Grant Awarded for National Assessment of Parent Training for Women with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Dr. Shayna Cunningham, Assistant Professor in Public Health Sciences (Co-PI), Dr. Mary Beth Bruder, Professor in Child and Family Studies and Director of the UConn University of Connecticut Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service (UCEDD) (PI) and Dr. Brian Reichow, Associate Professor in Child and Family Studies (Co-I) have been newly awarded a one year grant from the Caplan Foundation for Early Childhood titled “National Assessment of Parent Training and Support for Women with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities” for $57,500.

Goal(s) and Objectives of the Project: Diagnosis of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) does not inevitably cause parenting difficulties and by itself is a poor indicator of parental capacity to provide adequate care to their children. All parents require supports to learn about their children’s needs and development, as well as their own needs as parents. Interventions designed for parents with IDD have proven effective at improving parenting skills and competencies with corresponding benefits for their children, but little is known about how these are being implemented in the United States (US). This project will use community-based participatory research and mixed methods approaches to reduce critical knowledge gaps regarding the provision of training and support to parents with IDD. The specific aims are to: 1) conduct a national scan and content analysis of all programs and curriculums offered through each state and territory’s developmental disabilities agencies, child welfare agencies, developmental disabilities networks, including an assessment of disparities in identification, enrollment, and retention of parents with IDD, and outcomes across multilevel domains (e.g., parent demographics, disability level, implementing agency sector, size, geography) and 2) examine perceptions of professionals who provide training and support to parents with IDD about implementation challenges and recommendations for improvement, and perceptions of mothers with IDD about their needs and satisfaction with services they have received.

New Grant to Enhance Breastfeeding Pain Self-Management with WIC Partnership

Dr. Shayna Cunningham, Assistant Professor in Public Health Sciences (Co-I) and Dr. Ruth Lucas, Associate Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Connecticut (PI) have been newly awarded a one-year grant from the University of Connecticut Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP) titled “WIC Partnership to Revise and Expand Pain Self-Management Intervention with Breastfeeding Women” for $9,918.92.

Goal(s) and Objectives of the Project:  The aim for this project is to partner with Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to establish a Steering Committee, made up of WIC staff, women served by WIC, and community partners who serve women whose income is below the poverty level, to guide the design and protocols for community-based focus groups. The focus groups will review the Breastfeeding Self-Management (BSM) intervention modules and revise and expand the modules through a culturally relevant lens. The final modules will be reviewed by the Steering Committee in preparation of an R01 Promoting Self-Management of Breast and Nipple Pain Using Technology in Breastfeeding Women (PROMPT) implementation grant.

Developing Trauma-Informed Care Curriculum for Perinatal Care Trainees at UConn Health

Dr. Shayna Cunningham, Assistant Professor in Public Health Sciences (co-I), Dr. Kristen Lee Moriarty (Project Leader), Dr. Kelsey Lynn Manfredi (Resident Team Member & Project Co-Lead), Dr. Alexandre West (Team Member) and Dr. Andrea Shields, Associate Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology (Faculty Mentor, Lead Principal Investigator) have been newly awarded a two year Teaching Pregnancy Trauma to Trainees grant titled “Bringing Residents, Fellows and Nurses Back to the Bedside to Support a Mother’s Road to Recovery: Interdisciplinary Trauma-Informed Care Curriculum for Perinatal Care” for $15,000.

Goal(s) and Objectives of the Project: One third of women experience some form of trauma during their pregnancy and rates are increasing despite literature elucidating its detrimental impact on patient outcomes. Trainees in OB/GYN and Labor and Delivery, including residents, fellows, and nurses, not only struggle with recognition of pregnancy-related trauma, but after the COVID-19 pandemic, have experienced a higher level of burnout impacting the physician-patient relationship. Our goal is to improve recognition and management of pregnancy-related trauma while embodying a culture of mindfulness amongst OB/GYN residents, fellows, and nurse trainees. The specific aims of the project are to: 1) identify risk factors for pregnancy-related trauma using a mixed-methods approach; 2) develop a one-day trauma-informed curriculum for residents, fellows, and nurse trainees that will improve bedside recognition of pregnancy related trauma; and  3) determine acceptability and feasibility of the new trauma-informed care curriculum to improve standardized processes for management of birth trauma at UConn Health.