School of Public and Population Health Associate Professor Miguel Reina Ortiz will lead a team conducting a five-year cohort study to identify and track post-COVID-19 conditions, determine their associated risk factors and assess their impact on diverse population groups. This study is being funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As a co-principal investigator with former Boise State public and population health Divisional Dean Lillian Smith, Reina Ortiz will coordinate, plan and provide scientific and programmatic oversight for the project. Six Boise State co-investigators will also work on the project: Assistant Professor Vinita Sharma, Associate Professor Mac McCullough, Lecturer Joanna McCormack, Clinical Assistant Professor Desmond Banks and Infrastructure Support Specialist Brian Young.
Reina Ortiz said the surveillance project will help the team better quantify and understand the burden of post-COVID conditions, and their impact on specific population groups, using real-world data.
“The impact of COVID-19 has been felt across the world, in all population groups, geographic regions and industries,” he said. “Although many may think that the pandemic is over, the effects of COVID-19 are likely to be felt and observed for decades to come — clinically, socially and economically.”
The team will collect data from children, adolescents and adults in The Bronx, New York City and Utah through partner health information exchanges: BronxRHIO and Utah Health Information Exchange.
Comagine Health and BeyondHIE will contribute expertise in data integration and management. FindHelp will contribute data on the social determinants of health. Reina Ortiz and his team will lead the scientific aspects of the development and implementation of the cohort study, including surveillance data management and analysis.