October 2015:  The latest NARAP (National Alliance of Research Associate Programs) poster entilted Outcome of an intervention on compliance with recommended breast and cervical cancer screenings among patients and their visitors in the emergency department utilizing research associates was presented to the Connecticut College of Emergency Physicians and the American College of Emergency Physicians! Click Here to View!

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November 2014: NARAP's last completed study, "Promoting tobacco cessation utilizing pre-health professional students as research associates in the emergency department", has been published in the October 2014 edition of Addictive Behaviors. This this is the latest edition in the set of NARAP clinical research studies in the Emergency Department (ED) utilizing Research Associates (RAs). This study was conducted at 10 hospitals around the nation, with over 19,000 participants involved.  

This study was also featured in a recent press release to the public, which offers NARAP CEO/Founder and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Keith Bradley's viewpoints on the implications of the study and the future of NARAP

NARAP's study, Outcome of a simple intervention using college research associates on compliance with recommended primary care visits and breast and cervical cancer screenings among female emergency department patients and visitors is going into its fourth semester of enrollment. 

St. Vincent's Medical Center, St. Louis University Hospital, Hackensack University Medical Center, Thomas Jefferson University Medical Center, and Pullman Regional Hospital have contributed participants to this study. As of January 2014, RAs have approached over 9,000 patients and their visitors in the emergency department and enrolled almost 7,000.

NARAP looks to include additional Affiliate programs in its second national, multi-center study for the summer and fall semesters, 2014.  If interested in joining this research, please contact Keith Bradley, MD (KBradley@theNARAP.org  203 767-6363).

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The new NARAP (National Alliance of Research Associate Programs) website has successfully been launched! This site can answer many of your questions regarding RA programs, and can give you insight into how these programs work on a national level. Visit the site at www.thenarap.org ! 

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The Research Associates Program at St. Vincent's Medical Center presented the poster entitled The Emergency Department as a Platform for Tobacco Cessation Using Pre-Health Professional Students as Research Associates to the Connecticut College of Emergency Physicians and the American College of Emergency Physicians! To view the poster, click HERE! 

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We are currently collecting data for our Cervical and Breast Cancer Screening Study, and have welcomed our Chiefs for the 2013-2014 year. 

Click HERE to see our full calendar!

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OUTCOME OF AN EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT INTERVENTION ON TOBACCO CESSATION AMONG EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT PATIENTS AND VISITORS - A VALIDATION STUDY
RAs in the spring and summer semesters, 2009 completed a pilot study on a tobacco cessation effort in the emergency department

Using a scripted protocol, RAs approached as many patients and visitors as possible on their weekly 4-hour shifts.

If they used tobacco for more than 30 days in their lives, RAs offered the participants a referral to the Connecticut Quitline. 38% of active smokers accepted this referral.  Thus, almost 40% of all the referrals to the Connecticut Quitline from health care facilities came from the Emergency Department at St. Vincent’s during that time period.

The 2011-2012 study is the next step in this research process. In conjunction with Hartford Hospital and Lawrence & Memorial Hospital, RAs at St. Vincent's will validate the previous work to demonstrate their effectiveness at facilitating tobacco cessation referrals from the emergency department in a new population.

Other Activities

Research Associates use results from previous RAs' work to provide service for our patients and visitors by screening for Pap tests, mammograms, Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) tests, digital rectal exams, colon-rectal cancer tests and tobacco cessation.

We anticipate this will result in each RA having research or service contact with well over 100 patients and visitors during their time with us.