In August, 2003, Dr. Elliott Bennett-Guerrero became Director of Perioperative Clinical Research at the DCRI. His research focuses on systemic inflammation during surgery and its role in later complications. He also studies the body's response to endotoxins released into the bloodstream during and just after surgery, which can cause sepsis and organ dysfunction. Dr. Bennett-Guerrero came to the DCRI from the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, where he was director of the cardiac anesthesiology division. Dr. Bennett-Guerrero is board-certified in critical care medicine, perioperative echocardiography, and anesthesiology. He also was elected to the Association of University Anesthesiologists.

Dr. Corey joined the Duke University faculty in 1980 and became involved in clinical research at the DCRI in 2001 after 18 years as program director of the Internal Medicine Residency Training Program. He has over 30 years of experience in infectious disease research and during that time helped create the Staphylococcal aureus bacteremia group (SABG) and the International Collaboration on Endocarditis (ICE). Dr Corey created and now directs the Hubert-Yeargan Center for Global Health at Duke University Medical Center. Dr. Corey, a professor of medicine and infectious diseases in the Duke University Medical Center, was recently named the Gary Hock Professor of Global Health.

Dr. Corey's clinical trial research focuses on staphylococcus aureus infections including skin and soft tissue infections, hospital-acquired pneumonia, bacteremia and infectious endocarditis. He has also studied pericarditis and tropical diseases such as leishman, malaria, and snake bites. Dr Corey has authored over 130 peer-reviewed publications and several book chapters.

Dr. Csaky joined the DCRI in 2007 where he serves as faculty leader for multicenter clinical ophthalmology research projects at the DCRI. He is an associate professor in the department of ophthalmology at Duke. Prior to joining Duke, Csaky was a tenured senior investigator at the National Eye Institute where he directed the Laboratory of Retinal Diseases and Therapeutics. Dr. Csaky received his combined MD/PhD degree from the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky. Following his residency in internal medicine at Duke University Medical Center, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and worked with Professor Meyer-Schwickerath in Essen, Germany. He completed his ophthalmology residency at Washington University in St. Louis and a retina fellowship at the Wilmer Eye Institute. This was followed by a 3-year post-doctoral fellowship at the National Cancer Institute.

Dr. Csaky’s main area of both laboratory and clinical research is related to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). He was the study chair for the Phase II Celebrex with Photodynamic (Visudyne) Therapy Trial (C-PDT) and the Phase II Verteporfin and Triamcinolone Acetonide (VERTACL-1) and Bevacizumab (VERTACL-2) Trials. In addition, Dr. Csaky has conducted numerous phase I trials in age-related macular degeneration.

In 1994, Dr. DeLong joined the DCRI's Outcomes Research and Assessment Group. She is a leader in the field of outcomes and quality-of-care research, bringing more than 20 years of biostatistical, clinical research, and bioinformatics experience to the DCRI. That expertise has been tapped in both the academic and private sectors, including stints as chief of Duke's Department of Anesthesiology biostatistics and outcomes division and the Director of Biostatistics for a leading contract research organization. She was recently named as the Interim Chair of the Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics. Dr. DeLong received her PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is currently an associate professor of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics at Duke University.

Dr. Dolor came to the DCRI in 1996 after receiving her medical training at Duke University School of Medicine, including residency and a fellowship in General Internal Medicine. Dr. Dolor is the director of the Primary Care Research Consortium (PCRC), a network of primary-care practices in the Duke University Health System and outlying communities. She has helped lead a number of medical, surgical, and outcomes studies, including the CAFFS trial, which determined the outcomes of treating recurrent sinus infections with nasal steroids. The PCRC has participated in over 40 industry- and investigator-initiated studies on hypertension, hyperlipidemia, asthma, otitis, obesity, diabetes, depression, anticoagulation, and vaccines.

