This grant will provide infrastructure support to our practice-based research network (PBRN) to develop strategies and tools to enhance the technology interface and to strengthen the relationship of clinician-researcher members of the Cincinnati Pediatric Research Group (CPRG) with these electronic resources. The CPRG is a productive regional network of 40 community child health care providers supported by a large children's hospital. We will begin a regular electronic solicitation of data using handheld devices and wireless communications. A pilot project will electronically profile, on a real-time basis, weekly clinical impressions and symptoms as a mechanism for bioterrorism surveillance. As CPRG members become more comfortable with the enhanced web-based technology utilized, we expect these tools to facilitate improvement in their practice of evidence-based medicine. The expanded functioning of the CPRG will ultimately allow the rapid assessment of measures of quality of care and guideline implementation, identification of areas for new intervention and study, and prompt recognition of outbreaks of illness. This will strengthen the ability of the CPRG to: 1) conduct research related to the practice of pediatrics in the community, and 2) enhance the translation of research into practice. Participation in the CPRG assists in the conversion of primary care practices into places of learning and academic pursuit, generating researchable questions about the improvement of practice. The development and implementation of a portable interactive electronic data system will enable this process.
