Dialysis Clinic, Inc. - DCI - Site Management Organization (SMO)
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Dialysis Clinic, Inc. (DCI) is so much more than dialysis. 

What began as one dialysis clinic 52 years ago has grown to 270 locations in 29 states. As part of our strategic growth over the years, we have expanded our reach beyond dialysis and the renal community. DCI Clinical Research (DCICR) has research sites specializing in chronic kidney disease, hypertension, anemia, bone mineral disease, electrolytes, and much more. 

DCICR offers a dedicated team of professionals to serve as your trusted partner and Site Management Organization (SMO). We believe that building relationships is key to ensuring quality data, and we have built our program with that belief as our foundation, for example:

  • The DCICR Team personally knows and has an established relationship with every site investigator, leading to effective communications and achieving study goals.
  • We provide a dedicated Project Manager to oversee and support each site with IRB submissions; screening and recruitment; identification and troubleshooting of potential study issues; and clinical staff in-services.
  • DCI employs the clinical research coordinator (CRC) in 50% of the sites for enhanced oversight and dedicated research staff with experience working with DCI in 100% of sites. 

 

 

Here are some important things to know about the DCICR Team: 

  • We comprise of 10 research sites representing over 20,000 non-dialysis and 1,950 dialysis patients as potential study participants. 
  • Our research sites have an average of more than 15 years of research experience.
  • DCI CRCs graduate from DCI’s Research Education Program, consisting of 46 hours of research training with 24 hours devoted to one-on-one training with the DCI Project Manager to ensure the study is conducted according to federal regulations and ICH guidelines. 
  • Template contracts between DCI and the sites ensure a fast study start-up. Once the SMO agreement has been executed, the average time to study start-up is two weeks for 50% of the sites. Ninety percent (90%) of sites can use a central IRB.
  • CRCs are known within the clinic space and have direct access to clinical EMRs.

 

 


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Karen Townsend Majchrzak, M.S. | DCI Director of Clinical Research

 

With more than 25 years of experience conducting and supervising multiple research projects and teams, Karen Townsend Majchrzak, M.S., Dialysis Clinic, Inc.’s Director of Clinical Research, oversees all aspects of corporate management over DCI’s research and funding programs. 

With an academic management background and extensive knowledge of Good Clinical Practice guidelines and institutional review board procedures, Majchrzak designs and administers innovative initiatives within organizational research efforts, particularly DCI’s first multicenter, corporate-initiated clinical trial, including development and implementation of an electronic data-capturing system, and the largest clinical trial in dialysis history with more than 10,000 participants. Majchrzak oversees compliance of and reporting for research funding programs and has realigned DCI’s procedures and tracking to improve efficiencies and provide timely progress reports. She aids in managing DCI’s quality management efforts and its Analytics Department.   

Majchrzak’s leadership has been integral in creating and actively participating in several internal DCI committees including the Health Equity committee, Paul Teschan Research Fund, the Medical Director Research committee, and the Quality Management Committee. 

Majchrzak is a co-investigator on numerous research studies published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, Kidney Medicine, Kidney International, Journal of Physical Activity and Health, Journal of Renal Nutrition, Journal of Pediatrics, and Obesity Research & Clinical Practice, among others. She is a certified clinical research professional and is a member of the Society of Clinical Research Associates and the American Society of Nephrology. Majchrzak holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Exercise Science from East Tennessee State University and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, respectively.

 


 

 

 For more information regarding DCI Clinical Research and/or Site Management Organization (SMO) Services, please contact:

 

Karen Majchrzak, MS, CCRP
Director of Clinical Research
Karen.Majchrzak@dciinc.org
Tel: 615-342-0483

Dialysis Clinic, Inc
1633 Church Street, Suite 500
Nashville, TN 37203