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WISE Indiana

WISE Indiana2024-09-18T15:37:09-04:00
WISE Indiana

WISE Indiana (Wellbeing Informed by Science and Evidence in Indiana)

A partnership between the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute’s Monon Collaborative and the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) to engage Indiana’s nationally-recognized academic experts to evaluate and inform Indiana practices, programs and policies. This partnership aligns with and furthers the visions of both organizations by facilitating timely, high-quality evidence-informed research, evaluation and analysis to the benefit of all Hoosiers.

Current Projects

The WISE Indiana partnership supports a part-time medical research librarian to conduct comprehensive searches of the scientific literature and prepare annotated bibliographies in response to key questions from FSSA divisions and business units. This task order directly supports FSSA’s vision of evidence-informed decision making.

The Office of Medicaid Policy and Planning’s (OMPP) coverage and benefits team receives inquiries to add services, tests, and procedures to the Indiana Health Coverage Programs. WISE Indiana collaborated with this team to provide literature reviews and expert consultation as requested to help inform coverage decisions.

WISE Indiana, in conjunction with the Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning (OECOSL), is conducting an objective evaluation of business and mental health support programs that are being implemented by the division’s technical assistance and training partner. Findings and recommendations will inform how the early childhood and childcare workforce are engaged in future efforts.

Intensive outpatient treatment (IOT) has been traditionally covered by Indiana Medicaid as an in-person service. In the last year, a telehealth option of the service is being covered by Indiana Medicaid on a trial basis. DMHA and OMPP have asked WISE Indiana to evaluate the evidence on IOT delivery via telehealth to determine whether to continue offering the telehealth option.

The Division of Aging (DA) has engaged an expert consultant to provide research knowledge and data expertise to help establish an improved and aligned state approach to home health and private duty nursing for waiver participants, leverage robust data collection strategies for members and caregivers to inform HCBS strategy and policies to strengthen HCBS in Indiana, and provide support on related projects to enhance long term care services and supports in Indiana.

The Office of Healthy Opportunities (OHO) sought an external evaluation and assessment of HCBS-funded efforts related to addressing social determinants of health and reducing health disparities among the primary population for FSSA’s managed long-term services and supports (mLTSS): individuals ages 60 and over, as well as individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This project will inform initial and ongoing decision making for services benefitting key vulnerable populations and additional minoritized communities within those groups.

The OMPP Coverage and Benefits team is utilizing experts in dental medicine to provide as-needed guidance to OMPP on coverage decisions and other dental requests. These dentists also serve as OMPP representatives on the statewide Dental Advisory Committee.

OECOSL is engaging Purdue University’s Center for Early Learning to identify key ingredients of high-quality preschool programs in Indiana, and to assess evidence based curricular use in a broad spectrum of early care and education programs.

The goal of this task order is to explore the experiences of CHOICE program participants who have 0-1 ADLs and gain insight into the impact of the CHOICE program on individual health and quality of life outcomes. The Indiana FSSA Division of Aging is looking for more opportunities to collect data on participants under CHOICE.

DMHA has awarded 37 grants as part of the Community Catalyst Grant Program. The Program aims to promote innovative, collaborative, and sustainable locally and community driven responses to mental health and substance use disorder issues. WISE Indiana is assisting DMHA with an evaluation of the Community Catalyst Grant Program, including an analysis of how the funding is being used to address mental health and substance use disorder issues in Indiana, the effectiveness of the invested funds, and findings related to the sustainability and potential scaling up of the funded programs.

WISE Indiana is assisting DMHA to better understand the current treatment needs and resources available to Indiana residents who live with First Episode Psychosis (FEP) and Early Serious Mental Illness (ESMI). Currently, there are two programs in Indiana that provide specialty FEP programming. This task order will help DMHA to gain a better understanding of the needs and resources of/for those who are experiencing FEP/ESMI, as well as recommendations for evidence-based programming that could be expanded to serve all Indiana residents who live with FEP/ESMI.

This project is looking at the 1915(b)(4) waiver connected to the AMHH and BPHC State Plan Amendments. These programs serve individuals with a serious mental illness who meet program criteria. The (b)(4) waiver allows for the Indiana Community Mental Health Centers (CMHC’s) to be the sole providers of services for these programs. This assessment is designed to look at the effectiveness of the (b)(4) waiver related to how participants receive services.

