National Center for Pediatric Practice-Based Research and Learning

Practice-based research is needed to develop evidence-based practices and promote optimal child health outcomes. Practice-based research networks (PBRNs)—coalitions of practices and clinics—are positioned to conduct high-quality research leading to evidence-based practices. However, PBRNs often face a number of challenges, including maintaining supportive research and administrative infrastructure, coordinating membership large enough to support sample sizes for rigorous research studies, and sustaining continuous funding and experienced researchers.

To address these challenges, this project established the Center for Pediatric Practice-Based Research and Learning (C-PRL), which linked two existing pediatric PBRNs: 1) the Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS), a national PBRN of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) that includes pediatric practices in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and Canada; and 2) the Pediatric Research Consortium (PeRC) of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), which consists of regional pediatric practices. The overarching goal of the C-PRL was to improve the delivery of and learning from pediatric primary care at the local, regional, and national levels.

The specific aims of the research were as follows:

• Link two pediatric PBRNs in a C-PRL. 
• Enhance established, and create new, working relationships between PROS/AAP and PeRC/CHOP via the C-PRL. 
• Through the C-PRL, leverage the dissemination and implementation capacities of PROS, PeRC, and their parent organizations to improve delivery of pediatric primary care at local, regional, and national levels. 

Led by Dr. Fiks, the C-PRL yielded a collaborative and innovative research program that advanced pediatric healthcare and research, especially research that leveraged the EHRs. The C-PRL achieved the following key accomplishments: 1) established and maintained infrastructure and a governance structure; 2) generated collaborative grant applications and obtained funding for studies, including rapid responses to AHRQ limited-competition funding opportunities; 3) leveraged the dissemination and implementation capacities of PROS, PeRC, and their parent organizations; and 4) provided mentoring and career development opportunities for junior investigators. During the project, multiple publications, presentations, and training activities disseminated new approaches for pediatric research that influenced practice-based research and improved existing and informed the creation of new networks. The C-PRL played a transformative role in launching a new wave of collaborative, EHR-enabled research in pediatrics of national scope that has continued beyond the funding period.