Sutter Institute for Medical Research 2008 Annual Report

Letter from the Medical and Operations Directors
We’re delighted that this year’s annual report treats
readers to the stories of four volunteers who have
taken part in clinical trials through SIMR. Stories like
these fuel the passion of our dedicated investigators
and staff, and it’s that passion that drives SIMR
forward. Our volunteers’ journeys illustrate the value
of providing research in a community hospital setting
in a way nothing else could, so we thank Rael, Sharon,
Kenneth and Jared’s families for agreeing to share their
experiences.
We also want to thank our investigators who spend long
hours caring for patients, yet willingly increase their
load by making medical research an important priority.
As clinical practitioners, our investigators are not
motivated by demands to publish or perish. They get
involved in research for the same reason they entered
the medical profession — to help people live longer,
healthier lives. While SIMR staff does its utmost to
remove the administrative work from the investigators,
adding research to already busy lives requires a special
dedication that we and their patients applaud.
SIMR researchers presented at several national and
international conferences.
Even closer to home, our own SIMR research
coordinators Tammy Donnel, Mary Hyland and Dorothy
Wullenwaber became poster presenters at the 17th
Annual Society of Clinical Research Associates. Their
poster entitled “Implementation of Patient Recruitment
Services Department in a Community Hospital Clinical
Research Institute” was met with great interest. Patient
recruitment is often the most difficult part of creating a
successful clinical trial, so many attendees were anxious
to find out more about SIMR’s successful recruitment
system.
With all systems running well, an exceptional staff and
enthusiastic investigators, we have all the ingredients
assembled to grow and strengthen the bond between
research and clinical care.
Sincerely,
In addition to investigators involved in clinical trials,
SIMR supports a special group of researchers who take
a ground-up approach by designing and implementing
research projects through SIMR’s Research Committee,
led by Harvey Wolkov, M.D., with financial support
from the Sutter Medical Center Foundation (SMCF).
Over the years, the Research Committee and SMCF
have enabled dozens of investigator-initiated studies
to come to fruition, with many presenting findings
through conference posters and presentations, as
well as peer-reviewed publications. This year alone,
Andrew Hudnut, M.D.
Medical Director
Linda D. Marks, MPA, CCRP
Director, SIMR Operations
John Mesic, M.D., CMO of
Sutter Health Sacramento
Sierra Region; Linda
Marks, Director of SIMR
Operations; Andrew
Hudnut, M.D., SIMR
Medical Director