The University of Pittsburgh received a $6.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish a virtual research resource center that is designed to train, support and mentor complementary and integrative health (CIH) researchers from other institutions across the U.S.
The Pitt ENRICH Center
Pitt will create a virtual research resource center called ENRICH—Encouraging Research in Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions—a collaborative hub where CIH researchers from around the country will be trained in skills such as grant development and administrative support, clinical research methods, interdisciplinary research collaboration, and mentorship and career development.
The NIH has identified the need to support the development of researchers trained in CIH practices, such as acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathy and naturopathy. These CIH researchers tend to find themselves isolated from working alongside their peers at larger institutions and often lack key resources to become more competitive in initiating research and applying for grants. Americans routinely seek and pay out of pocket for these types of non-surgical, non-pharmacological health care, but the CIH schools have historically not had the funding or resources to initiate the research required to establish an evidence-based approach to care.
As an established top 10 recipient of NIH research funding, Pitt has deep experience in producing evidence-based research, which is standard practice in health care and is used as the basis for health insurance companies’ decisions about coverage. This initiative aims to help CIH researchers develop clear evidence on the safety and effectiveness of CIH treatments.
“With this grant, Pitt will be seen as one of the national leaders in designing, training, and increasing the quantity and quality of evidence-based complementary and integrative medicine research,” said Michael Schneider, one of the principal investigators of the grant and director of Pitt’s new Doctor of Chiropractic program, the first to offer a CIH degree at a research-intensive university in the U.S.
The NIH has already funded one virtual research resource center, the RAND Corporation in Santa Monica, CA. “By collaborating together, the Pitt ENRICH Center will join RAND to jointly lead the effort to improve the research capacity of CIH institutions,” Schneider said.
A Proven Track Record of Success
The interprofessional team at Pitt that was awarded this grant consists of experienced investigators from the schools of the health sciences with proven track records of working with under-resourced institutions, and who are well equipped to prepare CIH researchers for successful NIH grant applications. The team’s expertise spans clinical trials, chiropractic, physical therapy, biomechanics, biomarkers, gut microbiome and pain neuroscience research, as well as biostatistical analysis and electronic health record data.
“We won this award because of the talent at Pitt and our accomplishments,” said Anthony Delitto, vice provost for Digital Education, who was involved in the development of the NIH grant proposal. “We have a track record of researchers from different disciplines obtaining grants from the NIH, and Dr. Schneider is well known for the number of NIH grants he has received and for executing evidence-based research in chiropractic studies.”
As CIH researchers become more proficient at testing the efficacy of these interventions, Delitto said that this will have an immediate impact on patients as they become better informed on a wide array of interventions so they can make better choices about their health care.
Opportunities at Pitt’s Institue for Clinical Research Education
The Pitt ENRICH center will be led by Schneider and Dr. Thomas Radomski, associate director of Pitt’s Institute for Clinical Research Education (ICRE).
Schneider is one of only a few NIH-funded chiropractic researchers in the country. His long-standing reputation for evidence-based research at the NIH and established relationships with faculty at CIH institutions made Pitt a top contender for this groundbreaking opportunity.
Radomski is a practicing general internist and established health services researcher. Under his leadership, the ICRE has become a national leader in providing comprehensive research training and educational opportunities for aspiring researchers using an array of educational skills in research methods, clinical trial design, medical writing and grant writing.
“The Institute for Clinical Research Education is thrilled to be a key partner in the University of Pittsburgh’s new ENRICH center,” he said. “We look forward to applying our longstanding expertise in clinical research training, education and professional development to support and advance the careers of complementary and integrative health researchers across the nation.”
Additional Pitt Collaboration
Other members of the ENRICH team include a health sciences reference librarian who will assist the researchers with much-needed access to the vast—and typically costly—medical journal databases for systemic research reviews. A biostatistician will provide statistical support so the researchers do not need to contract out for the service, which is critical to the analysis of their studies. The UPMC Center for Integrative Medicine will oversee awarding a total of $500,000 in pilot awards, an important component of this NIH grant. Each year for five years, $100,000 in pilot award money will be distributed to CIH researchers with the goal of designing pilot studies to gather the preliminary data necessary to begin applying for larger NIH grants.
Media contact: HSNews@pitt.edu
