Keeping older Veterans' chronic care on track during COVID-19 with VA outpatient and home/community supports
Official title: Resilience to Covid-19 Disrupted Chronic Condition Care for Older Veterans At Risk of Hospitalization: Role of VA Ambulatory Care and VA Extended Care Home and Community-Based Care Supports
Funded at Veterans Health Administration · NIH-11392077 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether VA office visits, phone/video care, and home/community services helped older Veterans with chronic conditions avoid worsening health and hospital stays during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Veterans Health Administration NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Ann Arbor, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5I01HX003584-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11392077 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are VA-enrolled Veterans aged 65 or older who have chronic conditions such as hypertension or congestive heart failure and who used VA outpatient or home/community services.
✕Less likely to help
Younger adults, people who do not get care through the VA, or Veterans without chronic conditions are unlikely to benefit directly from this work.
What this research studies
From your point of view as a Veteran, researchers will use VA medical records to track how face-to-face, phone, and video visits changed during the pandemic and how those changes affected chronic disease care. They will study about one million Veterans aged 65 and older who had conditions like hypertension or congestive heart failure and follow outcomes such as hospital admissions and fall injuries. The team will also examine whether VA Geriatric Extended Care home and community-based services helped keep care going when regular clinic visits were disrupted. Modern analytic tools will be used to identify which patients were most at risk from disrupted care and which VA supports made the biggest difference.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help the VA shape services so older Veterans keep essential chronic care during future disruptions and reduce avoidable hospital stays.
How similar studies have gone: Other observational studies have suggested telehealth and alternative services helped maintain care during COVID-19, but this large VA-focused analysis is broader and more detailed.
Where this research is happening
-
Veterans Health Administration
Ann Arbor, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Min, Lillian Chiang — Veterans Health Administration
- Study coordinator: Min, Lillian Chiang
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.