Dr. Dolor is an assistant professor in the internal medicine division and an associate in the Department of Surgery at Duke University Medical Center. Her research interests are primary care clinical and outcomes research.

Ms. Donohue was most recently the Director of Clinical Operations, and was responsible for project leadership, site management and clinical monitoring, and regulatory services. In her new role as COO for the DCRI, she is responsible for leading the Clinical Operations, Clinical Data Integration, and Statistical Operations teams at the DCRI.

She joined the DCRI in 1996, and became head of Project Leadership in 1999. Prior to her work with the DCRI, Ms. Donohue held diverse positions in healthcare and clinical research. After more than 14 years as a nurse, she worked as a clinical research associate and regulatory compliance auditor for leading CROs, as well as a consultant in risk management and medical malpractice. During her time at the DCRI, she has helped manage some of the best-known cardiology trials of recent years, including ASSENT II and A2Z. Ms. Donohue holds a nursing degree from Sinai Hospital School of Nursing, as well as a law degree from North Carolina Central University.

Dr. Douglas. is the Ursula Geller Professorship for Research in Cardiovascular Diseases at Duke University, having previously served on the faculties of the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, and the University of Wisconsin. Douglas has served as CV Chief at two premier universities (Duke, Wisconsin) and as a past president of the American College of Cardiology and of the American Society of Echocardiography.

Douglas is internationally known for her scientific work in noninvasive imaging, exercise physiology, and heart disease in women. Her contributions in imaging span an enormous range, from technological innovation to health care delivery, including shaping a national program for quality improvement in imaging. Dr Douglas also had a significant role in creating the field of heart disease in women as an early and persuasive champion of its distinctive importance and relevance.

Ms. Erickson joined the DCRI in September 2007 as the director of Clinical Operations. In this role, she will help lead the DCRI in clinical operational excellence. She most recently worked as the senior vice-president for M2S, where she was responsible for the strategy, establishment and development of the new Clinical Trials Services business division. She brings more than 20 years experience in sales and marketing, business development, operations, project management and executive management.

She is the author of 15 publications in pharmaceutical project management and general project management.

Ms. Fendt joined the DCRI in 2007 as the director of Quality Assurance and Regulatory Compliance. In this role, she is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the DCRI’s quality assurance and regulatory compliance systems. She is also responsible for developing standards and processes for DCRI’s audit functions and much more. She brings almost 30 years experience of industry experience. She has worked as a consultant for pharmaceutical and biotech companies, as well as for NIAID and NIH. She is the chairman and scientific director of the Data Quality Research Institute and was a founding director of the Clinical Data Interchange Consortium (CDISC).

Ms. Fendt has taught a graduate course at the Duke University School of Nursing and led a tutorial presented at the Annual DIA Clinical Data Management meeting. She is a member of the Executive Committee for the Society of Clinical Data Management; the HL/7 Pediatric Special Working Group; the Good Clinical Data Management Practices Committee with the Society of Clinical Data Management and is also a member of the Drug Information Association. She has co-authored more than 30 peer-review publications.

Ms. Hodgson has been Director of Communications at the DCRI since 1992. Before joining the DCRI, she served the same role for the North Carolina Medical Society and was managing editor of the North Carolina Medical Journal. Her 30 years of medical communications experience also includes her current role as executive editor of the American Heart Journal.

Dr. Krucoff came to the DCRI in 1988 from Georgetown University. In addition to founding the DCRI's eECG Core Lab and directing its interventional device trials, he is an associate professor of medicine at Duke Medical Center and directs the Cardiovascular Laboratory at the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He sits on the Board of Directors of the Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences in Puttaparthi, India; is senior editor of the Journal of Alternative & Complementary Medicine; and is past editor-in-chief of Alternative Therapies in Health & Medicine. He also is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and the American College of Chest Physicians, and sits on the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Insitute's Clinical Trials Review Committee and the FDA's Circulatory Devices Advisory Panel.

