INSTITUTE FOR INTEGRATION OF MEDICINE & SCIENCE: A PARTNERSHIP TO IMPROVE HEALTH

San Antonio, positioned at the gateway to South Texas, is the 7th largest US city and thelargest metropolitan area with a minority-majority population. Our 38-county region comprises an impoverished,rural, and largely Hispanic population with disproportionate rates of diabetes, obesity, and cancer, exacerbatedby lack of health insurance and poor access to care. The region is home to major US military facilities, includingthe world's largest military medical complex. Service members and veterans form populations with special needs.Neither better access to care nor improved care delivery, on their own, can eliminate health disparities. Innovativetranslational research is required to fill knowledge gaps and establish real-world effectiveness to improve health.In 2006, UT Health Science Center-San Antonio established the Institute for Integration of Medicine &Science (IIMS) as the academic home for our growing translational science initiatives, training the translationalscience workforce, formalizing key strategic partnerships, and creating a community of scholars within a learninghealthcare system. We expanded clinical research programs, dramatically increasing access to clinical trials.We developed 6 Practice-Based Research Networks that focus on diverse ambulatory populations. We created6 county-wide Translational Advisory Boards that support engagement through priority setting and matching withacademic investigators. IIMS pioneered IRB process harmonization, resulting in rapid review times andstreamlined pathways to multisite study initiation. We operate a robust pilot grant program, leveraged among ourpartners, with a remarkable return on investment. Our workforce development programs, with matriculantsreflecting our diverse population, have graduated 133 masters degree students, supported 27 successful KL2Scholars and 16 TL1 Scholars, and established de novo a Translational Science PhD program. Our informaticsteam has led electronic health record data warehouse development, fostering matches between IIMSinvestigators and practice-relevant research priorities. IIMS is now poised to deploy our robust portfolio ofprograms across our growing, leveraged, and innovative network of institutional and community partners.In this proposal, we provide clear strategies to support clinical and translational science across partnerorganizations, catalyze research team success, and implement programs that produce creative, collaborative,and culturally diverse translational scientists. IIMS seeks exceptionalism in translating scientific discoveriesacross the T1 to T4 spectrum into improved health care outcomes. Our over-arching Specific Aims are: 1. Accelerate clinical and translational research innovation and team science along the entire T1 to T4 research spectrum by providing an academic home integrated with our strategic partner institutions 2. Expand, diversify, and enhance the workforce of interdisciplinary translational biomedical scientists 3. Implement effective methods to continuously evaluate and optimize services, increase efficiencies, improve processes, endorse common metrics, and reduce costs across all IIMS programsProject Summary/Abstract Page 237Contact PD/PI: Clark, Robert A.