I am delighted to share this year’s DCRI annual report, an especially meaningful edition for me as I complete more than a year as interim executive director. The stories and studies here reflect fully how the DCRI is advancing clinical research through groundbreaking studies led by exceptional teams of faculty and operational staff. Under the leadership of our research teams, we continue to introduce new methods and pursue innovative approaches in clinical research for the most pressing issues in patient care.
The past year has brought challenges and change, and also a deeply renewed commitment to our mission throughout the DCRI and across the Duke system. We completed a comprehensive strategic planning effort and launched transformation initiatives aimed at revitalizing our core offerings and advancing new ways of conducting clinical research. The DCRI is an undisputed leader in the areas of using pragmatic approaches and real-world data to improve clinical trial design—the future of clinical research. Our overarching goal is to ensure the DCRI remains distinct in its academic and operational expertise and its approaches—for the benefit of our sponsors, partners, collaborators, and the patients we serve. As expected, we opened a search for a new executive director. In the coming year, I am excited to be able to hand the reins of an invigorated and future-focused organization to a new leader.
I am honored to have led the DCRI. The progress we have made is due to so many—a sincere commitment to improvement from the DCRI operational teams and support from the Duke School of Medicine and my colleagues, both at the DCRI and the Department of Population Health Sciences.
I look forward to an exciting year ahead and many years of growth and contribution as the DCRI continues to achieve its mission to improve the care of patients around the world through innovative clinical research.
Lesley H. Curtis, PhD
Chair and Professor
Department of Population Health Sciences
Interim Executive Director, Duke Clinical Research Institute
Duke University School of Medicine
This article originally appeared in the DCRI’s 2018-2019 Annual Report. View more articles from this publication.