Are you a new investigator and not sure where to begin with a research idea? Are you a seasoned researcher and would like to expand your project? Do you need help navigating the LA CaTS Center world of resources available to you? Meet Michelle Wilson. Michelle is the LA CaTS Center Research Navigator. Michelle joins our team from the LA-CEAL initiative, and she brings a wealth of experience in research from her previous work in the School of Medicine and School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine here at Tulane, as well as Ochsner Health System as a Clinical Research Coordinator.

Clinical and translational research faculty and trainees at the LA CaTS Center member institutions have a partner in her to assist in the development of innovative, investigator-initiated clinical trials. The LA CaTS Research Navigator serves as a resource for principal investigators (PIs) to help enrich and facilitate the progress of clinical research protocols from conception to analysis and publication.

The LA CaTS Research Navigator is the first point of contact for trainees and junior faculty interested in pursuing investigator-initiated clinical research. She will help guide the clinical investigator throughout the life of the study.

Our Research Navigator will meet with the PIs as they draft their protocol and become familiar with the study's needs. The Navigator will then facilitate the PI’s use of biostatistics, bioinformatics, clinical research resources, and other services available at the LA CaTS Center institutions through the established cores. She will also assist the PIs in negotiating the administrative and regulatory pathway in order to accelerate a protocol's implementation. Once a study begins to recruit participants, she will help the PIs troubleshoot a variety of protocol issues, including accrual, compliance, data management, and the eventual publication of the study's findings. Additionally, the Research Navigator is a critical link to the established clinical and translational investigators who serve as mentors at the LA CaTS Center institutions.

Faculty can apply for Research Navigator assistance by making a request on SPARC. For questions or inquiries, contact Michelle at mwilso21@tulane.edu or the PD Core at CareerDevel@LACaTS.org.