The University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine has received a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health to provide a postdoctoral fellowship program in cardiovascular outcomes research. The program will be based at Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Instituteand is designed to meet the growing need for scholars capable of quantifying patients’ outcomes, defining the determinants of these outcomes, comparing the effectiveness of alternative treatments, translating new knowledge into clinical practice, and measuring and improving the quality of care.

“There is a growing regional and national need for more scholars in cardiovascular outcomes and quality of care research,” said John Spertus, M.D., Daniel J. Lauer/Missouri Endowed Chair and Professor at the UMKC School of Medicine and Clinical Director of Outcomes Research at the Mid America Heart Institute. “This program will expand and improve our existing American Heart Association-funded training program, which has grown to be the central unifying outcomes research program in the region and serves as the primary training program in cardiovascular outcomes research for UMKC, KU, the University of Iowa and Washington University in St. Louis.”

The two-year fellowship training program is comprised of three synergistic components: 1) a basic foundation of general skills for clinical research; 2) specialized skills for outcomes research; and 3) hands-on research. The new program will further enhance UMKC and Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute’s role as the core lab for clinical and outcomes research in the Frontiers regional translational research network.

Fellowship program scholars will conduct studies to define the determinants of outcomes, examine the translation of evidence into clinical care in order to identify opportunities for improvement, and design innovations in health care delivery to overcome existing gaps — all national priorities. Upon completion of the program, successful trainees will be equipped to conduct independent academic research, work with the pharmaceutical/device industry, serve as leaders in quality within hospitals and health systems and to pursue careers in public health and health policy.

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Posted in Awards and Grants Research School of Medicine by johnaustin Comments Off on UMKC and Saint Luke’s Awarded Federal Grant to Provide Training Program in Cardiovascular Outcomes Research