VA ORD's Clinical Research Pharmacy Coordinating Center Honored with Baldrige Award
December 15, 2009
VA's Clinical Research Pharmacy Coordinating Center, in Albuquerque, N.M., has been named one of the five recipients of the 2009 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's highest award for organizational excellence.
As part of the VA Research and Development Program, the Center manages the devices and pharmaceuticals that are used in research trials conducted within the VA health care system. The Center has been involved in many comprehensive and groundbreaking research trials such as:
- The 1983 landmark study establishing the protective benefits of aspirin against heart attack.
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A 1998 clinical trial supporting the safe and effective use of buprenorphine in treating opiate addiction.
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A 2005 clinical trial that significantly reduced the debilitating impact of shingles in older adults through the use of preventive varicella zoster virus vaccine.
In the last three years, the Coordinating Center supported studies involving 90,000 patients per year across the country, ultimately benefitting millions of Veterans and other Americans.
Congress established the Malcolm Baldrige award program in 1987 to recognize U.S. organizations for their achievements in quality and performance, and it is currently the nation's highest honor for innovation and performance excellence.
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