Neighborhood Housing Foreclosure and BMI

Building on WAVES I, this study examined how neighborhood housing foreclosures impact BMI for veterans living in metropolitan Chicago. It also examined whether the relationship between housing foreclosure and BMI can be attributed to local crime. This research was done in collaboration with the DePaul University Institute for Housing Studies. Post-Doctoral Fellow Ana Clara Duran led the research.

Funders:
Brazilian National Council of Scientific and Technology Development Post-Doctoral Fellowship to Ana Clara Duran
DePaul University Institute for Housing Studies

Neighborhood Environment Moderation of Disability and Obesity Association Heading link

This study is developing a mobility disability algorithm, examining effects of mobility disability on obesity, and testing whether the neighborhood environment moderates mobility disability-obesity associations. It is led by Yochai Eisenberg for his dissertation research.
 
Funder:
Midwest Roybal Center for Health Promotion and Translation (P30AG022849) 
Center for Large Data Research & Data Sharing in Rehabilitation (P2CHD065702)

Socioeconomic Status: Development and Validation of a Novel Measure to Support a Learning Health System Heading link

Measures of individual SES are often missing from administrative data. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential value and limitations of Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) scores for capturing SES of veterans using VA health care.  Specifically, in this study, we are examining the VA population coverage, representativeness, and quality of the ASVAB data; using two distinct analytic subsamples and two income data sources, examining relationships between ASVAB scores measured at enlistment and present-day income, and assessing the representativeness of the subsamples in regard to ASVAB-income relationships; and determining whether ASVAB scores provide added value in explaining individual variation in selected measures of current health and health behaviors (functional limitations, comorbidity burden, hemoglobin A1c in those with diabetes, and smoking status).

Funder:
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (PPO 17-281)    

Urban Transportation Infrastructure and BMI Heading link

PhD student Kelly Jones was awarded a prestigious pre-doctoral fellowship to extend the focus of WAVES I to include the role of transportation infrastructure. Ms. Jones will examine how transportation infrastructure in large cities (over 500,000 residents) affects BMI, and whether transportation infrastructure contributes to the weight-management success of veterans in the VA MOVE! program. Using specialized statistical methods (latent class analysis), she will also test whether certain types of neighborhoods, defined based on groups of environmental characteristics including transportation infrastructure, influence BMI and success in the VA MOVE! program.

Funder:
National Institute for Nursing Research F31NR016897 (PI: Kelly K. Jones)