Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN)

Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN)
Name	Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network
Abbreviation	PECARN
Formation	2001
Purpose	Pediatric emergency medicine research network
Location	United States
Parent organization	National Institutes of Health

Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN) The Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network is a multicenter research network focused on acute pediatric emergency medicine, trauma, and injury prevention. It conducts multicenter clinical trials and observational studies in collaboration with academic hospitals, federal agencies, and professional societies. The network's work informs clinical decision making, guidelines, and health policy through evidence generated across pediatric emergency departments.

Overview

PECARN operates as a multicenter collaborative research consortium linking pediatric emergency departments at academic centers and children's hospitals such as Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Boston Children's Hospital, Texas Children's Hospital, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Seattle Children's Hospital. It partners with federal funders including the National Institutes of Health, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Health Resources and Services Administration as well as professional organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics, Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, and American College of Emergency Physicians. The network integrates clinicians, investigators, statisticians, and informaticians from institutions such as Harvard Medical School, Stanford University School of Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Yale School of Medicine, and University of California, San Francisco.

History and Organization

PECARN was established in 2001 through funding initiatives linked to the Emergency Medical Services for Children Program and Congressional interest in pediatric research priorities derived from reports by the Institute of Medicine and legislation influenced by the Children's Health Act of 2000. Its governance model includes a steering committee, data coordinating center, and multiple research nodes hosted by centers such as University of Utah School of Medicine, Children's National Hospital, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Emory University School of Medicine, and Mayo Clinic. Leadership has interacted with advisory groups including the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services and consulted with guideline developers like U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and panels convened by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Research Priorities and Networks

PECARN's research priorities span traumatic brain injury, sepsis, respiratory illness, febrile infants, injury prevention, and mental health emergencies, aligning with agendas from National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. The network comprises emergency department nodes, specialty subcommittees, and a data coordinating center often collaborating with registries such as National Trauma Data Bank, Pediatric Health Information System, and consortia like Clinical and Translational Science Awards Consortium. Cross-disciplinary collaborations include investigators from American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Pediatric Emergency Care Coordinators, and international groups such as Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

Major Studies and Clinical Decision Rules

PECARN developed influential clinical decision rules and trials including validated pediatric head injury algorithms, sepsis recognition studies, and protocols for evaluation of febrile infants. Prominent outputs have intersected with guideline documents from Brighton Collaboration, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Injury Prevention Foundation, and recommendations echoed by organizations such as American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases. Key multicenter trials and observational cohorts involved collaborators at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Children's Hospital Colorado, Riley Hospital for Children, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

Data Infrastructure and Methodology

PECARN maintains a centralized data coordinating center that employs methods in biostatistics, clinical epidemiology, and informatics derived from groups at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and University of Washington School of Public Health. Data sources include electronic health record extracts from hospital systems such as Epic Systems Corporation installations and standardized case report forms harmonized with datasets like HCUP and the National Emergency Department Sample. Methodological work leverages approaches from CONSORT, STROBE, and diagnostic test evaluation frameworks used by investigators affiliated with Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science and University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.

Impact on Clinical Practice and Policy

PECARN evidence has informed clinical pathways, resource utilization strategies, and policy statements by entities such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and state health departments including California Department of Public Health and New York State Department of Health. Its derived clinical decision rules have been integrated into electronic decision support tools deployed at institutions like Children's National Hospital and referenced in systematic reviews by groups at Cochrane Collaboration, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and guideline panels convened by American College of Emergency Physicians.

Education, Training, and Collaboration Programs

PECARN fosters investigator development through mentored research career pathways, training symposia, and collaborative fellowships in partnership with academic centers such as University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine. Collaborative activities include workshops with organizations like Society for Pediatric Research, multicenter trainee research networks affiliated with Association of American Medical Colleges, and international exchange programs involving institutions such as Great Ormond Street Hospital and SickKids.

Category:Pediatric medical research organizations