Department of Anesthesiology
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Meet the Personnel Jeffrey H. Silverstein, M.D., Director
Historically, the great majority of clinical research was conducted in large academic medical centers. While the academic goal was, and remains, the conduct of original science, pharmaceutical and medical equipment manufacturers came to the large centers to access thought leaders and large populations of patients who could participate in clinical trials. By the early 1990s new realities began to emerge. Pharmaceutical companies felt pressure to bring their products to market faster. An often quoted figure is that it costs $1 million for each day of delay in completing a clinical trial. It wasn't long before the industry decided that the large academic facilities were too slow, too expensive, too difficult, and too focussed on NIH grants to fulfill their needs. The pharmaceutical industry therefore sought other providers, leading to a tremendous loss of clinical trial funding from academic centers. At the same time, this issue came into focus as a new industry, Clinical Research Organizations (CROs) sought to benefit by the increasing number of trials and the dissatisfaction with current practices. These companies offered faster start-up, faster recruitment, and an in-depth understanding of the rules and regulations governing industrial research. A new fixture in the clinical research environment, CROs take a business approach to the conduct of clinical trials. The days of the professor conducting a clinical trial in his or her spare time had come to an end. The Clinical Trials Office of the Department of Anesthesiology provides the support services necessary to make our researchers competitive in today's market. Take the opportunity to browse through our web pages and let us know your comments and questions. |
he Mount Sinai Department of Anesthesiology
has embraced the challenge of clinical research at the turn of the millennium.