Executive leadership at Indiana FSSA is interested in developing a robust cohesive program, designed for guiding process improvement events in the agency before problems occur and creating a culture of continuous improvement to better serve those in need.  The task order team is using Lean Six Sigma (LSS) expertise to design, pilot, and implement effective training strategies to move from reactive to proactive problem solving for long term success.

Past Projects

The WISE Indiana COVID-19 Rapid Response Team was developed to assist in the Indiana Department of Health’s need for rapid and evidence-informed responses to complex questions about the pandemic and best practices for state response. This project facilitated rapid response and access to relevant and emerging evidence-based information for state personnel, healthcare providers and systems, managed care entities, community organizations, and all others.

The Expert Response to Key Questions and Expert Reviews of Relevant and Emerging Literature pages have been archived and are accessible via the links below. Please note that information on these pages are maintained for archival use only and may not be up-to-date.

Indiana Community Connect (ICC) is a web-based referral platform housed within Indiana 2-1-1 designed to help community organizations refer clients to needed services and help residents find social services. WISE Indiana was asked to participate in the pilot program and provide recommendations for statewide community based organization engagement due to our expertise in community engagement through the numerous community engagement programs that Indiana CTSI has developed and participates in.

Changes to Indiana’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) were made in response to the increased need for food assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. This increased need was driven in part by job loss as well as the closure of local food pantries and other sources of food assistance. To guide future program and policy decisions, WISE was asked by SNAP program administrators to evaluate whether and how the recent programmatic changes have achieved the goal of increased food access in Indiana.

WISE Indiana assisted DMHA to help simplify and synthesize the data collection process. The goal was to reduce administrative burden for providers and increase capacity for client care. Additionally,  it was a crucial first step in assisting DMHA to create a data strategy that will drive the initiative for all mental health and Substance Use Disorder treatment providers in the state to be data-driven in their practices.

The DA was interested in implementing an innovative model to address the unmet needs of family caregivers. To better understand what supports are needed for aging individuals experiencing social isolation and caregiver burn-out, the DA collaborated with WISE Indiana and AARP to conduct a consumer survey targeting a diverse population of caregivers for individuals 55 and older.

As part of FSSA’s long-term services and supports reform project, WISE Indiana assisted with implementing and analyzing responses to the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) survey. Responses from consumers, especially those in under-represented populations, will inform the program’s design.

WISE Indiana assisted FSSA with the implementation of this survey in 2021 and 2022.

WISE Indiana partnered with Indiana FSSA’s Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning (OECOSL). OECOSL oversees early child care, education and out-of-school-time programs in Indiana communities. WISE Indiana engaged with a content expert to provide research knowledge and data expertise to advance policy goals and use evidence to improve practices.

The DMHA engaged WISE to complete an analysis on the cost of untreated mental illness in Indiana. This analysis was incorporated into the Indiana Behavioral Health Commission’s report, which presents recommendations to the legislature and executive branch for improving Hoosier behavioral and mental health.

WISE Indiana assisted the Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) with implementing and analyzing responses to the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) survey among 1915i waiver participants. Feedback and results will be used to support program guidance and decision-making.

WISE Indiana worked with dentists and oral health researchers to evaluate current Indiana dental policies and provide recommendations to support improved dental care outcomes for Medicaid beneficiaries.

This task order utilized the expertise of the Center for Aging and Community at the University of Indianapolis to design, develop, and implement a comprehensive health assessment tool (CHAT) and health needs screen (HNS) for use by managed care entities. The CHAT and HNS assessments will be used by MCEs to create treatment plans, collect missing information from members, identify caregivers and understand patient barriers.

Covid-19 Archives

Archive of the Daily Digest

Archive of Literature Review

Archive of Key Questions

WISE Indiana Leadership

Sarah Wiehe, MD, MPH Jason Thacker, MBA
Co-Director, Indiana Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) Chief Data Officer, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA)

WISE Indiana Core Team

Madison Alton, MPA, CCRP Kelsey Binion, PhD
Science Officer
Indiana Family and Social Services Administration		 Research Associate
IUI Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health
Justin Blackburn, PhD Deidre Gray
Scientific Director
IUI Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health		 Program Management Assistant
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute
Emily Hardwick, MPH, CCRP, PMP Dustin Lynch
Project Director
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute		 Visual Design Research Specialist
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute
Makayla Pearson, MS Simon Gonzalez
Project Management Specialist
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute		 Contracts and Grants Specialist
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute
Jenifer Smith, MPA, CRA Aaron Zych, MPH
Contracts and Grants Specialist
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute		 Program Management Coordinator
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute

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