June 4, 2025

HSR Announces Recipient of Best Research Paper of the Year Award

Constance Fung, MD, MSHS

Congratulations to Constance Fung, MD, MSHS, an investigator with HSR’s Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation and Policy (CSHIIP) and VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, on receiving the 2024 HSR Best Research Paper Award! The award honors an article or collection of articles that resulted from one or more HSR- or QUERI-funded investigations. The paper must be based on a study that involved Veterans and is important to Veterans’ health and care, as well as to the VA healthcare system.

Dr. Fung received the award for a paper she wrote with colleagues, “Masked Taper with Behavioral Intervention for Discontinuation of Benzodiazepine Receptor Agonists: A Randomized Clinical Trial.” Published December 2024 in JAMA Internal Medicine, the paper reports on a multi-site study of an innovative intervention to reduce use of benzodiazepines and “z-drugs,” which are commonly prescribed for sleep disorders and anxiety but are associated with serious risks such as falls, hip fractures, and cognitive impairment. In the study’s sample of patients who chronically use benzodiazepines/z-drugs, those who received a masked taper intervention plus augmented cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia were more likely to discontinue benzodiazepine/z-drug use six months after the intervention compared to patients who received a standard supervised gradual taper plus cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (intervention: 73% vs. standard care: 59%). Individuals in both arms experienced significant improvement in insomnia severity, even though they had discontinued sleeping pill use.

HSR thanks Dr. Fung for her outstanding work and contribution to the literature, which help VA improve the quality of healthcare for all Veterans.

HSR also thanks the Best Research Paper of the Year nominees for their important work and contributions to the field of health systems research:

• David Bekelman, MD, MPH, of HSR’s Seattle-Denver Center of Innovation for Veteran-Centered and Value-Driven Care, for the article “Nurse and Social Worker Palliative Telecare Team and Quality of Life in Patients with COPD, Heart Failure, or Interstitial Lung Disease: The ADAPT Randomized Clinical Trial.” JAMA. January 2024.
• Stuti Dang, MD, MPH, of HSR’s Elizabeth Dole Center of Excellence for Veteran and Caregiver Research, and VA’s Miami Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), for the article “Measuring the Unmet Needs of American Military Veterans and Their Caregivers: Survey Protocol of the HERO CARE Survey.” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. December 2023.
• Jacob Kurlander, MD, of HSR’s Center for Clinical Management Research (CCMR), for the article “Impact of Large Scale, Multicomponent Intervention to Reduce Proton Pump Inhibitor Overuse in Integrated Healthcare System: Difference-in-Difference Study.” The BMJ. April 2024.
• Richard Nelson, PhD, of HSR’s Informatics, Decision-Enhancement and Analytic Sciences Center (IDEAS) Center, for the article “Cost-Effectiveness of Temporary Financial Assistance for Veterans Experiencing Housing Instability.” JAMA Network Open. November 2024.
• Amal Trivedi, MD, MPH, of HSR’s Transformative Health Systems Research to Improve Veteran Equity and Independence Center of Innovation (THRIVE), for the article “Spending by the Veterans Health Administration for Medicare Advantage Dual Enrollees, 2011–2020.” JAMA. October 2024.
• Eva Woodward, PhD, an HSR Career Development Awardee with HSR’s Center for Mental Healthcare and Outcomes Research (CeMHOR), for the article “Transitioning an Implementation Research Intervention to a Sustained Clinical Service: Telehealth Primary Care Mental Health Integration Implementation in Veterans Health Administration.” Psychological Services. September 2024.
• Jessica Wyse, PhD, an HSR Career Development Awardee with HSR’s Center to Improve Veteran Involvement in Care (CIVIC), for the article “Improving Access to Buprenorphine for Rural Veterans in a Learning Healthcare System.” Health Services Research. July 2024.