News First Major Medical Research Gathering held at the CEC at UMC Brackenridge

AUSTIN, Texas - (May 10, 2008) - More than 170 researchers and medical leaders came together in Austin recently to share ideas and research, highlighting the fact that the University Medical Center Brackenridge is fast becoming a powerhouse of new medical research and academic innovation.

The Central Texas Clinical Research Forum 2008 was held at the Clinical Education Center at Brackenridge, a member of the Seton Family of Hospitals. More than 70 projects were presented.

Dr. Thomas P. Erlinger, director of Clinical Research, Seton Family of Hospitals,
addresses healthcare leaders and researchers from across the State.

"Our intent was to bring together researchers and health care providers to share information about the type and scope of clinical research activities that are occurring in the region," said Dr. Thomas P. Erlinger, director of Clinical Research, Seton Family of Hospitals. "We feel strongly that if we can increase collaboration around clinical research it will have a real impact on the health of Central Texas."

"This forum grew so much faster than we expected, and the turnout from major researchers throughout Texas has been fantastic. It is an opportunity to showcase the work being done here at UMC Brack. It also gets people in the same room talking and sharing insights and ideas, which will lead to more research and creative thinking," said Dr. TJ Milling, director of clinical research, emergency departments, UMC Brackenridge and Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas.

Since 1915, the growth of training and education of nurses and physicians on the UMC Brackenridge campus has been a focus. In the last year, there has been a dramatic acceleration in academic medicine - as reflected by Brackenridge's new name, UMC Brackenridge and the opening of the Clinical Education Center.

The number of research studies at Seton has doubled over the last two years, and is expected to double again over the next few years.

Some of the studies presented included: Alcohol, Bicycle Helmets and Head Injury in Austin, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Snakebites in Central Texas and The University of Texas Biomedical Informatics Lab.

Dr. Tom Caven, Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University Medical Center Brackenridge, pointed out at the conference that, "Austin is the second largest city in the nation without a medical school. But this sort of collaboration, and the results of the research already being conducted on this campus today, will hopefully help to change that fact in the very near future."