Pediatric Research Group

The Pediatric Research Group (PRG) provides clinical research services to investigators within the Department of Pediatrics at the MUSC.

Vision Statement

We aim to be a highly valued and sustainable partner in the quest for the rapid discovery of important medical knowledge that will improve the lives of children.

 

Mission Statement

Our team is fully committed to providing outstanding and collaborative administrative, regulatory, and coordinator support for all clinical investigators who use our services.

We foster collegial partnerships with grant administrators, regulatory groups at MUSC, and our extramural sponsors.

 

About the PRG

The PRG provides support for a wide variety of federally funded and industry sponsored studies - including randomized trials, clinical registries, and investigator-initiated clinical research projects. The PRG currently supports over 80 active studies and activates approximately 10-15 new studies every year.  We work in collaboration with a number of other clinical research entities at MUSC, including the Office of Clinical Research (OCR), the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs (ORSP), and the South Carolina Clinical and Translational Research Institute (SCTR).  We also are actively working to enhance collaboration between clinical investigators and our basic science colleagues at the Darby Children’s Research Institute (DCRI). Our services are timely, accurate, proactive, and dynamic in order to meet the needs of our investigators, regulatory partners, sponsors, and most importantly, our young patients and their families.

 

Research Services

  • Regulatory activities
  • Budget development
  • Feasibility assessment
  • Clinical trial management
  • Recruitment
  • Study assessments
  • Research specimen procurement and processing
  • Data analysis & management

 

Our Research Team

The PRG is led by Dr. John Costello, who also serves as the Vice Chair of Clinical Research within the Department of Pediatrics, Megan Bickford, the Manager of the PRG, and Erica Blender Brown, the Director of Research Administration in the Department of Pediatrics.

PRG Leadership Team:

John M. Costello, M.D., M.P.H.

Vice Chair of Clinical Research, Department of Pediatrics
Director of Research, Children’s Heart Center
Professor of Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina
165 Ashley Avenue, MSC 915
Charleston, SC 29425
E-mail: costello@musc.edu

Erica Blender Brown
Director, Research Administration
135 Rutledge Ave.
Charleston, SC  29425
Office: 843-876-2546
Email: blendere@musc.edu

 

To learn more about the PRG services, grants, industry sponsored studies, and other research issues, please contact:

Erica Blender Brown
Director, Research Administration
135 Rutledge Ave.
Charleston, SC  29425
Office: 843-876-2546
Email: blendere@musc.edu