Dr. Krucoff's research and clinical interests include acute coronary syndromes, asymptomatic myocardial ischemia, cardiac devices, eECG technologies, and cardiovascular applications of spiritual and complementary therapies.

Kerry Lee has been faculty leader of clinical trial biostatistics for the DCRI since 1985. He has taught biostatistics for 20 years, including his present dual positions at both Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is an associate professor of biostatistics and bioinformatics at Duke and adjunct associate professor of biostatistics at UNC. Dr. Lee served on the editorial board for both the American Heart Association’s Circulation and the American Heart Journal. He also has chaired the American Statistical Association’s Biometrics Section and sat on the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Clinical Trials Review Committee.

Dr. Lee is the coauthor of dozens of peer-reviewed articles, and conducted the statistical analyses of some of the most important cardiology clinical trials of the past several years, including the GUSTO studies, MUSTT, and MOST.

Dr. Li joined the DCRI to lead its Pediatrics Research program in 2001. After earning her medical degree from Duke University, she also completed her pediatric cardiology and clinical research fellowships at Duke and joined the faculty. She is currently the chief of Cardiovascular Research in the Department of Pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center and an associate professor of pediatrics. Dr. Li is the author of dozens of peer-reviewed publications on pediatric cardiovascular disease, pediatric infectious disease, and the use of echocardiography in pediatric patients.

Dr. Li’s research and clinical interests are pediatric cardiology, echocardiography, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia.

Dr. Lyles joined the DCRI in 1999, and is a distinguished physician-investigator with more than 20 years of experience in geriatrics. In addition to his role leading all geriatrics research at the DCRI, he is Clinical Director of the Geriatric Research, Education and Clinic Center of the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Dr. Lyles also directs the VA Medical Center’s Geriatric Fellowship program and serves as a senior fellow of the Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development at Duke University. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American Geriatrics Society. Dr. Lyles sits on the editorial board for the Society’s journal, as well as the Journal of Geriatric Pharmacotherapy. He is currently a professor of medicine at Duke University.

Dr. Lyles’ clinical and research interests include metabolic bone disease (osteoporosis, Paget’s disease, osteomalacia), tumoral calcinosis, parathyroid disease, and other diseases of bone and mineral metabolism.

Dr. Mahaffey joined the DCRI in 1996 after completing his cardiology fellowship at Duke and is currently an associate professor of medicine. His research focuses on anticoagulation in acute coronary syndromes, myocardial protection, and clinical trial methods. He has served as principal investigator for several significant cardiology trials in recent years, including CARDINAL, AMISTAD and ATBAT. Under Dr. Mahaffey’s leadership, the DCRI’s CEC group has become a nationally recognized center and has performed event adjudication for more than 25 large pivotal clinical trials in multiple therapeutic areas.

Dr. Mahaffey is on the editorial board of Current Controlled Trials in Cardiovascular Medicine. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and a member of the Clinical Cardiology council of the American Heart Association. Dr. Mahaffey also is a vice-chair of the Duke University Medical Center Institutional Review Board (IRB).

Dr. John March is a professor of psychiatry and psychology at Duke University Medical Center, and the director of Neurosciences Medicine at the Duke Clinical Research Institute. Formerly chief of the division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Duke, Dr. March has extensive experience developing and testing the efficacy and effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral and pharmacological treatments for pediatric and adult mental illnesses.

Dr. March holds a career development award from the NIMH devoted to clinical trials methods and is a NARSAD Distinguished Senior Investigator. He is principal or co-principal investigator on several NIMH funded treatment outcome studies as well as an NIMH-funded Center devoted to constructing a practical clinical trials network in pediatric psychiatry, the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Trials Network (CAPTN, www.captn.org).

