Group Health wins 2 PCORI awards for patient-centered research

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Board of Governors has selected Group Health Research Institute for two awards in its most recent cycle of funding:

Karen Wernli, PhD, an assistant investigator at Group Health Research Institute, was awarded a three-year contract for $1.9 million to find out how well breast MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) works compared to mammography for regularly checking for new signs of breast cancer in women who have had the disease before. "Many patients and doctors are using MRI for 'surveillance,' and we do not know whether it is more effective than mammography and in which women," Dr. Wernli said. The project will also develop patient decision aids to help women and their doctors choose the surveillance method that is right for them.

Group Health has also been chosen to provide assistance to a new PCORI-funded national data network representative of patients from across the country. Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute will lead the Coordinating Center for this National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network. "It is designed to enhance the nation's ability to conduct patient-centered comparative effectiveness research efficiently and learn from the health care experiences of millions of Americans, including Group Health patients," said Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, a senior investigator at Group Health Research Institute who will serve as Group Health's principal investigator for the project. Group Health's subcontract is for $424,000 over a two-year period.

Group Health Research Institute received two awards from PCORI in 2012 for other projects. PCORI funds comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER) designed to answer questions most important to patients and those who care for them. To select projects for funding, PCORI relies on a competitive review process in which scientists, patients, caregivers, and other stakeholders help to evaluate proposals on the basis of scientific merit, how well they engage patients and other stakeholders, their methodological rigor, and how well they fit within PCORI's national research priorities. The new awards were approved pending completion of a business and programmatic review by PCORI staff and issuance of a formal award contract.

Provided by Group Health Research Institute