Advancing today’s discoveries to improve health for all.

Lora Black, Spark Award Recipient

The Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) offers Spark Awards, previously known as vouchers, to researchers who need to jump-start their research. The goal of the Spark Award is to support preliminary work and generate essential data for both new and ongoing projects. The CTSI is proud to highlight how Spark Award recipients are utilizing their funding.

Lora Black headshot

Lora Black, PhD, MPH, an Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Science is conducting research about treatments for chronic pain by using psychosocial correlates and psychological treatments. The stud is called the Pain Rehabilitation and Education: Values and Actions that improve Life (PRE:VAIL) Study.

“The purpose of this study is to examine illness-related characteristics of individuals with chronic pain and their response to participation in an outpatient interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation clinic,” says Black. “The overall goal of this project is to expand our understanding of illness-related characteristics of individuals with a variety of chronic pain conditions and guide our understanding of how to effectively provide specialized care for chronic pain.”

Black plans to use their Spark Award to enable their research team to utilize the Honest Broker Operation committee. “This study involves the extraction of medical data from the electronic medical record. This committee will be used to extract portions of this data to better understand how these treatments can be used for chronic pain.”

Congratulations to Lora Black on receiving a Spark Award and using it to make an impact on how colorectal cancer is treated. If you are interested in applying for a Spark Award, applications are being accepted on a rolling basis until May 15, 2025, or until funds are exhausted. For more information, visit go.osu.edu/spark2025.

Julie Johnson, PharmD, is the Director and Principal Investigator at The Ohio State University Clinical and Translational Science Institute.