PCORI grant supports La. clinical data research network

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) awarded $6.9 million to Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI), Pennington Biomedical Research Center and Tulane University to develop the Louisiana Clinical Data Research Network (LACDRN).

The LACDRN is one of 29 networks to become a part of PCORnet, a national patient-centered research network. PCORI awarded $93.5 million to these networks last month in its efforts to improve efficiencies in health data research.

During the next 18 months, the LACDRN team will advance the capacity to conduct efficient clinical research on obesity and diabetes, along with multiple associated comorbidities, sickle cell disease and some rare cancers, according to an announcement.

“Not only does the LACDRN promise to bring opportunities for funding clinical research in our state, it also opens numerous opportunities for economic development, entrepreneurship and job creation in this region and puts Louisiana and New Orleans on the map of major players in biomedical and translational medical research,” said Anjum Khurshid, MD, principal investigator and director of health systems at LPHI, in a statement.

Since 2012, PCORI has awarded a total of $464.4 million to comparative effectiveness research projects. More information about PCORI funding is here.