This year’s Clinical Research Challenge (CRC) winner is Oregon State University College of Pharmacy. Team members were Neda Kazerouni, Kaitlyn Wells, and Dale Wilkerson with faculty liaison Adriane Irwin, Pharm.D. Their proposal was titled “HEDIS Measures and Osteoporosis: A Clinical Pharmacy Approach to Optimize Fracture Care in Postmenopausal Females.” Each member has different career goals, but each states that the CRC has positively influenced them to become more involved in clinical pharmacy and research. Kazerouni will graduate in 2021 with plans to pursue a PGY1 residency to develop her clinical skills upon graduation. She states that because of her involvement in the CRC, she plans to advance her working knowledge of academic and clinical research to expand the scope of practice for pharmacists nationwide. Wells will graduate in 2022 with plans to complete postgraduate training in pharmacogenomics. This training will allow her to advance and use her interests in biochemistry and molecular biology to improve patient outcomes. She states that the CRC has motivated her to expand her engagement in clinical pharmacy research as she progresses through the pharmacy program at Oregon State University/Oregon Health & Science University. Wilkerson is currently completing basic military training. He will graduate in 2022 with plans to pursue a career as a pharmacist in the Army Reserve.

To inspire and guide future CRC competitors, we asked these team members a few questions to enlighten us on how they were so successful. Responses are below.

What did you do to prepare?

To prepare us for this year’s CRC, our ACCP chapter adviser, Dr. Adriane Irwin, hosted weekly prep sessions designed to test and enhance our knowledge of biomedical statistics and drug literature evaluation. These sessions allowed our team to advance through round 1 of the competition and provided us with a strong working knowledge of the components required for a research proposal.

What tips and tricks do you have for future competitors? In hindsight, what would you do differently to prepare?

We strongly advise future competitors to be flexible and adaptive when developing their research proposals. In several instances, we had to abandon our progress and start from scratch. Students should not be afraid to entertain new ideas and continuously revise their work, even when the task seems daunting. In addition, we advise future competitors to start early and use the knowledge of professional contacts and resources to develop a successful proposal.

What motivated you to compete in the CRC? What motivations did you have throughout your preparation?

Since the inception of the CRC, our student-led teams have ranked in the top 3 each year. This legacy has served as a large motivating force behind our efforts to preserve the standard of excellence our peers have demonstrated.

All student members should strongly consider participating in the 2020 Clinical Research Challenge. The skills needed to critically evaluate and apply primary research are essential for clinical pharmacists. Research and scholarship contributes to improved health outcomes for patients together with advances in the clinical pharmacy profession. More information about the CRC can be found here.