Jefferson Research Collaborative Establishes the Coordinating Center for Clinical Research
Physicians, scientists and research professionals at Thomas Jefferson University have created the Jefferson Coordinating Center for Clinical Research (JCCCR) in an effort to foster and promote excellence in clinical research. The enterprise will develop, initiate and participate in advanced clinical research funded by industry, nonprofit organizations and the US government. The JCCCR is an Academic Research Organization, a new organizational model allowing the coordination of research not just at the home academic medical institution, but with other partner organizations as well.
“This is a vision about how to do clinical research at an academic medical center,” said David Whellan, M.D., M.H.S, director, Clinical Research at the Jefferson Heart Institute. “What we want to create is a pathway for physicians and staff to do quality clinical research where the opportunity might not currently exist. The JCCCR can provide infrastructure and personnel to clinical researchers within Jefferson and the region that enable them to conduct their clinical research.”
The JCCR consists of four integrated working groups with individual missions:
1. The Jefferson Clinical Trial Group will provide site management services to clinical trial networks for multicenter clinical trials and physician faculty leadership within those trials.
2. The Jefferson Site-Based Research Group will provide study coordination and trial management, including regulatory support, within Jefferson.
3. Business Operations will develop and negotiate budgets, manage research grants and accounts, submit invoices, track expenditures, and ensure the integrity of all clinical research finances.
4. The Jefferson Clinical Outcomes Research and Education Group develops and manages investigator-initiated projects, including preparation of funding grants in outcomes research and supports mentoring physicians-in-training and medical students.
“This center is really all about fulfilling our mission as an academic medical institution,” said Whellan. “In addition to the University’s core missions of research and education, we are also committed to providing excellence in patient care. In order to do this we believe we must be at the forefront of treatment. Every patient who comes to Jefferson should be offered to participate in the latest research where applicable. If we are going to move the practice of medicine forward, Jefferson physicians need to be thought-leaders in research. This research needs to be of the highest quality with as much transparency as possible. Studies need to be conducted efficiently and effectively and the outcomes need to be submitted for publication to share with the medical and patient communities. The JCCR will help streamline this process and make it available to others.”
Jefferson has extended elements of the JCCCR outside the institution with immediate success. Several primary-care physicians across the region have begun the process of working with the JCCCR to participate in clinical research. The JCCCR is also working with various sub-specialist physicians throughout the Department of Medicine and other Jefferson practice groups to conduct clinical trials.
“This is an exciting opportunity for the Department of Medicine and for the Jefferson community,” said Arthur Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., the Magee Professor and Chair of Medicine at Jefferson Medical College. “It brings excellence and sophistication to our clinical research operations, provides an effective means to partner with community physicians and facilitates our ability to translate new discoveries into treatments for patients in our region as quickly as possible.”
The JCCCR will provide expert staff, including study coordinators and assistance
preparing clinical protocols, budgets, contracts and all the required regulatory paperwork. These efforts should increase the number of clinical studies Jefferson doctors are participating in and leading, increase grant revenue, number of publications and presentations per year and educational experiences for students and house staff, all of which fulfill the Jefferson academic mission.
Media Only Contact:
Richard Cushman
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
Phone: (215) 955-6300
Published: 7/30/2010