activities at the planned in-person 2022 Eczema Expo and PeDRA Annual Conference, and will feature virtual education using the NEA Research Ambassador platform and PeDRA Research App.

Near-term goals of the award include strengthening the outcomes of patient-focused research and educating families and researchers about new pediatric eczema therapies.

The project’s long-term goal is to help research that supports shared decision-making for patients and health care providers. The project also seeks to improve the quality of life and long-term health outcomes for patients.

For more information on the PCORI Engagement Award, read the project summary here.