# Testing the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a multilevel intervention to promote physical activity among patients with metabolic syndrome

> **NIH NIH K23** · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · 2020 · $167,059

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT
 Candidate. I am a psychology post-doctoral research and clinical fellow with the Massachusetts General
Hospital Cardiac Psychiatry Research Program. I hold a PhD in clinical health psychology and a master of
health science (MHS) degree in epidemiology. I have first- or co-authored 26 peer-reviewed publications
focusing on individual, group, and community-based strategies for physical activity and nutrition promotion,
obesity and chronic disease prevention, and the intersection of mental and physical health. My short-term
career goals are to develop and refine my clinical research skills with a focus on physical activity promotion. I
plan to develop the skills I need to lead a clinical research program by pursuing this K23 award. This award
would support my long-term career goals by providing me with the skills to become an independent researcher
focused on developing novel interventions to promote physical activity for chronic disease prevention. If the
proposed intervention proves successful, it will provide data to pursue future research using this intervention,
thereby building the evidence base for patient-oriented multilevel physical activity interventions.
 Career Development. I will develop this intervention based on relevant theory, patient input, and expertise
from my mentorship team: Dr. Jeff Huffman (clinical research, positive psychology), Dr. Elyse Park (qualitative
research, motivational interviewing), Dr. Anne Thorndike (metabolic syndrome, environmental interventions),
and Dr. Brian Healy (biostatistics). My team consultants, Dr. I-Min Lee (physical activity, measurement) and Dr.
Lisa Quintilliani (community-based research, dissemination and implementation) will provide further expertise
to support my training goals and research plan. The intervention development, testing, and dissemination
process, along with relevant coursework, seminars, and workshops, will support my four training goals: 1)
developing analytic skills for qualitative, clinical, and multilevel data, 2) becoming an expert in metabolic
syndrome risk and prevention, 3) learning cutting-edge and technology-based physical activity and sedentary
behavior measurement, and 4) dissemination and implementation of research findings.
 Environment. I will conduct this project at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a Harvard Medical
School teaching hospital, using its extensive resources for training and supporting clinical researchers and
performing top-quality research. The MGH Cardiac Psychiatry Research Program (CPRP), my current
research group, will be the primary setting for this award. Led by my primary mentor, Dr. Huffman, the group
has performed numerous health promotion trials in patients with cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The
CPRP is actively enrolling participants for five trials, including an NHLBI-funded R01 treatment development
trial of positive psychology and motivational interviewing in cardiac patients. I will recruit pat...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9857653
- **Project number:** 5K23HL135277-04
- **Recipient organization:** MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Rachel A. Millstein
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $167,059
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-02-01 → 2022-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9857653

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9857653, Testing the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a multilevel intervention to promote physical activity among patients with metabolic syndrome (5K23HL135277-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9857653. Licensed CC0.

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