Newswise — LOUISVILLE, Ky. – As partners in providing specialized care to the children of Kentucky and Southern Indiana, Norton Healthcare has granted $1.25 million to the University of Louisville to support research initiatives related to a host of pediatric subspecialties.
Areas receiving grants are pediatric cardiac regenerative medicine, pediatric surgery research, the Kosair Charities Pediatric Clinical Trials Unit, the UofL Autism Center at Kosair Charities, the Child and Adolescent Health Research Design and Support Unit, and the Kosair Children’s Hospital Research Institute.
“Research is vital to advancing the care we, as partners, can provide to children,” said Steven T. Hester, M.D., MBA, system senior vice president and chief medical officer, Norton Healthcare. “The pediatric specialists at the University of Louisville are doing work that can help us provide even better care and, hopefully, cures.”
“We appreciate the funding provided by Norton Healthcare to further our work in understanding and ultimately curing diseases and conditions that affect children,” said Gregory C. Postel, M.D., interim executive vice president for health affairs, University of Louisville. “At UofL, we have set an ambitious yet achievable agenda in pediatric research that will advance medical knowledge and provide novel and innovative treatments for the children of Kentuckiana and beyond.”
“We see firsthand the benefits that research provides to children,” said Thomas D. Kmetz, division president, Women’s and Children’s Services and Kosair Children’s Hospital. “Supporting this research agenda is incredibly important not just to children, but also in continuing to attract additional pediatric specialists to Louisville.”
The $1.25 million provides one year of funding to the six research areas:• $100,000 for pediatric cardiac regenerative medicine, led by Bradley B. Keller, M.D., for research focusing on identifying the biomechanical origins of congenital heart disease and the development of implantable engineered cardiac tissues for repair and restoration using patient-derived human pluripotent stem cells. The goal of these studies is to repair and regenerate damaged heart muscle as an alternative to cardiac transplantation.• $100,000 for the pediatric surgery research lab, led by Mary E. Fallat, M.D., to support research in surgical techniques and outcomes, trauma practices and necrotizing enterocolitis, a disease that affects mostly the intestine of premature infants where the wall of the intestine is invaded by bacteria that cause local infection and inflammation that can ultimately destroy the bowel wall. Research in this area directly impacts the care children and neonates receive when they need surgical services.• $100,000 for the Kosair Charities Pediatric Clinical Research Unit, led by Janice E. Sullivan, M.D., to support the unit’s medication, quality improvement and device clinical trials. The goal of this unit is to improve health care provided to children through development of new or improved treatment practices and evaluation and approval of medical devices or medications for children. • $250,000 for the UofL Autism Center at Kosair Charities led by Gregory N. Barnes, M.D., Ph.D., to support the Precision Medicine Initiative in Autism Spectrum Disorders. The goal of this study is to use a child’s DNA to develop individualized treatment approaches to better restore the function of neural circuits in the brain, thereby improving behavior and cognitive skills.• $300,000 for the Child and Adolescent Health Research Design and Support Unit led by Charles R. Woods Jr., M.D., to support research projects around overprescribing of psychiatric medications and antimicrobial agents in children, as well as improving data availability to frontline state workers in the foster care system. The goal of this research unit is to improve the effectiveness, quality, safety and delivery of health care and prevention/health promotion services to children.• $400,000 for the Kosair Children’s Hospital Research Institute led by Lu Cai, M.D., Ph.D., for support in research programs in the areas of diabetes- and obesity-related multi-organ diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, pulmonary diseases, neurobiological and carcinogenic susceptibility, molecular and cellular mechanisms and potential interventions. The focus of the institute is on basic and translational research, bringing these programs forward as quickly as possible from the laboratory bench to the patient’s bedside.“Research is integral to our quadruple mission, along with education, patient care and community engagement,” said Gerard P. Rabalais, M.D., the Billy F. Andrews Endowed Chair in Pediatrics. “The funding we are announcing today is appreciated for its contribution to our ability to develop and maintain an effective body of research.”
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About Norton HealthcareFor 130 years, Norton Healthcare’s faith heritage has guided its mission to provide quality health care to all those it serves. Today, Norton Healthcare is a leader in serving adult and pediatric patients throughout Greater Louisville, Southern Indiana, the commonwealth of Kentucky and beyond. The hospital and health care system is the Louisville area’s third largest private employer, providing care at more than 210 locations throughout Greater Louisville and Southern Indiana. The Louisville-based not-for-profit system includes five Louisville hospitals with 1,837 licensed beds; seven outpatient centers; 13 Norton Immediate Care Centers; more than 13,000 employees; more than 750 employed medical providers; and approximately 2,000 total physicians on its medical staff. In 2015 Norton Healthcare was named by Healthiest Employers as the 11th healthiest place to work in the country. More information about Norton Healthcare is available at NortonHealthcare.com.
About Kosair Children’s HospitalAs Kentucky and Southern Indiana’s only full-service, free-standing pediatric hospital, Kosair Children’s Hospital, along with its predecessor hospitals, have cared for children for more than a century without regard to their families’ ability to pay. The hospital also is an advocate for the health and well-being of all children. The 267-bed hospital is the region’s only Level I Pediatric Trauma Center and serves as the primary pediatric teaching facility for the University of Louisville School of Medicine. Specialists offer comprehensive pediatric care, including a full range of services for congenital and acquired heart disease, cancer care, neurosciences, spine and orthopaedic care, and neonatal care. In 2007 and 2012, Kosair Children’s Hospital received the prestigious Magnet designation recognizing excellence in nursing from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. More information is available at KosairChildrensHospital.com.
About the University of Louisville Health Sciences CenterThe University of Louisville Health Sciences Center is the city’s only academic medical center. Approximately 1,000 faculty members are involved in education, research and clinical care. The UofL HSC is home to more than 650 medical and dental residents, 3,000 students pursuing degrees in health-related fields within the Schools of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing and Public Health and Information Sciences, as well as 14 interdisciplinary centers and institutes. Approximately $140 million in extramural funding enables researchers to uncover the causes of disease and better ways to prevent, treat and cure those diseases. Patients are seen at the Ambulatory Care Building, The James Graham Brown Cancer Center, the UofL Health Care Outpatient Center, and University Hospital, which is the primary adult teaching hospital for the School of Medicine. University Hospital’s public mission is steeped in history and now is most clearly visible through its provision of nearly $90 million of health care to the uninsured annually. More information is available at Louisville.edu/HSC/.
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