Jeffrey Burns, M.D., director of the Frontiers: University of Kansas Clinical and Translational Science Institute's Participant and Clinical Interactions Resources Program, and its Clinical and Translational Science Unit, and director of the Alzheimer's and Memory Program, monitors Howard Kemper, a participant in the Brain Aging Project. The program is studying the relationship between fitness and Alzheimer's disease. Mr. Kemper, who does not have Alzheimer's disease, is participating in this study as a "healthy" control. (Donna Peck Photo)

We have built the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) Program on the strength of more than 60 unique academic medical centers nationwide. We rely on the individual strengths of the CTSA Program institutions and partner with them to develop and implement innovative, collaborative solutions intended to transform clinical and translation research. Together, these efforts address common areas of need that call for collaborative solutions, including:

• Training and cultivating the translational science workforce
• Engaging patients and communities in every phase of the translational process
• Promoting the integration of special and underserved populations in translational research across the human lifespan
• Innovating methods and processes to increase the quality and efficiency of translational research, particularly of multisite trials
• Advancing the use of cutting-edge informatics

Overview

The Trial Innovation Network is a collaborative initiative within NCATS’ CTSA Program composed of three key organizational partners:

• Trial Innovation Centers (TICs)
• Recruitment Innovation Center (RIC)
• CTSA Program institutions

Our vision for the Trial Innovation Network is to address critical roadblocks in clinical trials and to accelerate the translation of novel interventions into life-saving therapies. The network will focus on operational innovation, operational excellence and collaboration while leveraging the expertise, diversity and broad reach of the CTSA Program. Features will include a single institutional review board system, master contracting agreements, quality-by-design approaches, and a focus on evidence-based strategies for recruitment and patient engagement.

The goal is not only to execute trials better, faster and more cost-efficiently, but also to be a national laboratory to study, understand and innovate the process of conducting clinical trials.

Current Awardees

Current TIC and RIC awardees are:

TICs    
Johns Hopkins Trial Innovation Center    
Institution: Johns Hopkins University     
Principal Investigator: Daniel F. Hanley, M.D.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Engaging Cooperative Sites for Trial Acceleration, Trust, Innovation and Capability (ECSTATIC)    
Institution: Vanderbilt University Medical Center    
Principal Investigators: Gordon R. Bernard, M.D., Christopher J. Lindsell, Ph.D. (Duke University as of 2022), Wesley H. Self, M.D., M.P.H.

RIC    
Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Catalyzing and Harmonizing Operational Innovation for Recruitment (CHOIR)     
Institution: Vanderbilt University Medical Center    
Principal Investigators: Paul A. Harris, Ph.D., and Consuelo H. Wilkins, M.D.