Dr. March is deputy editor of Biological Psychiatry and is a member of the NIMH Advisory Mental Health Council, ACNP and CINP, and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Dr. Mark, a professor of medicine and clinical cardiologist, directs the Outcomes Research Group, a 70-member multidisciplinary team of investigators and researchers that performs groundbreaking outcomes research studies and clinical trials. These include economic and quality of life substudies in landmark cardiovascular clinical trials such as the Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure Trial (SCD-HeFT), the Occluded Artery Trial (OAT), and the Surgical Treatment of Ischemic Heart Failure (STICH) trial. Dr. Mark is codirector of the cardiac care unit at Duke University Medical Center, vice chair of the cardiology division at Duke University Medical Center, and director of an NRSA training grant for clinical researchers. He is also Editor of the American Heart Journal.

Dr. Mark is a renowned expert on outcomes, quality-of-life, and health economics research who has authored over 250 peer-reviewed publications and is creator of the Duke Treadmill Score.
In 2009, he received the Distinguished Scientist Award from the American College of Cardiology.

Dr. McHutchison, a professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center, joined the DCRI in 2002 as the director of the DCRI’s Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research division. Dr. McHutchison is a distinguished GI and liver disease researcher, having conducted over 100 clinical studies as a principal investigator, and authored more than 150 papers on hepatitis and related topics in peer-reviewed journals. He previously served as an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Southern California and Medical Director for Liver Transplantation at Scripps Clinic after leaving his native Australia. He sits on many advisory committees where he provides independent and academic reviews of clinical studies and development plans. He also participates on a variety of committees and editorial boards, including those of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the University of Melbourne Medical School, the Medical Research Council of the United Kingdom, and the journals Hepatology, Hepatology Reviews, Nature Gastroenterology, and the Journal of Hepatology (where he also serves as an associate editor). He currently chairs the American Association of the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) clinical research committee and is a member of the AASLD nominating committee.

Dr. McHutchison’s clinical and research interests relate to chronic viral hepatitis B and C, ascites, noninvasive fibrosis markers, steatosis, and the immunopathogenesis of these diseases.

Mr. Meeks joined the DCRI in November 2007 as the director of Information Technology. He provides IT leadership for the DCRI and the DTMI and is responsible for infrastructure and application development for their domestic and international sites. He is also responsible for collaborating with Duke Research entities to improve patient care through advanced technologies and for providing the strategic design and technical infrastructure for the organization. He brings more than 20 years of industry experience, both domestically and internationally. He has worked for Fortune 10 companies as well as a number of startups, and has extensive experience in startup and high growth environments.

Dr. Myers joined the DCRI in 1999 and currently is the Chief of the Division of Clinical and Epidemiological Research for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Senior Fellow at the Center for Clinical Health Policy Research, and Program Director of the NIH-funded Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) faculty development program. Dr. Myers is an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Duke and an adjunct associate professor of epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He serves in several capacities with the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), including chair of the Data and Safety Monitoring Board of the Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Network, principal investigator of the Data Coordinating Center for the Reproductive Medicine Network, and a member of the Reproduction, Andrology, and Gynecology Study Section.

His primary research interests are in the application of clinical epidemiological methods, including decision analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, and other mathematical modeling techniques, to women’s health research.

Ms. Newark joined the DCRI as a clinical trials coordinator in 1995. She became a senior site manager on several large, international cardiology trials, such as GUSTO III, and then a project leader on GUSTO IV and HERO II. In 2001, she was named Operations Manager of the Global Perioperative Research Organization (GPRO), a collaboration between the International Anesthesia Research Society and the DCRI. Before Ms. Newark turned to research, she had a distinguished 14-year career as a nurse, including positions in surgical intensive care and the critical care transport “Life Flight” team at Duke University Medical Center.

Dr. Newman leads the Global Perioperative Research Organization (GPRO), a collaboration between the International Anesthesia Research Society and the DCRI. Dr. Newman joined the DCRI in 1999 and has led groundbreaking trials of the effects of heart bypass surgery on cognitive function and long-term outcomes. Dr. Newman is a former Chief of Cardiothoracic Anesthesia and the current Chair of the Anesthesiology Department of Duke University Medical Center. He is the author of over 100 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Newman is a member of the American Heart Association’s National Research Committee and chairs the Association’s Mid-Atlantic Research Committee.

