# Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research Centers

> **NIH ALLCDC U48** · UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA · 2023 · $1,252,801

## Abstract

ABSTRACT: AZ-KAER: Applying the KAER Model in Banner Health, Tucson Arizona
The long-term outcome of the project, “Applying the KAER Model to Primary Care within Banner University
Medicine” is to advise future implementation of the KAER (Kickstart, Assess, Evaluate, Refer) model across
primary care sites in order to improve the detection, diagnosis and management of cognitive impairment
among older adults, and connect people in need with community-based support and services. The broad
project specific aims are to: 1) increase the number of older adults who receive standard assessment,
evaluation and referral for cognitive impairment by their primary care providers (PCPs); 2) increase the
dependability of provider use of the KAER model in areas of acceptability, ease of use and effectiveness; and
3) increase likelihood of future model adoption in other health systems.
Alzheimer's disease (or a related dementia) (ADRD) is an increasingly important public health issue because
the burden is large, the impact is major, and there are ways common public health tools and techniques can
mitigate the impact. Although ADRD is relatively commonly seen by PCPs, numerous studies show that less
than half of older patients with cognitive impairment received the diagnosis from their primary care providers.
The purpose of this project is to increase the capacity of PCPs to systematically and efficiently incorporate
evidence-based diagnostic strategies into their existing treatment protocols.
Through a collaboration with the Arizona Prevention Research Center, the University of Arizona Center on
Aging, Banner Alzheimer's Institute, and Banner University Medicine's Primary Care Service Line, this project
will implement, evaluate and refine the KAER toolkit within a primary care setting within Banner Health.
Physicians and nurse practitioners in general internal medicine and family & community medicine clinics will be
given tools to evaluate for potential cognitive impairment and refer those with impairment to relevant
community services and supports. After a short developmental phase guided by the principles of Participatory
Action Research, the project will use a quasi-experimental, pre-post design to examine acceptability, feasibility
and effectiveness of model implementation, assess and refine the model for gaps and areas for improvement,
and disseminate results. The project team brings expertise in geriatrics, cognitive impairment, public health,
evaluation, clinical administration and operations. The Banner clinics serve a target population (comparable to
the US population) that is older, ~30% Hispanic, and 3% Native American, thus testing the KAER model
among diverse patients. Banner Health is one of the largest non-profit health systems in the US and provides
the opportunity to disseminate the refined KAER model across the Banner system and beyond.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10663104
- **Project number:** 5U48DP006413-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
- **Principal Investigator:** Ada Marie Wilkinson-Lee
- **Activity code:** U48 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $1,252,801
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-30 → 2024-09-29

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10663104

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10663104, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research Centers (5U48DP006413-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10663104. Licensed CC0.

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