School of Medicine & Health Sciences receives $11 million NIH grant to help it ‘transcend’ in clinical and translational research
GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- “This really is a game-changer,” said Dr. Gary Schwartz, professor in the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences (SMHS) Department of Population Health. “As the project’s name suggests, it’s going to help move our state to the next level for clinical and translational research.”
Schwartz was speaking of the Translational Science Engaging North Dakota project, or TRANSCEND.
Awarded to the SMHS and its partners in July by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) via the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, TRANSCEND will allow area researchers to dive deeper into the study of multiple health conditions prevalent in North Dakota, including colorectal cancer, neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and a variety of mental and behavioral health challenges.
At $2.1 million per year, the five-year, nearly $11 million grant is one of the largest research awards the School has ever seen.
The award is an NIH Clinical & Translational Research Development (CTR-D) award, meaning the goal of researchers working within TRANSCEND is to bolster clinical and translational (C&T) research projects that go beyond “basic science” to develop strategies and therapeutics that can be applied by health providers in hospitals and clinics to a variety of patients directly.
“We’re looking to elevate the profile of C&T research throughout North Dakota universities and clinics,” added Schwartz, who served as point person on the large grant application. “We think of this as streamlining the road to successful clinical and translational research, in part by removing roadblocks and by offering ‘roadside assistance’ to researchers.”
Such streamlining – practical research training and assistance for investigators – should produce tangible, positive impacts on the health of North Dakotans, Schwartz said.
To that end, part of the point of TRANSCEND is to help researchers get better at what they do by connecting them to potential research partners in the area, offering professional development and training opportunities, including pilot grant opportunities, and allowing them to test novel, patient-focused research innovations.
“There is a significant need for enhanced didactics and mentorship in the areas of clinical and translational research across our region,” noted Dr. Paul Carson, professor in the North Dakota State University Department of Public Health. “I believe that these deficits will be meaningfully addressed by the services that would be provided by the TRANSCEND research core.”
Part of the challenge in producing such research in North Dakota is that the state’s only school of medicine and health sciences is “community-based,” as the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) puts it. That is, the school doesn’t own or operate its own hospital. Consequently, university-based researchers in North Dakota face special challenges in conducting patient-focused research.
TRANSCEND should help address that challenge by connecting researchers at UND and NDSU with health systems like Sanford Health. Likewise, other partners, including the Community Health Association of the Dakotas (CHAD), have joined the team, meaning several community clinics will be working with TRANSCEND researchers on multiple projects, giving researchers better access to patient health data.
“TRANSCEND innovates in many ways, including helping investigators ‘re-enter’ the grant process, adding other non-clinical faculty, like those in the UND School of Engineering & Mines, to the mix, and providing financial incentives for submitting grant applications to agencies like the NIH,” said Schwartz. “Our Community Engagement and Outreach group is highly experienced in working with minority communities and our Community Physician at Large (CoPal) program will send a physician researcher out into the community to align TRANSCEND with community priorities.”
His team’s vision, concluded Schwartz, is that TRANSCEND transforms the academic culture in North Dakota by training future C&T leaders and contributing to the medical school’s long-term goal of improving health in North Dakota.
"We need to develop clinical and translational research that is relevant to a wide range of medical illnesses and health related problems experienced by people in our region," added Dr. Stephen Wonderlich, vice president for research and chief of behavioral health research at Sanford Health in Fargo. "TRANSCEND provides resources, support, and opportunities for clinicians and scientists to work together to conduct these relevant and meaningful studies. It is a remarkable opportunity."
The TRANSCEND grant is NIH grant number 1P20GM155890-01 and is identified by Notice of Funding Opportunity PAR-23-257.
“Congratulations to Dr. Schwartz and his colleagues for their outstanding efforts that culminated in the awarding of this large and exciting grant,” commented Dr. Joshua Wynne, vice president for health affairs and dean of the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences. “This grant will stimulate further growth in clinical and translational research throughout North Dakota and likely speed the application of new discoveries to the patient’s bedside with resulting improved outcomes.”
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Brian James Schill
Director, Office of Alumni & Community Relations
University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences
701.777.6048 direct | 701.777.4305 office
brian.schill@UND.edu | www.UND.edu