Research Strategic Plan
Mark B. Taubman & Steve Dewhurst
Research Enterprise: Then and Now
1996
2007
2013
Total Award Count
658
1,520
1,331
NIH Award Count
253
451
393
Total $'s Awarded
$90,857,149
$244,849,174
$199,683,043
NIH $'s Awarded
$60,457,715
$161,840,899
$132,414,203
111
537
335
175
824
612
172
816
573
303,512
536,392
643,968
Basic Science Faculty
Tenure Track Faculty
PI’s on Grants
Research Space (ft2)
2
Biomedical Research Environment
Strengths:

Faculty Size and Breadth

Strong Clinical and Translational Research Programs (CTSI)

Collaborative Environment; Proximity to River Campus
Weaknesses:

Few Nationally-Prominent Programs

Financial: SMD Structural Deficit, Reliance on SMH Margin, Heavy Reliance
on NIH Funding, Tech Transfer
Opportunities:

Enhance National Reputation by Focusing on Multi-Departmental, MultiDisciplinary Programs of Excellence
Threats:

NIH Budget

Reduced SMH Margin (Health Care Reform, Graduate Medical Education)
3
Research Vision/Mission
Mission: To improve the health of the
community through research and discovery.
Vision: To be nationally recognized for our
research programs of excellence.
Goal: Create a sustainable research enterprise
focused on programs of excellence that feature
cutting edge science, have national/international
prominence, and the potential for significant
scientific/clinical breakthroughs.
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Research Strategic Plan
Promote Research Programs of Excellence
Strengthen Key Core Facilities
• Biomedical Informatics
• Stem Cells
• Imaging
Promote Translational Research
• CTSI Restructuring
• Educational Initiatives
Provide the Financial Needs of Research/Education
• Implement a Sustainable Financial Model
• Strengthen New Revenue Sources
5
Strategic Plan: Principles
Prioritization of Resources:
•
Support our current faculty
•
Focus resources on key institutional needs with synergistic value (e.g.,
informatics)
•
Identify and support broadly inclusive scientific Programs of Excellence –
will be achieved largely thru pilot funds to support new research
Faculty Recruitment:
•
Will be limited in total #s
•
Impact will be greatest if hires meet institutional needs (specific
skills/technologies/areas)…..which means diverging from the traditional
model of simply hiring the best available athlete regardless of “fit”
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Identify and support research programs
of excellence
1. Restructure around multi-departmental research
programs of excellence.
• Programs (basic, clinical, and translational) either already
exist or can be developed through enhanced collaborations
and/or key strategic recruitments.
• Feature cutting edge science, dovetail when possible with
our clinical areas of excellence, and have the ability to
attain national/international prominence or to achieve
breakthroughs that can impact on the health of our
community and/or reduce healthcare costs.
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Research Programs of Excellence
Cancer
RNA Biology
Infection & Immunity
RoAR Institute (Aging Research)
Musculoskeletal
Lung Biology
Cardiovascular
Comprehensive Diabetes Center
Neuromedicine
Vision Restoration
•
Systems, Cognitive & Computational
Drug Targets & Mechanisms
•
Neuroinflammation & Neurodegen.
Childrens’ Research Institute
•
Neuromuscular Disease
•
Center 4 Translational Neuromedicine
•
Autism Research Center
Health and Wellness (Prevention)
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Shared needs: Current initiatives we
should continue
Areas:
• Trainee support. New partnerships such as the UR China Institute.
This is a tension in our cost-cutting proposals.
• Career development of young and mid-career faculty.
• Flexible sabbatical programs.
• Interim funding. Has been increased recently.
• Shared Resource Labs.
• Drug discovery (Drug Discovery Pilot Award program).
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Shared needs: Needed new initiatives
Areas:
• Scientific community building:
1.
Intellectual communities. Seminar programs,
meetings/symposia
2.
Physical communities. Realign space.
3.
Shared infrastructure and basic equipment. New Small
Equipment Award program thru SAC. See:
http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/smd/scientific-advisory-committee/
•
Pilot funding: Most programs identified a need for 1-2 pilot awards
of $50k each, per year. A key philanthropic target.
•
Private sector partnerships: SBIR/STTR awards.
•
Philanthropy: All programs need to engage Advancement, to obtain
necessary resources (including faculty recruitments).
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Identify and support research programs
of excellence
2. Prioritize support for programs of excellence.
• Overall Goal: National/international recognition of five programs.
• Scientific Advisory Committee to oversee.
• Support based upon resources required, potential for extramural
funding, and potential for breakthroughs or national recognition.
 Proposed investment ≈$2.5 Million/year; ideal is $5M/yr - but
acheiving this depends on finances (cost reduction, revenue
generation), philanthropy (endowed chairs, program funds), URMC
• Pilot/Seed Grants
• Equipment, Services
• Strategic Recruitment
• Yearly milestones and evaluations.
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Scientific Advisory Committee
Charge: Advises on strategic decisions relating to recruitment,
academics, infrastructure investments, and space allocations.
Members: Faculty conducting fundamental, translational and
clinical research, drawn from multiple departments and centers.
Programs:
• New Pilot Award Program: To support innovative, trans-disciplinary
science. $125k/year for up to 2 years
• Small Equipment Award Program: To provide partial support ($2-
25k) for small shared equipment (costing $15-$100k).
http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/smd/scientific-advisory-committee/
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SAC: Members
Dewhurst, Steve (Chair)
Bennett, Nana (CCH)
Bohmann, Dirk (BMG)
