Equitable Breakthroughs in Medicine Development Expands its Support in Texas

EQBMED is a collaborative, community-based partnership to address diversity in clinical trials supported by grant funding from PhRMA

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Oct. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Equitable Breakthroughs in Medicine Development (EQBMED), led by Yale School of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, the Research Centers in Minority Institutions Coordinating Center (RCMI-CC) at Morehouse School of Medicine, and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, collaborates with communities to make clinical trial sites more accessible, promoting participation in clinical trials with communities of color and rural communities. Marking further progress toward creating a more equitable medical research landscape, EQBMED announces the selection of two local clinical trial sites in Texas: Community Action Corporation of South Texas (CACOST) in Alice, Texas, and UT Southwestern Medical Center in collaboration with Parkland Health and a network of nonprofit community-based clinics in Dallas, Texas.

The selection of these sites is honing in on the community-focus of EQBMED, with CACOST being the first Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in the program and Parkland as the third largest safety net hospital in the US. Both sites serve an important role in the Hispanic, Latino, and Rural communities, and will be the path to improving access to innovative clinical trials. "Our partnerships with CACOST, UT Southwestern, and Parkland are essential to EQBMED's community-centric approach to expanding clinical trial access. As a FQHC and a safety-net hospital, these organizations work specifically on addressing social and financial barriers to health, with important, trusted roles in their communities," said Marcella Nunez-Smith, MD, MHS, Associate Dean for Health Equity Research, and C.N.H Long Professor of Internal Medicine, Public Health, and Management at Yale University. "This collaboration strengthens our efforts to bring clinical trials to the community, and ultimately creating a more equitable landscape in medical research."

"The population we serve has higher percentages of diabetes, obesity and poverty than any state in the nation. Our partnership with EQBMED and Yale School of Medicine's mentorship will help us build an infrastructure to take on clinical trials to address the health disparities in our community and pave the way for a more inclusive future in medical research," said Ann E. Awalt, Executive Director at Community Action Corporation of South Texas.

Similarly, UT Southwestern and Parkland Health play a unique and pivotal role in their community by operating one of the busiest emergency rooms in the country and the largest Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the region. "As one of the largest safety net hospitals in the US, we're excited to embark on our partnership with EQBMED to identify trials that address the unmet needs of our community," said Kavita Bhavan, MD, MHS, Chief Innovation Officer at Parkland Health, Adjunct Professor at the UT Southwestern School of Medicine and Adjunct Professor at the Peter J. O'Donnell Jr. School of Public Health. "This partnership is a historical step forward in our work to include diverse populations in clinical trials by addressing mistrust and hesitancy, improving access, and reducing barriers by partnering with community-based clinics and integrating bilingual community health workers and navigators in the implementation of clinical trials for cancer, kidney disease, brain health, and cardiovascular disease among others," commented Heather Kitzman, PhD, Associate Professor in the Peter J. O'Donnell Jr. School of Public Health, and Director of the Office of Community Health & Research Engagement, Clinical and Translational Science Award at UT Southwestern Medical Center. 

EQBMED continues to build on the collaborative efforts of its network partners and community partners, working with communities who have historically been less engaged in the research and development of potentially life-saving medical interventions. The selection of these sites builds upon the goal to establish a replicable framework of local, connected, community-based clinical trial sites. Learn more about our efforts: https://eqbmed.org/

About EQBMED

Equitable Breakthroughs in Medicine Development (EQBMED) is a pioneering partnership committed to transforming the landscape of clinical trials by advancing diversity, transparency, and knowledge. This collaborative partnership is led by Yale School of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, the Research Centers in Minority Institutions Coordinating Center at Morehouse School of Medicine, and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and supported by grant funding from PhRMA. By empowering community-based sites and addressing historical disparities, the program is dedicated to creating a more inclusive future in medicine development. Learn more at EQBMED.org.

About UT Southwestern Medical Center

UT Southwestern, one of the nation's premier academic medical centers, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care, public health and education. The institution's faculty members have received six Nobel Prizes and include 25 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 22 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 3,200 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in more than 80 specialties to more than 120,000 hospitalized patients, more than 360,000 emergency room cases, and oversee nearly 5 million outpatient visits a year. For more information, visit: https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/. 

About Parkland Health

Parkland Health is one of the largest public hospital systems in the country. Premier services at the state-of-the-art Parkland Memorial Hospital include the Level I Rees-Jones Trauma Center, the only burn center in North Texas verified for adults and pediatric patients by the American Burn Association and the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma and a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The system also includes two on-campus buildings housing multi-specialty outpatient clinics – the Ron J. Anderson, MD Clinic and the Moody Outpatient Center, as well as more than 30 community-based clinics and numerous outreach and education programs. Parkland enriches the health and wellness of the communities it serves by providing compassionate care and advancing health equity. For more information, visit www.parklandhealth.org.

About Community Action Corporation of South Texas

Community Action Corporation of South Texas (CACOST) is a multiservice non-profit organization incorporated in 1971 with a mission to improve the lives of South Texans by providing high-quality healthcare, education, housing, and economic opportunities through various services and partnerships. With over fifty years of uninterrupted service across a sixteen-county service area, CACOST operates across three core divisions: early education, economic stability, and healthcare, providing a comprehensive, whole-person approach to care. Our early education programs include Early Childhood Intervention, Early Head Start, and Head Start Birth to Five. Our economic stability programs provide housing assistance, utility support, Meals on Wheels, and our community services block grant programs. CACOST has provided primary healthcare services since 1986 and became a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in 2003. Operating health centers across six of the sixteen counties in our agency's rural service area, CACOST is unwavering in its commitment to advancing its mission and adapting to the evolving needs of its communities. In recognition of its dedication to providing high-quality care, CACOST has been recognized by the Health Resources and Services Administration as a Health Center Quality Leader, placing in the top 10% of health centers nationwide for overall clinical performance. Additionally, CACOST is recognized as a Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH), reflecting its commitment to building strong, collaborative partnerships between patients and their care team. For more information, visit: https://cacost.org/.

About PhRMA

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country's leading innovative biopharmaceutical research companies, which are devoted to discovering and developing medicines that enable patients to live longer, healthier and more productive lives. PhRMA has convened thousands of stakeholders to explore a new potential infrastructure with diverse communities, health systems, and academia that seeks to show proof of concept for a network of connected, community-rooted and sustainable trial sites. PhRMA provided a grant to Yale University to support the creation and development of this initiative. Learn more about PhRMA's Equity Initiative at PhRMA.org/Equity.

Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Equitable Breakthroughs in Medicine Development (EQBMED)