The Summit was organized into three main topics:
- Overview of Intermountain’s new research & operational plans
- Implementing the research vision
- Investigator-initiated research
Presenters included:
Brent James, MD, MStat, Chief Quality Officer and Vice President of Research at Intermountain Healthcare, discussed the link between research and delivering high-value healthcare.
Lucy Savitz, PhD, MBA, Intermountain’s Assistant Vice President of Delivery System Science, spoke about population health, which focuses on effective health promotion, prevention and self-management to improve health and wellness.
Much of the afternoon was spent highlighting current studies at Intermountain related to Precision Medicine, women and newborns, intensive care, low back pain, cardiovascular care, and integrating mental health and primary care.
Intermountain currently has over 1,500 active research studies in over 20 clinical areas. The core of Intermountain research takes place within our 10 clinical programs: Behavioral Health, Cardiovascular, Intensive Medicine, Musculoskeletal, Neurosciences, Oncology, Pediatrics, Primary Care, Surgical Services, and Women & Newborns.
Our Cardiovascular clinical program at the Intermountain Heart Institute, is the flagship facility for the Intermountain Healthcare system and has national reputation for conducting high-quality clinical trials in cardiology and heart research. Our many discoveries have resulted in heart care that is more innovative, safe, and effective.
For example, the atrial fibrillation and the link to dementia study, led by T. Jared Bunch, MD, a heart-rhythm specialist from Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute found that new blood thinners for treating atrial fibrillation in patients could decrease the patients’ risk of dementia and stroke. “The combined disease state is associated with significantly higher risk of mortality,” said Dr. Bunch. This new anticoagulation strategy can influence risk of dementia development in AFib patients.
To find out more about Intermountain Healthcare Research and the advancement of medical knowledge in many clinical areas visit intermountainresearch.org