APRIL 2, 2007 | Moving medical discoveries from the laboratory to use with patients is an often complex journey. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) now has a degree program focused on the part of that roadmap concerning the clinical research process, where patients become involved in testing new treatments.

The Clinical and Translational Sciences degree track in the UAMS Graduate School is intended to prepare researchers for conducting clinical studies, said William Wessinger, Ph.D., director of the program and an associate professor in the UAMS Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology. The program, offering both master’s and doctoral degrees, addresses the growing need for scientists versed in the proper techniques and requirements for productive research.

“Nationwide, we have seen fewer enter the clinical research field,” Wessinger said. “There aren’t enough physician/scientists to handle the workload in clinical research.

“So we have developed a program at UAMS to close that gap between biomedical research in the laboratory and application of that research in clinical studies.”

Wessinger said the degree track is designed to build a strong foundation in clinical and translational sciences – where laboratory work is “translated” to potential medical treatments through clinical study. Coursework includes biostatistics, epidemiology, data management and analysis, clinical research methodology, clinical trials design, drug development, responsible conduct of research, grant writing and scientific communications.

Each element in the program provides the skills for conducting research with human subjects.

The program also bolsters the research infrastructure at UAMS, Wessinger said, by putting in place the resources for developing new clinical researchers.

For more information about the program, contact Kristen Sterba, Ph.D., assistant dean for graduate student recruiting and retention in the UAMS Graduate School, at (501) 526-7396, or by e-mail at kmsterba@uams.edu.

 Links on this Page

Clinical and Transitional Sciences Program

http://www.uams.edu/IBS/tracks/CTS.asp

UAMS Graduate School:
http://www.uams.edu/gradschool/

William D. Wessinger, Ph.D., bio sketch:
http://uams.edu/pharmtox/faculty/bio.asp?id=37