NED 2024

In this session, attendees will learn about ethical benchmarks for clinical research and practice applying them to real-life case examples, with a focus on the role of researcher-participant interactions.

Session Leader

Stephanie A. Kraft, JD, is an Assistant Professor at the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care at Seattle Children’s Research Institute and the University of Washington School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. She conducts conceptual and empirical research on issues related to ethics and equity in the conduct of clinical research and the implementation of emerging biomedical technologies. She is also part of the ITHS Research Bioethics Consultation service. Her primary research interests are in understanding how people make decisions about research participation and improving how research teams demonstrate respect to and build trust with potential participants, especially among marginalized patient populations.

In this session, participants will learn about the various types of research interviews and differences between them. Participants will also learn best practices and tips in conducting research interviews with vulnerable populations.

Session Leader

Morgan (Research Manager, Division of Allergy and Infectious Disease, University of Washington) has over a decade of experience coordinating and conducting research interviews with vulnerable populations in the United States. Two most recent projects of note include The Male Relationships Study (Johns Hopkins University; PI: R. Arrington-Sanders)and Project Needle Exchange Utilization Survey (NEXUS) (University of Washington; PI S. Glick). As part of The Male Relationships Study, Morgan coordinated and assisted in the collection of qualitative data from 160 research interviews as part of this longitudinal study focused on sexual, racial and gender minority adolescents aged 15-19 year old. He is currently the coordinator of Project NEXUS, a CDC funded surveillance demonstration project, which is actively conducting research interviews via Zoom with people who inject or use drugs accessing syringe services programs across the country. Morgan oversees a team of 12 research interviewers with an end goal of 1800 research interviews conducted. Morgan is a native New Yorker with a background in anthropology and sociology and currently lives in Seattle, WA.

As research coordinators, you work on research studies involving drugs, medical devices, and diagnostics. Your job is to enroll patients in studies, but you’re also the first line of defense protecting patients from inappropriate therapies and procedures and preventing bad outcomes resulting from poor patient selection. How and when do you make your voice heard? When do you take a stand? Who can help? How do you steer the ship when you’re not the captain?

Session Leader

Teddy Johnson is the Director of Technology Development for ITHS, and he runs the Technology Development Center, guiding researchers from the bench to successful startup company formation. Early in his career, he began managing medical device research and orchestrated numerous clinical studies throughout Europe, Latin America, and the US.

Having trained dozens of physicians and observed over 1000 surgical and cath lab procedures, Teddy is no stranger to the realities of clinical care. Over his 25 year industry career, Teddy served start-up and Fortune 500 companies in research, design, clinical, marketing, and sales leadership roles; developing imaging, interventional, surgical, pharmaceutical, and digital health products.

With hard work, good judgment, and a little luck, Teddy has celebrated 2 IPO’s and 4 acquisitions, while earning numerous patents and commercializing dozens of new products worldwide. As a way of giving back, Teddy teaches in the STEM and Biomedical Regulatory Affairs Master of Science (BRAMS) Programs at the University of Washington and mentors startup CEOs in Seattle and the Silicon Valley.

What can you do with hierarchy as a scientific research professional? Join this discussion to explore and strategize ways to manage this sometimes-discontented elephant on research teams.

Session Leader

Erin Abu-Rish Blakeney, PhD, RN, is co-lead of the UW ITHS Team Science Core and a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Informatics at the UW School of Nursing. Erin’s program of research focuses on how teams work together and how their teamwork influences the production of new knowledge; care organization, delivery, and outcomes; and translation of research into practice along the bench to bedside spectrum.

Thus far in Erin’s career, she has worked in multiple clinical and research roles, including: as a phlebotomist/ laboratory assistant in rural primary care clinics, as a nurse in hospital, home health, and community health settings, as a research scientist/nurse coordinator of a grant funded mobile health van, as a graduate student research assistant, and as a co-investigator and principal investigator on studies as research faculty.

Meeting recruitment goals and timelines is a consistent challenge, and the responsibility of developing recruitment plans and materials typically falls to the Research Coordinator. This session will provide practical guidance and tips to develop effective recruitment plans, track and measure success, and create eye-catching recruitment materials.

Session Leader

Michael Donahue, BS, CCRC, is a Research Coordinator at the University of Washington’s Clinical Trial Office and Institute of Translational Health Sciences. Mike has 25 years of experience in clinical research, and provides a wide-range of general research coordination, regulatory support, and study monitoring to investigators; he has become skilled in problem solving recruitment and retention issues. He has provided extensive support for many clinical research programs, including Cardiology, Surgery, Oncology, Otolaryngology, Radiology, Rheumatology, Urology, and Rehabilitation Medicine.

A discussion amongst research coordinators and encouraging one another’s voices regarding their experiences and perspectives for all subjects related.

Session Leader

Evangeline Chang is a research coordinator at the UW Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, coordinating the Biogen ENVISION trial. She previously worked with oncology patients and coordinated clinical trials at the UW Cancer Vaccine Institute as a clinical research coordinator. Outside of work, Evangeline enjoys bullet journaling, cooking and trying new recipes, and spending time with family and her three cats. She is also interested in studying linguistics and stoicism.

It is essential for research staff to understand fundamental concepts and terminology common to clinical trial protocols. This session will go over sample protocols and describe strategies for reading protocols to maximize study success.

Session Leader

Amy Good, PhD, is a Clinical Research Manager in the Department of Neurology at the University of Washington and focuses on research of Huntington’s Disease. Amy received her PhD in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in rehabilitation and behavioral medicine. She has been involved in health-related research for 20 years.

Join this discussion with REDCap experts to learn more about the use of REDCap in your work including how to head-off common challenges before they occur. If you have a certain question, area of interest, or a REDCap challenge that’s keeping you up at night, come ready to ask/share to get some ideas and feedback from the REDCap team. Please note – this session is for general discussion and guidance; admins will not be able to provide project-specific support.

Session Leaders

Gretchen Kuhn is a REDCap administrator with the University of Washington. Prior to moving into REDCap, they worked as a research coordinator for two years with Washington State University. Gretchen is from Virginia so they don’t understand the UW/WSU rivalry but would love to hear your opinions.

Adam Mahama is the Lead REDCap administrator with the University of Washington. Prior to moving into REDCap, he worked as a REDCap Administrator/IT Technician for four years with Washington State University. He went to WSU and grew up in Pullman, Washington so he understands this rivalry VERY well.

Join this small group discussion facilitated by Kara Cooper, training manger, to learn about, discuss, and explore ideas on career pathways within the field of research.

Session Leader

Kara Cooper is the training manager for the Research Integration Hub. She has twenty years of experience in lab and clinical research, most recently in the Division of Gastroenterology at Seattle Children’s. In her new role, she is creating centralized training resources for clinical research professionals and also working to create career development pathways with local community colleges to improve the accessibility to “the best job no one has heard of.”