Supporting COEQUal projects and personnel: Administrative CORE

PROJECT SUMMARY – ADMINISTRATIVE CORE COEQUaL, the COllaboration for EQuity in Uterine Leiomyomas, builds on longstanding collaborations among women with uterine fibroids (UF) and multidisciplinary researchers to place individuals with UF at the center of this project with the overarching goals to improve outcomes for all women with UF and eliminate health disparities for Black/African American (BAA) women. The Administrative Core will provide key infrastructure for all projects and activities of COEQUaL, foster team science, coordinate internal and external communication in conjunction with the CPEO, and mentor and train the next generation of UF researchers and advocates. The specific aims of the core are to: 1)To facilitate all aspects of the collaborations by providing fiscal, regulatory and scientific resources. 2)To facilitate communication regarding all aspects and outcomes of the work to promote synergy, reduce duplicative effort, and facilitate high quality team science, within the team, and externally to the NIH, stakeholders and the scientific and general population. 3)With the CPEO, to serve the patient community with UF by quarterly open sessions, prioritization, and dissemination of key findings in the literature and public space as well as specific findings from COEQuaL 4)To train the next generation of academic and lay leaders not only through selection and mentoring of pilot project investigators to bring diverse early-stage investigators into the field, but by succession planning within the collaboration. Diverse External and Internal Advisory Committees (EAC and IAC) will help guide the work. A unique quarterly open session with a key COEQUaL leader will disseminate the work and provide staff development. Key facets of the Pilot Projects include 1) Nationwide dissemination of announcement with emphasis on recruitment of diverse applicants, 2) Rigor of project review, 3) Designation of a COEQUaL Senior Mentor for successful applicants,4) Peer mentoring though the Mayo Clinic Women’s Health Research Committee, 5) Formal Coursework though CCaTS/CTSA program and 6) Institutional funding for travel award for presentation of the project. The impact of the Administrative Core will be to sustain, mentor, and support the existing investigators, the future investigators and the women with UF with the goal of eliminating UF health disparities. The core’s activities will also synergize with the CPOE core to communicate work of the COEQUaL collaboration, and other published work relevant to uterine fibroids. We anticipate the findings of COEQUaL will impact every facet of UF care and will improve the experience for all women but especially focus on the health disparities of BAA women. 1