Dr. Newman’s research and clinical interests are general anesthesiology, perioperative neuroprotection, and perioperative clinical research.

Ms. O’Berry manages effort, faculty research, and general research funds, organizing and overseeing a variety of programs and processes to encourage and enhance the academic clinical research development of DCRI faculty members and provide guidance to ensure their understanding of their financial arrangements as clinical researchers. O’Berry is also responsible for managing the design and maintenance of DCRI programs to support financial and tracking systems for DCRI faculty and fellows. She is the liaison with the School of Medicine department and division administrators, allowing her to manage, investigate, and resolve the complex financial concerns associated with our DCRI faculty and fellows.

Dr. Elise Olsen has been affiliated with the DCRI since 2004. Dr. Olsen is a professor of medicine in the dermatology division at Duke. She is the immediate past President of the North American Hair Research Society, editor of the internationally renowned textbook Hair Disorders: Diagnosis and Treatment and Director of the Duke Hair Disorders Clinic and Research Center. Dr. Olsen is the current President of the International Society for Cutaneous Lymphomas and Director of the Duke CTCL Treatment and Research Center. She has served as President of the NC Medical Society Dermatology section and is currently on the Board of the National Alopecia Areata Foundation and the Leaders Society of the Dermatology Foundation and is Chair of the Steering Committee of the Southeastern Consortium for Dermatology.

Dr. Olsen’s research interests include hair disorders, particularly alopecia in women, cutaneous lymphoproliferative disorders including cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, and endpoints/response criteria for clinical trials in dermatologic conditions. She has been PI in over 130 clinical trials, including Phase I-IV studies that were sponsored by industry or the FDA.

Associate Director, DCRI
Director, CV Outcomes Research & Quality; Codirector, Cardiovascular Research

Dr. Peterson is currently the Co-Director of CV Research and the Director of CV Outcomes Research and Quality as well as the Director of the Center for CV Cellular Therapeutics at the Duke Clinical Research Institute. He is also an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Cardiology and the Associate Vice Chair for Quality at Duke University Medical Center. His formal research training includes an MPH from Harvard University with special emphasis in biostatistics, health economics, and decision analysis. Dr. Peterson has received a Paul Beeson Faculty Scholar Research Award in geriatric cardiology and is a senior fellow in the Duke Center for Aging Research. He has a strong record of multiple past and current NIH funding, and has authored numerous peer-review publications and review articles.

Dr. Peterson is the principal investigator for an NIA R01 - Safer Antithrombotic Therapy for Elderly ACS, the Data Coordinating Centers for the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) National Cardiac Surgery Database, American College of Cardiology’s National Cardiac Database (ACC-NCDR), the American Heart Association’s Get With the Guidelines Database (AHA GWTG), and CRUSADE National Quality Improvement Initiative.

Ms. Reid became Director of Business Development at the DCRI in 2003, after more than a decade of experience in clinical research. In her new role as CBO, she will have overall responsibility for Business Development, Strategic Development, and Contracts Management.

Before coming to Durham, she was Senior Director of Global Business Management for Ingenix Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Her extensive experience also includes contract and program management for pharmaceutical and contract research businesses.

Dr. Schulman established the Center for Clinical and Genetic Economics within the DCRI in 1999. As the head of this innovative group, he has led groundbreaking quality-of-life and outcomes research. In addition to his role at the DCRI, Dr. Schulman holds a joint appointment at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business and serves as the Director of the School’s Health Sector Management Program. He is also Vice-Chairperson for Business Affairs for the Department of Medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Schulman is a professor of business administration at Fuqua and a professor of medicine in the Duke University School of Medicine.

