A unique component of the CTSI Pilot Studies program is the biennial Creative Scientist Workshop, which advances innovation and creativity in clinical and translational science using an approach that is grounded in the science of creativity and collaboration. The workshop targets critical barriers to translation, engages faculty and scholars throughout the CTSA consortium, and disseminates post-workshop results.
The University at Buffalo Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) South Carolina Clinical & Translational Research (SCTR) Institute collaborated to present a one-day virtual workshop on remote trials on November 9, 2021.
The biennial Creative Scientist Workshops are not standard conferences. The facilitated workshop format employs a creative problem-solving approach now being used by NSF, NIH and NCATS to catalyze scientific innovation. The workshop will include a series of keynote presentations (and Q&A) in the morning followed by small-group, interactive sessions in which content from earlier in the day will be applied to designing and reimagining example trials.
The keynotes and Q&A sessions are open to all registrants. However, because the afternoon sessions will be highly interactive, only a limited number attend the afternoon sessions. Registration materials will be reviewed by the planning committee in late October to select participants for the small-group interactive sessions (based on responses to questions in the registration form and availability to participate in the entire workshop). We particularly encourage registration by active researchers/scholars/administrators affiliated with CTSA institutions and collaborating partners, representatives of funding agencies, and industry experts.
Workshop participants learn state-of-the-art frameworks and approaches, as well as strengths, opportunities, and challenges for remote trial methods, via a series of keynote addresses by speakers from throughout the CTSA network and beyond. In addition, participants “return home” from the virtual event better equipped to develop innovative, collaborative projects and proposals to advance translational science and best practices in the area of remote trial methods.
During the afternoon, participants collaborate with others in small-group, interactive sessions focused on designing and reimagining example trials. The sessions will highlight evidence-base approaches, reveal critical barriers and needs, and provide attendees with opportunities to propose creative solutions for the next generation of observational and clinical trials.
| Time | Title and Presenter | Link to Slides |
| 10:00 AM EST | Welcome Andy Burnett |
| 10:10 AM EST | Remote Clinical Trials: Theory Meets Real World (Slides) Daniel Ford, MD, MPH Director, Johns Hopkins Institute for Clinical and Translational Research David M Levine Professor of Medicine Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University |
| 10:30 AM EST | The Future of Clinical Trials: How Will New Technologies Affect the Lives of Participants? (Slides) Andy Coravos Co-Founder and CEO HumanFirst |
| 10:50 AM EST | A Translational Science Perspective on Remote Trial Methods (Slides) Larry Hawk, PhD Director, UB CTSI Creative Scientist Workshops 20th Century Club Professor, Department of Psychology College of Arts and Sciences, University at Buffalo |
| 11:10 AM EST | Q&A |
| 11:25 AM EST | Break |
| 11:40 AM EST | How Do I Know That My Participant Is Who They Say They Are? Identifying and Preventing Fraud in Remote Trials (Slides) Jennifer Dahne, PhD Co-Director, 2021 Creative Scientist Workshop Co-Director, MUSC Remote and Virtual Clinical Trials Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences College of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina |
| 12:00 PM EST | Overcoming the Hope-Evidence Gaps in Behavioral Health Research (Slides) Eric Hekler, PhD Director, Center for Wireless and Population Health Systems Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine and Public Health University of California San Diego |
| 12:30 PM EST | Inclusive Participation in Remote Trials (Slides) Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, MD Director, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities National Institutes of Health |
| 1:00 PM EST | Q&A |
| 1:15 PM EST | Lunch |
| 1:45 PM EST | Small-Group Trial Design - Setup |
| 1:55 PM EST | Small-Group Trial Design - Session 1 |
| 2:40 PM EST | Shared Learnings with Colleagues |
| 3:10 PM EST | Break |
| 3:30 PM EST | Small-Group Trial Design - Session 2 |
| 4:15 PM EST | Shared Learnings with Colleagues |
| 4:45 PM EST | Feedback Survey |
| 4:55 PM EST | Wrap Up |
| 5:00 PM EST | Adjourn |