skip to main content
WREN Convocation

Dr. John Hickner leads a discussion on the Wisconsin Research and Education Network's future direction at the 2008 annual convocation, held May 1-2, 2008.

WREN Convocation Highlights Recent Transformations and Future Directions

Contributors: Kelly Kwiatkowski, MA, Michael Grasmick, PhD, Paul Smith, MD

Thirty-three members and friends attended the Wisconsin Research and Education Network's (WREN) 2008 annual convocation, held May 1-2 in Wisconsin Dells, to discuss the network's recent growth and help set its course for the future.

The convocation kicked off with several presentations on population health and primary care. Speakers included:

  • Patrick Remington, MD, MPH, professor of population health sciences, UW-Madison; director, UW Population Health Institute; director, UW Master of Public Health Program;
  • David Kindig, MD, PhD, emeritus professor of population health sciences, UW-Madison; and
  • John Hickner, MD, MSc, professor of family medicine, University of Chicago

These presentations set the stage for deeper discussion on WREN's expansion over the past year and a half, and the direction it should take in the future.

The WREN Network

WREN is a unique practice-based research network. The network itself comprises over 130 primary care clinicians and researchers throughout Wisconsin. Over 50 member-clinicians conduct "real-world" translational research and quality improvement (QI) projects in nearly 50 family medicine practices across 35 Wisconsin communities.

For example, one WREN-supported project is evaluating patients newly diagnosed with hypertension to determine the relationship between medication compliance, depression, and quality of life. At least four WREN practices are participating in this project.

Researchers investigating questions related to primary health care delivery can approach WREN for help in identifying clinics and physicians that might be potential project collaborators. WREN also provides valuable administrative support throughout the lifespan of a project-support that, as a result of recent funding, continues to strengthen and grow.

WREN's Expanded Capacity

In January 2007, WREN received over $400,000 in funding through the UW Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR). With these funds, WREN was able to create a solid infrastructure of staff, relationships, and resources to better support current and future research projects.

A key element of this new infrastructure is WREN's four research and education practice support specialists (REPSS). REPSS foster relationships with participating clinics, facilitate research and QI projects in those clinics, and serve as the communication liaison between clinics and WREN administration.

This model allows WREN to maintain the capacity needed to begin projects in a timely way. This differs from traditional research projects in which principal investigators must often spend considerable startup time creating an infrastructure.

WREN's model can also be more easily scaled up or down as project workloads fluctuate. This will be especially beneficial in the future, as WREN seeks to increase its capacity through new relationships with physicians, clinics, and researchers.

Future Research Directions

With its infrastructure in place, WREN is now focusing on its role in the changing health care landscape. At the 2008 convocation, WREN Director Paul Smith, MD, facilitated discussions on the types of projects the network should seek out in the coming years.

"One of the themes at the convocation was that primary care is the changing face of medicine," Smith said. "Therefore, our question is, how do we effect practice change? What do primary care physicians need to know in order to treat patients better and be more efficient in this 'new world order'?"

According to Smith, WREN is particularly interested in projects that can quickly impact how health care is delivered at the front lines. "The specific focus may be on obesity or diabetes or prenatal care," he continued, "but the underlying process of practice change is our area of interest."

To that end, WREN is working to connect researchers with practices around the state. "We are very interested in talking to researchers as they develop project plans," Smith said. "We have established relationships with clinics, and we can be a valuable resource for finding subjects."

New Fundraising Initiative

At the convocation, WREN also discussed a new fundraising initiative intended to support members' developing research interests and skills. Through this initiative, WREN would award small grants for projects that would normally not be funded through other sources.

WREN currently has a small amount of funds available through an account at University of Wisconsin Foundation. Over the next year, it will work with the Foundation on a plan to increase the amount of funds available. The Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians and the Department of Family Medicine have agreed to provide limited matching funds for donations made to this account.