Existing transportation program could be replicated to help increase access to care
A project funded by The Duke Endowment will allow East Carolina University researchers to evaluate an existing transportation program and pilot a similar one for underserved residents.
The program, called Project TRIP, provides transportation services for low-income adults in Hertford and Bertie counties in northeastern North Carolina.
Project TRIP volunteer William Harris prepares to drive a client to a medical appointment in Hertford County. (Contributed photo)
Alice Richman, professor in the Department of Health Education and Promotion and interim associate dean of research in the College of Health and Human Performance, and Abby Schwartz, assistant professor in the School of Social Work and coordinator of the Aging Studies Program, will lead the research.
Partners include co-investigator Haiyong Liu, chair of the ECU Department of Economics who will help with program evaluation and cost-benefit analysis, and Caroline Doherty and Weyling White of the Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center, which implemented and operates Project TRIP. Faculty hope to involve ECU students in the research as well, Schwartz said.
In addition, the research team will pilot a similar program in nearby Washington County. Data collected will be used for future replicability and expansion efforts to other rural counties in eastern North Carolina and beyond.
The $252,000 grant is for three years beginning this month.
The researchers will work closely with the Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center to interview and survey key stakeholders and past users, as well as potential users in Washington County to better understand needs there. The pilot test will be completed in Washington County in the grant’s third year.
The study will build on research that Schwartz and Richman have conducted related to barriers to health care for underserved populations.
Some of Schwartz’s work has focused on older African American cancer patients’ experience in adhering to treatment in eastern North Carolina.
“A key finding related to a lack of, or lack of access to transportation,” said Schwartz, who learned about Project TRIP in researching possible existing interventions.
Richman is a seasoned cancer health disparities researcher who has found that transportation is a main barrier to access to care for vulnerable populations.