July 2023 Updates

Concluding Module-centric Working Groups

At the March 3rd Brown Innovation and Research Collaborative for Health (BIRCH) Retreat, participants across our three organizations were brought together to discuss modules outlined in the Aligned Research Collaboration Agreement that would impact our operational planning. Participants were organized into module-centric working groups: Research Compliance and Integrity (IRB), Research IT, Clinical Research, and Contracting. Following the Retreat, the working groups met to gather current state information and to discuss alignment considerations. On July 6th, summaries of each group’s activities were distributed to participants for feedback and edits. IRB stakeholders received a copy of the draft materials produced by the engagement of an outside consultant to help guide the alignment of our Human Research Protection Programs. Each summary included information on how the work completed by these groups will feed into our next planning effort.

Launching Focus Groups and Internal Advisory Committees

Over the past month, leaders at Brown University, Lifespan, and Care New England have considered specialties and expertise needed on BIRCH advisory committees. The Aligned Research Collaboration Agreement calls for four formal committees, which we are establishing. The Joint Executive Council (JEC) acknowledges the need for greater engagement and participation and is forming focus groups around specific topics, like space and communications, that cut across all aspects of BIRCH and subcommittees to address additional considerations, like faculty engagement. As highlighted in the June newsletter, our multidisciplinary project team will interface with the focus groups and committees to develop well-rounded and detailed work plans for each Office of BIRCH identified in the Aligned Research Collaboration Agreement. The goal is for the JEC to review the work plans at the end of this calendar year.

Chief Scientific Officer and Chief Administrative Officer Appointments

We are pleased to share the appointments of Bharat Ramratnam, MD to the role of Chief Scientific Officer and Francie Emlen, MBA, RN to the role of Chief Administrative Officer for the Brown Innovation and Research Collaborative for Health (BIRCH). Both will begin a two-year term in their respective roles in addition to their current positions on July 1, 2023.

Under the direction of the Joint Executive Council Bharat and Francie have been tasked to operationalize BIRCH, providing a unified research administration for biomedical and health sciences.  As the Chief Scientific Officer, Bharat will be responsible for steering the development of BIRCH, ensuring the collaborative serves as a catalyst for the most innovative and strategically important research. As Chief Administrative Officer, Francie will be responsible for the development and ongoing administrative leadership of the Offices of BIRCH.

Bharat Ramratnam, is a Professor of Medicine who currently serves as Interim Vice President of Research at Lifespan and Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Medicine.  Dr. Ramratnam completed his undergraduate, medical and post-graduate education at Brown University. After residency and chief residency in internal medicine, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University’s Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center. His past honors include the Doris Duke Clinical Scientist Award, a Daland Fellowship from the American Philosophical Society, and a Culpepper Award from the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation. He leads a NIH-funded laboratory of HIV-1 pathogenesis at RIH and focuses on HIV-1 cure strategies.  

Francie Emlen is the Assistant Dean of Research Administration and Strategic Initiatives in the Division of Biology and Medicine at Brown University. Francie brings with her over 10 years of strategic business planning and execution. Prior to coming to Brown, Francie held multiple leadership roles, including Head of Clinical Strategy and Operations, Alula; Director of Oncology Service Line and Operations, NewYork-Presbyterian; Director of Strategic Initiatives, Mount Sinai Health System; and Director for Training Innovation and Workforce Development, ComplexCare Solutions. Francie completed her MBA from New York University Stern School of Business and her BSN from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her senior clinical rotation at the Weill Cornell Medical Center as a Hillman Scholar and spent her early career in bedside nursing.

Please join us in congratulating both Bharat and Francie on their new appointments.