Duke Clinical Research Institute

Duke Clinical Research Institute

Faculty

The Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) is devoted to conducting multi-center clinical research with a mission to develop and share knowledge that improves the care of patients through innovative clinical research. The largest academic research organization in the world, the DCRI is known for its pioneering research in cardiology but performs clinical research across the spectrum of diseases, ranging from:

Phase I through Phase IV clinical trials
Outcomes and quality research
Registries of more than 100,000 patients
Economic and quality of life studies in populations spanning more than 20 therapeutic areas

The DCRI grew out of the Duke Databank for Cardiovascular Diseases, which is one of the world’s largest repositories of follow-up on patients who have documented coronary heart disease (more than 200,000 patients have been enrolled to date). The DCRI has evolved into an organization with major efforts in clinical trials, outcomes research, and health policy, and the DCRI expanded beyond the cardiovascular therapeutic area beginning in 1996.

The DCRI faculty includes clinician researchers, biostatisticians, health economists, and health services researchers. Currently, the DCRI comprises approximately 900 employees, including more than 100 faculty from all disciplines. Most DCRI researchers are also active practicing physicians, studying the application of research to patient care.

Research Accomplishments

Conducted studies at more than 3592 sites in 63 countries
More than 540,000 patients enrolled in DCRI studies
More than 4600 publications in peer-reviewed journals
More than 270 Phase I-IV trials and outcomes research projects completed
More than 5000 investigators worldwide

For more information on the DCRI and its research, visit the DCRI Web site.

Training Program

The DCRI offers a living laboratory for investigators of the future by combining faculty interests in specific research questions with the multifaceted environment needed to do outcome based studies. Trainees at the DCRI have the opportunity to experience firsthand the features of conducting domestic and international clinical trials and outcomes studies including activities such as protocol development, study operations, continuing medical education curricula development, clinical events adjudication, as well as operational functions such as project and data management, site management, and utilization of information technology specific to multi-center clinical research studies.

Each cardiovascular trainee at the DCRI develops a relationship with a primary mentor who bears the responsibility of guiding the trainee’s career development. Within cardiovascular medicine, trainees are recommended to focus upon either cardiovascular outcomes or clinical trials. However, trainees who focus on outcomes generally also work with at least one clinical trial, and clinical trial trainees generally conduct at least one database project. The mentor is expected to assist the fellow in developing a broad range of experiences with different types of faculty, not just to have the fellow work in his or her own research projects.

DCRI fellows attend a weekly DCRI Clinical Research Conference in which fellows, faculty and visiting researchers present work in progress. The fellows also invite external leaders in cardiovascular medicine to conduct two-day visiting professor sessions including intensive small seminars with the fellows.

A critical component of the training program is the intense interaction between the clinician researchers and statisticians. The philosophy of the training program is that the most successful investigators in cardiovascular medicine will be able to combine superior knowledge of clinical cardiology with quantitative principles in an interactive, teamwork oriented environment.

Cardiovascular fellows also have the opportunity to participate in coursework for the Clinical Research Training Program to obtain a Masters in Health Sciences in Clinical Research during their research fellowship at DCRI. This program offers in-depth training regarding biostatistics, clinical research design and methodology, cost-effectiveness research, and health economics.

The clinical research training offered to cardiovascular fellows at DCRI is unparalleled and represents a distinct advantage for trainees interested in a career in academic medicine and clinical investigation.

Selected Publications

Felker GM, Gattis WA, Adams KF, O'Connor CM. Anemia as a risk factor and therapeutic target in heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2004; 44: 959-966.
Petersen JL, Mahaffey KW, Hasselblad V, Antman EM, Cohen M, Goodman SG, Langer A, Blazing MA, Le-Moigne-Amrani A, deLemos JA, Nessel CC, Harrington RA, Ferguson JJ, Braunwald E, Califf RM. Efficacy and Bleeding Complications Among Patients Randomized to Enoxaparin or Unfractionated Heparin for Antithrombin Therapy in Non-ST-Segment Elevation Acute Coronary Syndromes. JAMA 2004;292:89-96.
Rao SV, Jollis JG, Harrington RA, Granger CB, Newby LK, Armstrong PW, Moliterno DJ, Lindblad L, Pieper K, Topol EJ, Stamler JS, Califf RM. Relationship of Blood Transfusion and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndromes. JAMA 2004;292:1555-1562.
Sonel AF, Good CB, Mulgund J, Roe MT, Gibler WB, Smith SC Jr., Cohen MG, Pollack CV Jr., Ohman EM, Peterson ED, for the CRUSADE Investigators. Racial variations in treatment and outcomes of black and white patients with high risk non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes: insights from CRUSADE. Circulation 2005;111:1225-1232.
Bardy GH, Lee KL, Mark DB, et al., for the Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure Trial (SCD-HeFT) Investigators. Amiodarone or an Implantable Cardioverter–Defibrillator for Congestive Heart Failure. N Engl J Med 2005;352:2146.