Three years ago, UCI created the Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (ICTS), which identifies tests, and implements innovative ways to break down barriers that impede biomedical discovery. In the next phase of our concerted effort to transform the UCI clinical research enterprise, our vision is to: 1) Nurture Novel Collaborations-The ICTS builds multidisciplinary research teams, such as chemists and clinicians exploring breath biomarkers in the human ventilome. ICTS experts in the science of team science will help new partnerships to identify and remove obstacles to successful collaboration before they become insurmountable. 2) Create New Technologies for Translational Science-The ICTS made novel UCI-based technologies such as biophotonics and microdevices available to a new generation of clinicians. We will now develop and provide new methodologies by partnering with UCI information scientists in the use of ubiquitous computing for field research; with nursing and social scientists for qualitative and comparative effectiveness research; and with exercise physiologists and molecular biologists for technologies that link genomic information with dynamic disease phenotypes. 3) Share Information-The ICTS has engaged clinicians, hospital IT staff, and scholars from the School of Information and Computer Sciences to create the Center for Biomedical Informatics. We are now ready to embed infrastructure for clinical data interoperability at a unique moment, namely, as UCI begins to deploy its EMR; 4) Engage Our Community-The ICTS championed new approaches such as PEER (Participant Experience Enhancement in Research), a program that views research volunteers as partners in the process of discovery. We plan a range of outreach/dissemination activities, from mitigating elder abuse to preventing sudden death in pediatric athletes. And 5) Train-We will implement Crossing Boundaries, a set of degree and certificate programs along with mentorship interaction that tackles key issues in translational science. Finally, we view ourselves as part of a unique translational science network for Southern California, in which the resources of regional academic medical centers are integrated to better realize the overarching vision of the CTSA.
(See Instructions): UCI is becoming a motivating force for clinical research in this dynamic region of Southern California. The ICTS will support a wide range of projects that will benefit public health, including the ambitious NIH-funded National Childen's Study; research into rare, poorly studied diseases of mitochondrial origin; and community outreach efforts to mitigate the health consequences of obesity among underinsured people in our region.
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