Dr. Schulman is the author of more than 130 peer-reviewed papers and a recipient of the Alice S. Hersh Young Investigators Award from the Association for Health Services Research.

Ms. Sigmon joined the DCRI as a statistician in 1987, and became Director of Biostatistical Operations in 1999. She has been part of the Duke family since matriculating here as an undergraduate and then earning her Master of Arts degree in zoology in 1987. Ms. Sigmon participated in the design and statistical analysis of several significant cardiovascular trials, including EPIC, IMPACT-II, and BRAVO. She has been the primary statistician in 10 crucial trials of platelet glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors, as well as several acute myocardial infarction studies of thrombolytic agents and two studies of experimental medical devices.

Ms. Sigmon is the coauthor of nearly 50 peer-reviewed papers and is a magna cum laude graduate of Duke University.

Mr. Sledge joined the DCRI in 2006 as Chief Financial Officer after 20 years of experience in financial management. He received his BS degree in accounting in 1987 and began his career as an accountant with Ernst & Young. He has held leadership positions in two leading CROs and also served as CFO of Strategic Technologies. Most recently, he served as Managing Partner of PivotBridge Partners, LLC, a telecommunications sales and consulting firm which he co-founded.

Mr. Smithwick joined the DCRI in 2008 as Chief Human Resources Officer bringing with him 28 years of experience in clinical research and healthcare services, most recently as Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Diamond Healthcare Corporation in Richmond, VA. David also has served as the Chief Operating Officer for Chesapeake Research Review, Inc., after leading the restructuring efforts of the organization’s human resources to meet the company’s global clinical research objectives.

Smithwick earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Lynchburg College. In addition, he received his Masters in Industrial Psychology and Human Resource Management from Long Island University.

Dr. John Sundy joined the DCRI in 1997, and became Director of Rheumatology Research in 2004, where he serves as faculty leader for multicenter clinical rheumatology research projects at the DCRI. Dr. Sundy is an assistant professor of medicine in the rheumatology division at Duke, and he co-directs the Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS) Center of Excellence at Duke University Medical Center. In addition, he directs the training program for the Rheumatology Fellowship Program at Duke. He chairs the Immunomodulation Committee of the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology, and also serves as the deputy director of the American Lung Association Asthma Clinical Research Center at Duke.

Dr. Sundy has been the principal or co-investigator for numerous asthma, allergy, and rheumatic disease clinical trials, including Phase I-IV studies that were sponsored by industry or the FDA. His research interests include genetic-epidemiology studies of asthma; genetic regulation of innate immune responses in humans with asthma and allergic diseases; and refractory gout and pulmonary manifestations of rheumatic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis.

Dr. Szczech joined the DCRI in 1998, and was named the Medical Director of Safety Surveillance for the DCRI in 2005. She is also the Medical Director of the Clinical Research Support Office for the School of Medicine. Dr. Szczech has extensive experience in nephrological research and clinical epidemiology. She holds an MD from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and earned a Master’s degree in Clinical Epidemiology from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed publications on renal disease, especially its effects on HIV+ patients. Dr. Szczech is the recipient of the 1996 American Kidney Fund Clinical Scientist in Nephrology Award and the National Research Service Fellowship Award.

Dr. Szczech’s clinical and research interests include the evaluation and management of acute and chronic renal insufficiency, as well as consultative and general nephrology.

Dr. Walter joined the DCRI in 1998 as Associate Director of the Primary Care Research Consortium, a network of primary care practices in the Duke University Health System. He also holds dual appointments within Duke University Medical Center as Director of the Vaccine and Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Unit and an associate professor of primary care pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases. Dr. Walter came to Duke from the University of Maryland, where he earned his medical degree and worked as an associate in pediatrics.

Dr. Walter’s research focuses on general pediatrics, pediatric infectious diseases, and vaccines. He also coordinates a clinic that cares for children who travel abroad and for children who have been adopted internationally.