The Clinical and Translational Science Institute at Children's National (CTSI-CN) is a partnership between Children’s National Hospital (CNH) and The George Washington University (GW). CTSI-CN provides research infrastructure to translate discoveries that improve health in the greater Washington, DC region. Our institutions and affiliated partners encompass a research ecosystem that includes a pediatric health system, an academic medical center, an integrated clinical network, a strong foundation in public health
research and practice, and community-focused programs.
Our Purpose
The mission of CTSI-CN is to accelerate discoveries toward achieving better health and more equitable healthcare, with a particular emphasis on children and families. We provide highly integrated, cost-effective, investigator-focused resources designed to overcome research barriers, promote collaborative research, and enrich the research workforce.
As we move forward, CTSI-CN is dedicated to building upon our successes in designing, demonstrating, continuously evaluating, and disseminating programs that:
- Enhance the skills competency and diversity of our research workforce
- Empower patients and communities as partners in research initiatives
- Advance Health Equity in clinical and translational research
Our History
The CTSI-CN is a partnership between Children’s National Hospital (CNH), a top-10 pediatric health system, and The George Washington University (GW), a comprehensive, global research university. Together, CNH and GW form an academic medical center focused on patient care and research across the lifespan.
In July 2010, CNH was awarded the prestigious Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) grant, from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), to establish CTSI-CN. Since then, CTSI-CN has provided needed research services, enabled access to valuable resources, and delivered direct support to countless investigators and research teams across CNH and GW.
Our Leadership
The CTSI-CN is led by a dual-Principal Investigator team: Lisa M. Guay-Woodford, MD (CNH) and Reamer L. Bushardt, PharmD, PA-C (GW). Drs. Guay-Woodford and Bushardt are proven leaders who bring complementary expertise and experience to the program.
- Lisa M. Guay-Woodford, MD
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Dr. Guay-Woodford has led the CTSI-CN since 2012, when she was recruited to CNH. Dr. Guay-Woodford is the Hudson Professor of Pediatrics at CNH, a pediatric nephrologist, and an internationally-recognized investigator whose research focuses on identifying clinical and genetic factors involved in the pathogenesis of inherited renal disorders, most notably autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD). Her research program has been funded by the NIH, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Clinical Scientist Award in Translational Research, and the Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation. In 2009, Dr. Guay-Woodford was awarded the Lillian Jean Kaplan International Prize for Advancement in the Understanding of Polycystic Kidney Disease, given by the PKD Foundation and the International Society of Nephrology.
In addition to her clinical and investigative work, Dr. Guay-Woodford is a leader in promoting clinical and translational science. In 2005, she established the UAB Hepato-Renal Fibrocystic Disease Research and Translational Core Center, funded by a NIDDK P30 award. She served as Center Director from 2005 to 2012. Since moving to Children's National in 2012, she has continued to serve as Center co-Director. In 2008, Dr. Guay-Woodford was the founding Director of the UAB Center for Clinical and Translational Science, funded by the NIH CTSA program. Currently, she is the Director of the Children's National Center for Translational Science, as well as Director of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at Children’s National (CTSI-CN), which is also funded by the NIH CTSA program.
- Reamer L. Bushardt, PharmD, PA-C, DFAAPA
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Dr. Bushardt is a tenured educator, researcher, clinician, and administrator with experience in rural, community-based practice, and faculty service within three academic medical centers. He is professor and senior associate dean in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. with joint appointments in Physician Assistant (PA) Studies and Medicine. In his leadership role at GW, he oversees departments and centers comprising more than forty programs in the health professions and translational sciences. He also serves on the senior leadership team for the GW clinical enterprise, contributing expertise in the areas of workforce innovation, patient- and family-centered models of care, and operational excellence. He is licensed as a physician assistant and pharmacist with specialized training and experience in caring for patients with emphasis on management of chronic illness and interventions to address inappropriate polypharmacy and drug injury, and practices in primary care within the GW Department of Medicine. He regularly teaches and mentors trainees in the areas of pharmacology and clinical research. He is principal investigator for the GW Health Careers Opportunity Program, a healthcare workforce development program funded by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. He is co-director of the Expansion of Practitioner Training in Substance Use Disorders, a grant project funded by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. He leads the Translational Workforce Development program in the Clinical Translational Science Institute at Children’s Network (CTSI-CN), funded by the National Institutes of Health’ National Center for Advancing Translational Science. Dr. Bushardt is a director-at-large on the board of the Physician Assistant Education Association. He is editor-in-chief emeritus for the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. He serves on the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education. Dr. Bushardt previously served as a department chair at Wake Forest School of Medicine and associate vice president for workforce and process innovation at the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C.