Contents

Introduction

Message from the Director

Important Events in Clinical Center History

Governance and Accreditation

Organization Structure and Programs

Heralding Fifty Years of Clinical Caring and Clinical Research

The Mark O. Hatfield Clinical Research Center

Activation Planning for the Clinical Research Center

The Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge

Clinical Research

Clinician Highlight

Clinical Research Training

Organizational Effectiveness and Efficiency

Public Outreach  

A formal activation planning process for occupancy of the CRC was introduced in 2003. A CRC Steering Committee oversees the two main arms of the project—the hospital side and laboratory side. In this capacity the committee concentrates on overall issues related to the project schedule, budget, major changes, and occupancy.

For the hospital arm of the CRC project a Hospital Activation Management Team is responsible for the leadership, oversight and management of daily operations for the hospital activation process. The team serves as a focal point for day-to-day issues related to CRC hospital activation planning; makes decisions affecting CRC activation; seeks guidance and approvals from the Clinical Center Research Steering and Medical Executive Committees on issues with broad monetary, operational, or policy impact; develops and analyzes budgetary impact of activation plans; and informs the Research Steering and Medical Executive Committees and other key stakeholders of the progress of the activation, schedule and budget.

A number of CRC Work Groups have been established, for which the Hospital Activation Management Team also provides guidance, support and oversight. These work groups cover topics, issues and tasks related to facility readiness, relocation, telecommunications, education, communications, equipment, signage, and furniture.

Each of the relevant groups meets on a regular basis with the same end purpose in mind—to be ready for occupancy when the Mark O. Hatfield Clinical Research Center opens.

Partnering for Progress
Activation of the CRC will bring a new “shared” culture. The physicians, nurses, researchers, and other healthcare professionals who have been working at the Clinical Center are historically accustomed to researching different diseases or areas of medicine often in their own patient care unit. This has, at times, resulted in isolated programs.

When the CRC opens, these same institutes and centers will begin to work more collaboratively on shared patient care units and it is hoped this will foster new interactions to speed the pace of scientific discovery.

A stronger multi- and inter-disciplinary approach will be evident in both the laboratory and clinical settings. For example, Patient Care Unit Partners Teams will “locally” manage each of the new patient care units. Team members representing each user institute or center will have an ongoing dialogue for how each unit will operate, where patients are admitted and how resource allocation decisions are made.

The idea behind this blended culture is to improve the environment of care for patients while at the same time integrating new and growing research programs.

	Former Oregon Senator Mark O. Hatfield speaking at the ceremonies for the groundbreaking of the Clinical Research Center named in his honor.

New Hospital Honors Former Oregon Senator Mark O. Hatfield
A student, teacher and practitioner of the American political system for nearly his entire life, Senator Mark Hatfield has devoted himself to improving the human condition through a lifetime of public service. Senator Hatfield supported medical research throughout his career in Congress.

He began his political career in the Oregon Legislature in 1950. At that time he was teaching political science and serving as Dean of Students at his alma mater, Willamette University. He served two terms in the Oregon House of Representatives and two years in the Oregon Senate and then became the youngest Secretary of State in Oregon history in 1956 at age 34. Elected Governor of Oregon in 1958, he was the state’s first two-term governor in the twentieth century when he was re-elected in 1962.

Senator Hatfield was elected to the United States Senate in 1968 while he was serving as Governor of Oregon. He became the longest-serving U.S. Senator from Oregon in 1993, surpassing the previous record set by Charles McNary.

During his 30-year political career, Senator Hatfield made great strides in obtaining increased funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Under his leadership as chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, NIH funding increased by more than $2.5 billion (http://www.laskerfoundation.org). A main goal of his was to find ways to fund NIH above and beyond the federal budget appropriations process. He worked closely with Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa to introduce a National Fund for Health Research to generate research funds through a one percent set-aside of health insurance premiums and a voluntary federal income tax check-off.

While in the Senate he often reminded his colleagues of what he characterized as “the desperate human needs in our midst.” He was known for opposing defense spending increases while focusing on improving health, education and social services programs.

Senator Hatfield, a deeply religious man, always sought peaceful resolutions to world conflicts and domestic disputes. As a Lieutenant, Junior Grade in the U.S. Navy during World War II, he saw battle at Iwo Jima and Okinawa and was among the first U.S. servicemen to enter Hiroshima following the atomic bombing. His war experiences and his passion for life have made him an ardent proponent for nuclear disarmament. Senator Hatfield’s tireless efforts to bring an end to the proliferation of nuclear weapons culminated in 1992 with the passage of legislation he authored calling for an end to U.S. nuclear testing.

His distinguished public service career ended in January 1997 with his retirement from the United States Senate.