Welcome!

Welcome to this issue of the HEAL Data2Action (HD2A) Digest! Please share with colleagues, friends, and anyone else you know who might be interested in our work and encourage them to subscribe to our newsletter.

Meredith Adams, PI of DISC

Thank you to everyone who attended the latest HD2A Learning Collaborative on March 5! It was an insightful session, and we're excited to share a major development from the Data Infrastructure Support Center (DISC) team. 



During the meeting, DISC introduced the new Medicare and Medicaid Claims Documentation website, created in collaboration with the University of Rochester. This innovative resource aims to assist researchers addressing public health challenges by guiding them through the Virtual Research Data Center (VRDC). It offers step-by-step instructions for submitting research requests, understanding the approval process, and fully utilizing the VRDC's tools. We believe this resource will foster collaboration and greatly benefit the research community. 

In addition to the VRDC website, DISC provides several other valuable tools for researchers working with health data: 

• Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Coding Tool: Simplifies the process of determining RUCA codes for zip codes, essential for some NIH initiatives related to access to care. It includes an API for batch processing and is based on HHS standards. 
• Morphine Milligram Equivalent (MME) Calculator: This tool standardizes opioid measurement for research, facilitating cross-study comparisons. Available through the HEAL Initiative's REDCap tool and as a standalone website, it helps address inconsistencies in opioid data reporting.  
• Federated Data Sharing Tool: Enables collaborative research while allowing institutions to maintain control over their data. It supports de-identified data sharing through REDCap, automates data checks, and includes a dashboard for managing data flow. 
• Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) Common Data Model (CDM) Mapping Tool: Uses artificial intelligence/large language model support to assist in mapping diverse data sources to the OMOP common data model, with a version 2.0 in development for improved integration. 

Moreover, DISC has contributed to the Common Data Elements (CDE) Program in the chronic pain space, developing the NIH Pain CDE and providing additional implementation-specific measures such as the Michigan Body Map and links to ICD-10 codes. 

Looking ahead, DISC is considering the creation of a Data Standards Working Group to help standardize health data sharing. This group will work on organizing and describing data from various sources (e.g., EHRs, public health data) to create a framework that can be used across different health data types, providing a conceptual framework to complement existing standards like OMOP. 

We are excited about the future of these resources and the collaborations they may inspire. Thank you again for joining us, and we look forward to future opportunities to learn and collaborate together! 

In the Spotlight

Despite improvements in data infrastructure and care continuum, significant gaps remain in addressing the opioid crisis. The investigators will use a data-to-action framework to guide rapid data infrastructure, opioid use disorder treatment, and overdose and infectious disease interventions. Existing data systems will be leveraged such as Emergency Medical Services (EMS) reports, mobile integrated health case management data, and medical examiner data for near real-time data analyses, visualization, and action planning. The investigators will evaluate effects of a subacute stabilization center, Opioid Recovery Care Access, or ORCA Center, for people at high risk for opioid overdose, including those who have recently overdosed and are referred and transported by EMS. Initiation and retention in treatment with medications for opioid use disorder, acute care utilization, morbidity, mortality, incarceration, housing support use, and cost-benefits will be assessed. Implementation research and cost analyses will complement outcomes analyses. This project has potential for identifying an approach to decrease opioid-related morbidity and mortality and increase care utilization. 

The team is making good progress across all aspects of the project. Clinical design for the subacute stabilization center (ORCA) is largely completed. Clinical services are being piloted at Downtown Emergency Services Center’s Crisis Solutions Center as remodeling on the ORCA center is being completed to meet the clinical needs of this program. The Lived Expertise Advisory Board is meeting monthly with a wonderful, thoughtful, and highly engaged group of community members. Initial surveying and qualitative interviews with firefighters (who will be a major referral source for ORCA) are nearing completion. Continuous Process Improvement meetings are ongoing and data components for the cascade of care analysis are being finalized. A doctoral student has joined their team and is working on cost and modeling analyses. 

Welcome to HD2A!

Jane Paik Kim, Ph.D. – C-DIAS and RASC Faculty and Center Biostatistician 



We are excited to welcome Jane Paik Kim, Ph.D., Clinical Associate Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, to the RASC Administrative Core. Dr. Kim will be the lead biostatistician across various projects, with a focus on data harmonization. Her work bridges the gap between emerging clinical innovations and public health needs, with a particular emphasis on integrating innovative technologies in healthcare settings and developing precision medicine interventions. 

Fellowship in Addiction Dissemination & Implementation Science – Center for Dissemination & Implementation At Stanford (C-DIAS) 

Applications are now being accepted for the 2025–2026 Center for Dissemination & Implementation At Stanford (C-DIAS) Fellowship in Addiction Dissemination & Implementation (D&I) Science. 

The C-DIAS Fellowship in Addiction Dissemination & Implementation (D&I) Science is for early to mid-career individuals with goals to improve public access to and quality of addiction treatment by leveraging advanced implementation science methods.  



Applications must be submitted via this link by April 15, 2025. 

This yearlong mentored learning experience: 

•  Is a one-year (Sept. 2025–Sept. 2026), primarily virtual fellowship, with the possibility of extending to two years.  
•  Includes three days in Half Moon Bay California (Sept. 10–12, 2025) for the C-DIAS annual meeting to connect with C-DIAS Faculty, Advisory Board Members, C-DIAS Research Project PI and teams, as well as past and current C-DIAS Fellows. 
• Features a research track with a goal of preparation for an NIH-funded addiction implementation science research career; and a learning health systems track to apply implementation methods for substance use as an embedded researcher or quality improvement specialist. 
• Combines didactics, experiential peer group-based learning, individual mentoring, and guidance in professional development. 
• Enables individuals to maintain their full-time employment at their home institution. 
• Activities include monthly, virtual, hour-long lectures; participation in the C-DIAS Research Core sections activities; C-DIAS Virtual Grand Rounds; individualized mentoring; lead authorship opportunities; and support developing an NIH grant application or proposal to solve a public health or health systems problem. 

The C-DIAS Fellowship is eligible for CME/CE credits. 

C-DIAS fellows join an expanding network of individuals engaged in addiction treatment health services and implementation research, all committed to real-world impact. 

More information about the fellowship can be found on the C-DIAS website or this flyer. 

We Want to Celebrate Your Amazing Work! 

We are constantly inspired by the innovative ideas and groundbreaking solutions that our HD2A community members are developing. We invite you to share your progress with us and get the recognition your work deserves! 

Before you publish your work: 

We gently remind you that all HD2A projects and centers are required to review the HD2A Publication Policy and Procedures document and complete the checklist before the release of any HD2A-related products/publications. Visit the grantee portal of our website to find out more. 

Make sure to complete our Publication and Product Checklist linked HERE to ensure your product meets all necessary guidelines. 

After your product is published: 



Please email Praise from RASC (praise@stanford.edu) the final citations and product links so we can feature your work in our newsletter, on our website, and in summaries for NIDA. 

Buprenorphine, Pain, and Opioid Use in Patients Taking High-Dose Long-Term Opioids: A Randomized Clinical Trial via Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine  

Emergency Clinician Buprenorphine Initiation, Subsequent Prescriptions, and Continuous Prescriptions via Journal of the American Medical Association  

Use of Medications for Opioid Use Disorder in Older Adults via American Journal of Preventive Medicine 

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