FACULT Y ACHIE VEMENTS
for new clinical trials, with a particular focus on uterine cancer, a disease that is on the rise. Debra Richardson, M.D., was named a Scholar Investigator by the Gynecologic Oncology Group Foundation, one of 10 chosen nationwide. Camille Gunderson, M.D., was named one of 36 New Investigators by the GOG Foundation. Each receives a grant and stipend to support concept development of new clinical trials, travel to national meetings and service on committees within the GOG Foundation and NRG Oncology. Both are faculty members in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The aim of Richardson’s grant is to become the national principal investigator for a Phase 3 clinical trial. Her working concept focuses on treating uterine cancer with an existing form of chemotherapy and potentially adding a targeted drug to the regimen. Richardson’s grant also includes a mentoring component. She will be mentored by her colleague at Stephenson Cancer Center, Kathleen Moore, M.D., associate director for clinical research. Richardson, in turn, will mentor three of the new investigators. Gunderson, too, will be developing a clinical trial concept for a national proposal. Her niche in patient care is treating women with uterine cancer, one of the few cancers that is increasing in incidence and causing more deaths. For years, uterine cancer was not even in the top 10 causes of cancer deaths among women in the United States. Today, it is the fourth most common cancer diagnosed and the sixth most common cause of cancer death among U.S. women, according to the American Cancer Society.
Researchers Earn PHF Grants In July, researchers at the OU Health Sciences Center received 43 grants, totaling more than $2.7 million, from the Presbyterian Health Foundation, an Oklahoma City grant-making organization that supports biomedical research and education. PHF awards several different types of grants: bridge, seed, new investigator seed, equipment, team science, research support, symposium, and clinician scientist development. Since 2014, PHF has awarded nearly $16 million to OU Health Sciences Center researchers. With the help of that funding, researchers have secured more than $97.7 million in additional funding. Also this year, PHF partnered with Harold Hamm Diabetes Center to fund 11 grants totaling $1 million. PHF matched the Diabetes Center’s spending at 25%. This program also supports several types of grants.
Dale Bratzler, D.O., MPH
OU Medicine Enterprise Quality Officer Honored By Good Shepherd Clinic Good Shepherd Clinic in Oklahoma City presented its Hope Award to Dale Bratzler, D.O., MPH, OU Medicine enterprise quality officer, in recognition of his work as a clinic volunteer. To honor his legacy, the Hope Award will become an annual event in Bratzler’s name, with proceeds placed in the Dale Bratzler Endowment Fund. The Good Shepherd Clinic is a free, full-time clinic serving uninsured residents of the community. The clinic offers medical and dental services, provided by healthcare professionals who donate their time and skills to ensure that financial concerns do not become barriers to receiving care in a timely manner. Bratzler began volunteering at Good Shepherd in 2015, believing that healthcare should be available to all members of the community, beyond the emergency room and regardless of ability to pay. As a result of Bratzler’s persistence, the Unity Clinic will launch early in 2020. This initiative will use campus-wide, interprofessional teams of healthcare providers, faculty and students from the OU Health Sciences Center to provide patient care in partnership with Good Shepherd.
[ Fa l l / Wi n t e r 2 019 ]
43
