University of Arizona’s CoDiRA aims to bridge healthcare access gaps

Amid persistent healthcare challenges in rural America, innovative solutions are emerging to bridge the accessibility gap. In many rural regions, a staggering 80% suffer from healthcare shortages, resulting in a life expectancy almost two years shorter than urban counterparts. While digital health could offer solutions, disparities in access persist. In Arizona, for instance, the Arizona Commerce Authority reports that 21% of residents remain offline, leaving them at a disadvantage.

To tackle this issue, researchers at the University of Arizona are spearheading an initiative called Convergent Digital Health for Remote Access, or CoDiRA. This project, one of six funded by the Office of Research and Partnership‘s inaugural Big Idea Challenge, aims to create a comprehensive physical network for healthcare delivery that spans geographic and social divides.

“It’s an unfortunate reality that the ZIP code you are born in can have a great impact on your health outcomes,” stated Dr. Srikar Adhikari, CoDiRA’s principal investigator and professor of emergency medicine. “People have died in front of me in situations where we could have saved their lives if they had presented earlier. The gap is really wide. Even if our project addresses a small part of that access issue, it would be a huge step forward.”

The CoDiRA project brings together 14 researchers from the University of Arizona with expertise in fields such as computer science, cybersecurity, and wellness promotion. This interdisciplinary team is developing AI-powered medical kiosks for rapid deployment in easily accessible locations like pharmacies and community centers, emphasizing community engagement, culturally sensitive approaches, and clinical best practices.

“At the University of Arizona, we believe that the most complex challenges of our time, including a widening gap in health equity, cannot be solved in isolation,” said Tomás Díaz de la Rubia, senior vice president for research and partnerships. “CoDiRA is a prime example of convergence in action, bringing together our world-class expertise in AI, cybersecurity, and medicine to build a robust, socially grounded ecosystem for care. By integrating advanced technology with deep community trust, we are fulfilling our land-grant mission to ensure that high-quality health care is a universal right, regardless of a patient’s physical location or social circumstances.”

A New Model for Care

CoDiRA is crafted to offer an alternative to traditional urgent care and emergency room visits, which often involve significant travel and wait times. The system utilizes cameras, audio, and other sensing technologies to detect subtle clinical signs that might be missed in standard consultations. CoDiRA is tailored to address prevalent but critical health issues like urinary tract infections and high blood pressure, delivering personalized advice and assessments to avoid unnecessary emergency room visits.

The platform integrates within existing medical and regulatory frameworks and includes escalation protocols and human oversight for cases requiring clinical judgment. Healthcare workers will assist patients in navigating the system.

Scaling Up the Initiative

With an initial seed funding period spanning two years beginning in 2025, CoDiRA is also focused on fostering community partnerships to boost adoption and investment. Leaders at Mariposa Community Health Center have engaged with the researchers to explore how CoDiRA can assist residents in Nogales, Arizona, offering endorsement for grant applications, according to Adhikari. The team is also working with tribes, clinics, and other trusted entities to guide the development and rollout of CoDiRA.

This community-driven approach extends to training the AI itself. The team is honing the models using two data streams: insights from focus groups and surveys, and the clinical expertise of the research team. With 25 years of clinical experience, Adhikari collaborates with data scientists to teach the software the nuanced thinking of seasoned clinicians.

Ensuring safety and privacy is paramount to CoDiRA’s mission. The system includes dedicated experts overseeing ethical AI infrastructure, regulatory adherence, and cybersecurity to address patient concerns about their health data. By creating a model that is both technologically advanced and socially responsive, the researchers aspire to set a global standard for care in under-resourced and rural areas.

As the team progresses toward a validated model, they aim to develop a prototype and gather preliminary data to secure a partner for patient testing. Adhikari envisions CoDiRA playing a unique role for business or government sponsors, offering integration, oversight, and readiness beyond standalone products.

“As of now, the majority of the technologies – even the ones which are FDA approved – have not been readily accepted and implemented,” Adhikari noted. “We need to build trust and educate patients on why and how they can interact with these models. That’s what we believe will separate us from any existing technologies.”

A version of this article originally appeared on the Office of Research and Partnerships website.