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Lots of places do outcomes research, but there are only about six
centers that lead the country in this important area of scientific
inquiry. Christiana Care ranks among them, particularly with regard to
cardiovascular outcomes.
But, according to William Weintraub, M.D., John H. Ammon Chair of Cardiology and
director of the Center for Outcomes Research (CCOR) at Christiana Care,
'good just isn't good enough.'
'We see an opportunity here for Christiana Care to become a national
leader in outcomes research and, more broadly, in population sciences, in
a matter of several years,' Dr. Weintraub says. 'you don't get anywhere by
thinking small, and at Christiana Care we have the resources and the
intellect for great achievement.
What is outcomes research?
Health care outcomes research looks beyond the results of medical
treatments or practices to the consequences of health care delivery. It
asks questions beyond 'does it work?' such as 'how do people feel about
it? How does it affect quality of life? Does it improve survival?' Often
the answers to these questions are what matter most to people and to
ultimate success or failure.
Positioned for success
Dr. Weintraub says Christiana Care is ideally positioned for success as
a major outcomes and population health research center for a number of
reasons, including a large, highly diverse patient base of more than 1.2
million people in Delaware and surrounding states. In addition, he
explains, 'Delaware's compact size and political structure offer a
manageable framework for many population-based and other outcomes driven
projects.'
'One example is a project submitted by Christiana Care's trauma Program
to the Centers for Disease Control in atlanta for funding to improve
seat-belt use among adolescents. 'it is conceivable that with enough
funding, we could introduce this program in every high school in the
state,' Dr. Weintraub says.
'There are many smart people right here at Christiana Care who are
already doing important work with ties to major universities and research
centers both locally and around the country,' Dr. Weintraub says. 'We plan
to build on our relationships with the University of Delaware, the
University of Pennsylvania, thomas Jefferson University, the Johns Hopkins
University, and others, to foster mutually beneficial research
collaborations.'
CCOR resources available
The Christiana Center for Outcomes Research was established in 2005, to
promote and conduct research aimed at improving patient care and to
provide new evidencebased, medical knowledge that could help shape
healthcare policy. CCOR investigators whose shared expertise lies in
cardiovascular diagnostics and therapeutics, evaluation of quality of life
issues, economic impact and cost-effectiveness, are actively involved in
their own studies as well as assisting others within the health system to
pursue their own research areas of interest. these include clinical,
epidemiologic, translational and outcomes projects that are internal,
industry-funded or peer reviewed.
Already at Christiana Care, a significant percentage of cardiovascular
studies focus on outcomes pertaining to drugs, delivery or devices.
Similarly, outcomes research studies are in progress or planning stages in
emergency medicine, women's health, primary care, bioinformatics and
information technology, kidney disease, cancer, sports, spine and joint
medicine, neurological disease and performance improvement.
For information about series of Lunch and Learn
sessions highlighting CCOR research activities and quality of care
initiatives that is open to all Christiana Care employees, contact Debbie Long
at
302-623-0677. | 
