Meet the DCOC

ECHO ISPCTN Data Coordinating & Operations Center (DCOC)

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The ECHO ISPCTN DCOC, housed at the University of Kansas Medical Center, manages the following activities for the ECHO ISPCTN:

  • Data coordination
  • Technical instruction
  • Data standards
  • Quality control and assurance
  • Operational coordination for ECHO ISPCTN clinical trials

Together, KUMC-UNMC DCOC team members are building on the ECHO IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network’s foundation to increase academic productivity, improve trial quality, expand access to ISPCTN trials for underserved children, and ultimately deliver impactful results for children's health.  By fostering community engagement and culturally relevant trials, the DCOC is working to ensure all children benefit from medical advancements.

Aerials of the KU Med Center campus in Kansas City

To achieve these results, the KUMC-UNMC DCOC is ensuring that ECHO ISPCTN clinical trials reflect health priorities, respect cultural/social considerations, utilize cutting-edge intervention frameworks and study designs, and deliver actionable new knowledge that benefits the greatest number of children and families. In partnership with the NIH ECHO Program Office and Clinical Sites, the DCOC provides research infrastructure that supports nimble, streamlined study initiation, generating a wealth of knowledge about the complex relationships between environment, access, and health outcomes in rural pediatric populations, and helps establish the next generation of researchers devoted to pediatric clinical research and public health in rural and underserved communities.

The DCOC is administered by an experienced leadership team and organized into multiple cores to implement this important initiative.

Meet the team

Investigators Collapse

 

Matthew S. Mayo, PhD, MBA
DCOC Principal Investigator

Dr. Mayo is Founding Chair and Professor of the Department of Biostatistics & Data Science at the University of Kansas Medical Center and Associate Director for Shared Resources for The University of Kansas Cancer Center. He has been focused on creating and maintaining a sustainable environment of quantitative scientists in biostatistics, informatics and data science that enhances and supports the education, research and service missions of the university, while establishing innovative graduate programs in biostatistics, applied statistics, analytics and data science. Dr. Mayo has also been heavily involved in KUMC’s General Clinical Research Center and Clinical Translational Science Award.

As DCOC Principal Investigator and Contact PI, Dr. Mayo collaborates with Drs. McCulloh and Wick to oversee all aspects of the DCOC including project oversight, management, and scientific directive for the ECHO ISPCTN DCOC.  He directly supervises all DCOC Core Leaders and represents the DCOC on the ECHO ISPCTN Steering Committee and DSMB meetings, as well as all meetings with the NIH ECHO program office.

Russell McCulloh, MD
DCOC MPI

Dr. Russell McCulloh is a Professor of Pediatrics and Neurosciences at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.  He serves as Associate Vice Chancellor for Clinical Research for UNMC, Vice President for Research for Nebraska Medicine, and Chief Medical Officer for UNeHealth, UNMC's subsidiary focused on expanding industry-sponsored research.  A national leader in pediatric clinical trials and community-based research, with extensive leadership experience within the ECHO IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network, Dr. McCulloh works extensively with rural communities to engage in clinical research, including clinical trials.

As DCOC MPI, Dr. McCulloh is responsible for directing the clinical operations-focused activities for the ISPCTN DCOC, assisted by Dr. Ashley Deschamp and Dr. Kari Neemann. He provides day-to-day oversight of all clinical trial activities and helps oversee the community engagement portions of the strategy. Dr. McCulloh participates in the ISPCTN Leadership Committee and Steering Committee and ensures study protocols, manual of procedures, and all standard operating procedures adhere to Good Clinical Practice.

Jo Wick, PhD
DCOC MPI

Dr. Jo Wick is Professor and Director of Graduate Education in the Department of Biostatistics & Data Science and also serves as Co-Director of the PhD Program in Clinical and Translational Science and the MS Program in Clinical Research. Dr. Wick brings over two decades of experience in biostatistics, clinical trials, and health disparities research.
She has served as a biostatistician or co-investigator on numerous NIH- and NCI-funded studies across clinical and translational domains, including oncology, cardiology, infectious disease, and population health.

As the ECHO DCOC MPI, Dr. Wick provides biostatistical expertise, leadership, management, and oversight for the educational and training goals of this project. She oversees the functions of and participates in the DCOC Communications core, serves as Director of the DCOC Clinical Trial Skills Development core, and participates in the DCOC Clinical Trial Design & Statistical Operations core where she works with investigators proposing new trials.

Ashley Deschamp, MD
DCOC Co-Investigator

Dr. Deschamp is a board-certified pediatric pulmonologist and Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She serves as the Pediatric Director of the Nebraska Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Therapeutics Development Center and Associate CF Center Director at the Nebraska Regional CF Center.  With a Master of Science in Clinical Research and extensive fellowship training in pediatric pulmonology, Dr. Deschamp leads multiple clinical trials and research initiatives focused on cystic fibrosis, pediatric asthma, and the gut-lung microbiome connection.

For Heartland DCOC, Dr. Ashley Deschamp serves as a Co-Investigator at the UNMC site.  She provides guidance for clinical trials concepts, protocols, progress of studies, and study results.

Kari Neemann, MD
DCOC Co-Investigator

Dr. Neemann is an Associate Professor of Adult and Pediatric Infectious Diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Children’s Nebraska. She serves as Section Chief of the Pediatric Immunocompromised Infectious Diseases Service, where her clinical focus is the care of children with complex immunocompromising conditions. Since 2020, she has also served as Medical Advisor to the Douglas County Health Department, where she provides expertise in communicable disease management and vaccine advocacy to promote community health.

For Heartland DCOC, Dr. Neemann serves as a co-investigator for the UNMC site and focuses on assisting MPI McCulloh and the UNMC DCOC team to oversee clinical trials operations and quality assurance activities. She will also advise on community engagement strategies and support clinical trial activities and implementation of educational content.

DCOC Operations
Communications
Clinical Trial Site Management
Regulatory and Compliance
Finance and Contracting
Statistical Operations
Informatics