Department of Pediatrics

ISPCTN

As a member of the IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network (ISPCTN), we provide medically underserved populations with access to state-of-the-art clinical trials and build pediatric research capacity at a national level.

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ISPCTN

As a member of the IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network (ISPCTN), we provide medically underserved populations with access to state-of-the-art clinical trials and build pediatric research capacity at a national level.

The Rhode Island Child Clinical Trials Collaborative (RI-CCTC) at Hasbro Children's Hospital, Women & Infants Hospital and Brown University, serves as a clinical center for the ECHO ISPCTN. Our site has developed a new network neonatal opioid withdrawal trial protocol, and provided leadership to the network through our committee work. Our state's demographic includes many underserved, minority and immigrant children, who have high rates of infant mortality, asthma, obesity, prematurity, mental health problems and special health care needs.

This high-risk population has not been previously included in many clinical studies, and thus is benefitting both directly and indirectly from the RI-CCTC's work. Rhode Island is uniquely organized for population-based clinical research: it has one major obstetric hospital (80% of all deliveries in the state), one children's hospital (90% of all pediatric admissions in the state) and one health department, as well as an engaged community. These factors allow for effective enrollment, retention, and follow-up of study participants in clinical trials, giving the RI-CCTC the potential to make a strong impact. We have leveraged our rich network of collaborations with many existing research, education, and public health programs, as well as affiliations with national research networks. These partners share our commitment to children's health and child health research. The Brown University School of Public Health and The Warren Alpert Medical School recently received a large gift to create the Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute (HCHII), which is focused on understanding the prenatal, perinatal and postnatal factors that lead to childhood asthma, obesity and autism.

Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute

The Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute aims to make a positive impact on the lives of children and their families in Rhode Island and beyond.

Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute

The RI-CCTC leverages the resources of the HCHII to create a much broader and more powerful research network to serve children in the state of RI. Investigators in the Schools of Public Health and Medicine have considerable expertise in the study of environmental exposures and their impact on children. Thomas Chun MD, MPH, Principal Investigator, has extensive experience with multi-center networks and their leadership, through his experience with the ECHO ISPCTN and the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network.

Co-PI Abbot Laptook similarly is a leader in both the ISPCTN and the NIH funded Neonatal Research Network. Senior Faculty Development Leader and Co-PI Phyllis Dennery MD, has had consistent NIH funding for her basic/translational research, has participated in many training grants and multicenter clinical trials, and has won mentoring awards. This team ensures the continued success of the RI- CCTC in fulfilling the goals and mission of the ECHO Program. This program continues to provide new opportunities for underserved patient enrollment in ECHO ISPCTN studies by building on our current collaborations between our academic research centers and institutions.

The ISPCTN provides leadership to the ECHO ISPCTN and ECHO Program by developing new clinical trials and serving on network committees and developing and expanding programs to educate and mentor clinicians to become independent investigators.

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