The NIH National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has awarded an R21 Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant to Dr. Nadine Matthie, PhD, RN, CNL, an Assistant Professor at Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. The grant, titled Home-Based Self-Management of Chronic Pain in Adults with Sickle Cell Disease: Applying a Biopsychosocial and Technological Approach, provides funding for a clinical trial to improve self-management of chronic pain among 60 Black, young adults with sickle cell disease (SCD).

Dr. Matthie's research indicates a high occurrence of chronic pain in adults with SCD.Even more so, Black adults with SCD often encounter challenges in obtaining comprehensive care for chronic pain that includes behavioral pain management strategies. As an alternative approach to using opioids, Dr. Matthie will apply virtual reality (VR) as an evidence-based and non-pharmacological option that addresses chronic pain management without decreasing the quality of life of affected individuals.

The R21 Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant gives Dr. Matthie and the School of Nursing the opportunity to examine and learn from this important topic. This award will allow her to utilize AppliedVR's EaseVRx as a behavioral pain management strategy to determine the feasibility for self-management of chronic pain among 60 Black, young adults, ages 18–40, with SCD. Taking place in a home setting, Dr. Matthie’s study will help assess the preliminary efficacy of EaseVRx on pain and pain-related outcomes and how EaseVRx can be tailored for a target audience that primarily consists of Black individuals.

Dr. Matthie has been an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing since August 2015. Her areas of expertise in acute and chronic pain, symptom science, and technology have earned her this opportunity to continue her life-changing research that will be among the first published studies of VR interventions for chronic pain management in the home setting for adults with SCD. For more information on Dr. Matthie, visit her faculty profile. To learn more about the R21 Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant, visit the National Institute of Health’s website.