Team building: electronic management-clinical translational research (eM-CTR) systems

Area of Science:

• Clinical Pharmacology
• Translational Research
• Medical Informatics

Background:

• Classical drug exposure-response studies are foundational to Bench to Bedside-Clinical Translational Research.
• Existing infrastructure for large clinical trials is inadequate for mechanistic, small-group studies.
• Novel informatics strategies are needed to effectively manage complex clinical research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a novel, integrated strategy for supporting and managing clinical translational research studies.
• To illustrate this strategy using projects from a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease research center.
• To demonstrate the scalability and transformative potential of the proposed informatics design.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of a novel study support strategy centered around an Information Hub, Communication Hub, and Data Hub.
• Application of this strategy to diverse research projects within Special Clinical Centers of Research.
• Evaluation of the strategy's effectiveness and scalability compared to traditional informatics support.

Main Results:

• The Information, Communication, and Data Hub design provides effective support for clinical translational research.
• The strategy is scalable and adaptable to various research projects, including those in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
• The approach proved economically efficient and transformative to the research culture and process.

Conclusions:

• The integrated Information, Communication, and Data Hub strategy offers a scalable and efficient solution for clinical translational research.
• This novel informatics approach empowers research groups, leading to economic benefits and process transformation.
• The strategy effectively addresses the infrastructure limitations of traditional clinical trial support for mechanistic studies.