Project Summary/Abstract
Objective: The Supervising Hub (SH) at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), in collaboration with 5
Spokes of our NINDS-funded Mid-America CTSA Consortium (MACC) SIREN Network, (Parkland Memorial
Hospital (PMH) at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Methodist Hospital Spoke (MH),
Indiana University, and 3 Chicago Spokes participating in one or more ED SIREN trials (Northwestern
Memorial Hospital Spoke [NMH], University of Chicago Medical Center Spoke [UCMC], and the University of
Illinois Hospital Spoke [UIH]) are submitting this application in response to RFA-NS-19-036 for consideration of
becoming a Specialized Clinical Center (SCC) for the HEAL Initiative: Early Phase Pain Investigation Clinical
Network (EPPIC-Net), hereafter known as MACC/EPPIC-Net. We have capitalized on our established MACC
Hub and Spoke clinical research infrastructure and proven patient accrual/clinical trials performance while
expanding access to patients with pain conditions and assembling an accomplished group of investigators with
pain expertise to maximally support achievement of EPPIC-Net research goals. Methods: MACC/EPPIC-Net
has been strategically assembled to efficiently and maximally support EPPIC-Net patient accrual. With a
catchment of 9,931,00 people, long-standing multi-disciplinary collaboration, and expansion site capacity,
MACC has the infrastructure to significantly contribute to patient accrual and the inherent flexibility to support
any EPPIC-Net study. MACC/EPPIC-Net pain resources include 28 pain clinics, 10 accomplished pain
researchers specializing in emergency medicine, toxicology, hematology, and oncology, board certified in pain
medicine, transfusion medicine, addiction medicine, and toxicology, and access to 67,077 patients with low
back pain/year and a total of 315,961 patients/year with painful conditions. We capitalize on standing
infrastructure of 37 research personnel, with 24/7 coverage in place or planned at all sites. All sites have
agreed to and routinely use Master Contract Agreements as well as central institutional review board review for
trials. The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Collaborative Council, consisting of the local
CTSA PI at each MACC/EPPIC-Net site, will support EPPIC-Net trials. Specific Aims. MACC/EPPIC-Net aims
to: 1) Leverage our infrastructure, collaboration and experience to achieve rapid and exemplary execution of
Phase 2 clinical trials in patients with well-defined pain conditions to test novel drugs, biologics and devices,
meeting or exceeding the recruitment goals and study milestones for EPPIC-Net, 2) Engage a wide spectrum
of investigators with expertise in anesthesia, emergency medicine, neurology, rheumatology, obstetrics/
gynecology, oncology, orthopedics, gastroenterology and other subspecialties, 3) Capitalize on the scientific
expertise of MACC/EPPIC-Net to develop novel, Phase 2 clinical protocols, stimulate independent EPPIC-Net
grant applications, and significantly contribute to EPPIC-Net governance committees, and 4) Utilize national
leadership positions of MACC/EPPIC-Net investigators to promote dissemination of EPPIC-Net study findings.