Research at the Family Medicine Center

Interested in conducting research at the Family Medicine Center?

Thank you for your interest in conducting research in the Department of Family Medicine. As a primary care clinic and teaching institution, we understand that research is vital in generating and furthering our knowledge of health and health practices. 

This pursuit of knowledge must be balanced with considerations for our patients, staff, and the clinic. The Department must follow University, state, and federal rules and laws in conducting research. For these reasons, the Department requires all investigators proposing to undertake studies in The UNC Family Medicine Center to follow the review process outlined below. Some studies may not require review– efforts solely exercised in quality assurance or utilization review do not require review unless findings may be published or presented as “research.”  However, a review is needed if your study involves patients, records, staff, or the facilities of Family Medicine.

To help facilitate your study, we encourage you to review the information below regarding resources such as faculty, staff, and space. This will help determine if we are a good fit for your study.

Number of patients (annually)

Numbers of faculty and staff

DFM Programs

Disseminating your study

Getting the word out is critical for the success of your study. Several options are available.

• Department listservs
• Flyers
• Corkboards
• Two media boards in the patient waiting room.
• One media board near the elevator for staff and providers

Regarding data access

DFM adheres to UNC system policies regarding patient data.  We cannot provide direct access to Patient Health Information; even aggregated data on quality metrics (e.g., vaccination rates) is too sensitive to share.  You will need access to this through the IRB and a Carolina Data Warehouse request. Data for only the FMC population can be requested from those sites.

Facilities

UNC Family Medicine Center has three locations,  Chapel Hill, Carraway Village, and Durham. We have limited space and suggest that you use faculty/staff as a proxy to provide information and secure space at locations other than our clinics. All this depends, of course, on the nature of the request.

General requirements

1. All studies proposing active recruitment of FMC patients must involve a department faculty member as a co-investigator. This individual will help assure the study’s applicability to Family Medicine and smooth execution within the practice. We have learned through years of experience that studies lacking a Family Medicine co-investigator are rarely successful in meeting recruitment goals. A list of Department research faculty members can be found
2. Generally, full monetary compensation is expected by the Department for the staff and clinician’s time and other costs required in study participation.  Studies that are small, unobtrusive, and initiated by students or residents may not require compensation.
3. Before the study may begin, a letter of approval or exemption must be provided from the IRB and the Office of Human Research Ethics.
4. Whenever possible, Department physicians should be informed when their patients are approached for inclusion in a study.  Physicians should be provided with information on the nature of the study and terms of participation.  Physicians should also be apprised of their patient’s progress in the study and informed of study-derived information relevant to ongoing care.
5. Studies approved for the FMC may acknowledge to participants and others that it has been reviewed and approved by the UNC Department of Family Medicine. Still, it may notmake claims of endorsement by the Department.

Review process

Studies proposed for the FMC will be evaluated in terms of their perceived importance, the likelihood of answering their research questions, ethical soundness, compliance with the policies of the Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, UNC, state and federal laws, and the anticipated impact and costs for the FMC, its patients, and staff.

Review typically takes about two weeks but may take longer.  Appeals of unfavorable decisions may be made to the Director of FMC Studies. Further appeals may be made to the Chair of the Department.

Sampling of publications from research conducted at the Family Medicine Center

Armistead LT, Hughes TD, Larson CK, Busby-Whitehead J, Ferreri SP. Integrating targeted consultant pharmacists into a new collaborative care model to reduce the risk of falls in older adults owing to the overuse of opioids and benzodiazepines. J Am Pharm Assoc (2003). 2021 Jan-Feb;61(1):e16-e18. doi: 10.1016/j.japh.2020.08.038. Epub 2020 Sep 12. PMID: 32933865.

Niznik JD, Ferreri SP, Armistead LT, Kelley CJ, Schlusser C, Hughes T, Henage CB, Busby-Whitehead J, Roberts E. Primary-Care Prescribers’ Perspectives on Deprescribing Opioids and Benzodiazepines in Older Adults. Drugs Aging. 2022 Sep;39(9):739-748. doi: 10.1007/s40266-022-00967-6. Epub 2022 Jul 28. PMID: 35896779; PMCID: PMC9330848.

Henage CB, Ferreri SP, Schlusser C, Hughes TD, Armistead LT, Kelley CJ, Niznik JD, Busby-Whitehead J, Roberts E. Transitioning Focus Group Research to a Videoconferencing Environment: A Descriptive Analysis of Interactivity. Pharmacy (Basel). 2021 Jun 24;9(3):117. doi: 10.3390/pharmacy9030117. PMID: 34202707; PMCID: PMC8293315.

Niznik JD, Ferreri SP, Armistead LT, Kelley CJ, Schlusser C, Hughes T, Henage CB, Busby-Whitehead J, Roberts E. Primary-Care Prescribers’ Perspectives on Deprescribing Opioids and Benzodiazepines in Older Adults. Drugs Aging. 2022 Sep;39(9):739-748. doi: 10.1007/s40266-022-00967-6. Epub 2022 Jul 28. PMID: 35896779; PMCID: PMC9330848.

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