Dozier, Ann (PHS)
Gasiewicz, Tom (EHS)
Halterman, Jill (PEDS)
Land, Hucky (JPWCC/BMG)
Maquat, Lynne (RNA)
Moxley, Dick (NEURO/CTSI)
Schwarz, Eddie (CMSR)
Sime, Tricia (MED)
Strawderman, Rob (DBCB)
Tank, Bill (P&P)
Topham, Dave (CVBI/HSCCI)
Reps from Other Schools
Eliav, Eli (EIOH)
Kitzman, Harriet (SON)
Ex Officio
Kieburtz, Karl (SADCR/CTSI)
Lord, Edith (SADGE)
O’Keefe, Regis (AD Clin. Aff)
Puzas, Ed (SADBR)
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Research: Synergy With Revenue Generation
Investment
in Research
Revenues Reinvested
Discovery
From clinical programs,
royalties, equity
Innovations, new
treatments
New Clinical Programs,
Reputation Enhancement
Draws in New Patients
Intellectual Property
Generate Royalties, Equity,
Sponsored Research
Chris DiFrancesco
New Revenue Generation (I)
Integrated Business Engagement approach:
 Corporate Relations (Adam Tulgan): Single business POC;
leverage alumni in industry; work w. ORPA (-> partnerships,
sponsored research, corporate philanthropy)
 URVentures (Scott Catlin): Enhance technology development
(new revenues); facilitate SBIR, STTR awards
 Center for Entrepreneurship: Create partnerships; provide
training in entrepreneurship (defined broadly)
 Clinical Trials (CTSI): Create a new support function in
collaboration with the CTSI; partner with other health systems
 Center for Medical Technology Innovation (CMTI): Grow!
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New Center for Business Engagement
UR Ventures
UR Corporate
Relations
UR Center for
Entrepreneurship
UR Center for
Business Engagement
Rob Clark
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New Revenue Generation (II)
Partnering Initiatives (Selected):
Clinical Trials: Other health systems as potential partners
Data Science & new Rochester Center for Health Informatics:
IBM, Xerox
VA hospital linkages: New funding opportunities (career
award grants)
•Can’t rely on new sources of revenue in the short term.
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Metrics (will vary with type of program)
Measures of national (or international) recognition
• National Academy, major prizes, leadership roles, unique grants
Discovery metrics
• New High impact scientific knowledge
Translational metrics
• New targets, promising devices or diagnostics, patents, INDs, IDEs
Clinical impact metrics
• First in humans, practical applications
Community benefit metrics
• Measurable impact on quality oflLife
Policy metrics
Productivity metrics
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Center for Biomedical Informatics (CBI)
• Create informatics infrastructure necessary to support clinical,
translational & basic research; integrate w. and leverage new UR
Data Science Institute
• Recruit faculty with independent research (clinical and basic)
programs to complement existing faculty.
Searches: (1) Cancer genomics (translational); (2) Clinical
research informatics; (3) CTSI director of BMI (hired Tim Dye)
• Establish the CBI as a vehicle for training scientists and
physicians in biomedical informatics.
• New MS, PhD programs; future Clinical Informatics fellowship
Cost >=$2.5-3 M, to be shared by several divisions of URMC
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Rochester Institute for Data Science
•
Predictive Health Analytics: Predict disease/risk; optimize
therapy. Examples: Cancer Rx prediction, Chronic heart
disease, Infectious disease tracking, Suicide prevention
•
Cognitive Systems: Model and/or replicate human perception
and cognition. Examples: Linguistics, Neural pathways and
prosthetics, Vision restoration
•
Analytics on Demand: Development of intuitive user
interfaces to query big data. Creating tools/systems for largescale data analytics that relieve the end-user from the need to
understand the details of particular platforms/programs.
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Overview of UR-Wide Strategic Plan
•
Rochester Institute for Data Science
•
Research Foundations for a Healthier Society. Imaging;
Drug development & delivery; Molecular signaling; Social &
behavioral science; Neuromedicine; Environmental medicine
•
Light and Sound. Vision & Optics; Institute of Sound (sound
in: music and entertainment; medicine & biology; speech,
hearing, language & communication)
•
UR Research in the Local & Global Community: Research
translation (CTSI, CMTI, CE); Research partnerships (new
Center for Business Engagement); International programs
•
Rochester Center for Energy & the Environment. Carbonneutral energy; Human health (toxicants); Climate and C-cycle
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Research Foundations for a Healthier Society
•Social and behavioral approaches to improve health. Ex: Health
economics & improving healthcare (resource supply/use; ties to
PCORI and CMMI); Human motivation & systems change (smoking,
weight management); Social analytics (isolation; affect spread)
•Imaging. Ex: Brain activity; Cancer Dx; Immune cell trafficking
•Drug development and delivery. Ex: RNA as a target or drug;
Smart scaffolds for tissue repair; new therapeutic targets
•Neuromedicine. Ex: Autism spectrum; Systems, Cognitive &
Computational neuroscience; NMD; Neurodegen; Translational
•Molecular signaling in relation to cell aging, function.
•Environmental medicine and energy policies. Ex: fracking.
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Initial Priorities (2014)
1. Support existing faculty. Protect existing departmental budgets,
most of which go to faculty salaries.
2. Honor existing commitments (open searches). E.g., Cntr for
Musculoskeletal Research; Immunity & Infection program
3. Recruit in areas of broad value. CBI (2 ongoing recruits); PHS
Chair; other areas may include health economics (resource
supply/use; PCORI/CMMI), drug discovery and development
4. Support new programs/collaborations. Fund “program-building”
pilot awards in broadly impactful areas – (i) Aging (RoAR), (ii)
Prevention, (iii) Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine (6 pilots,
$300k total)
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