Therapeutic Areas

Cardiology/Vascular Diseases
Dental and Oral Health
Dermatology
Devices
Endocrinology
Gastroenterology
Hematology
Hepatology (Liver, Pancreatic, Gall Bladder)
Immunology
Infections and Infectious Diseases
Internal Medicine
Musculoskeletal
Nephrology
Neurology
Nutrition and Weight Loss
Obstetrics/Gynecology (Women’s Health)
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics/Orthopedic Surgery
Otolaryngology (Ear, Nose, Throat)
Pediatrics/Neonatology
Pharmacology/Toxicology
Podiatry
Psychiatry/Psychology
Pulmonary/Respiratory Diseases
Rheumatology
Sleep
Trauma (Emergency, Injury, Surgery)
Urology
Vaccines

Center Overview

Type of Center:
Located in Chicago's northern suburbs, NorthShore University HealthSystem (NorthShore) is an academic health system affiliated with University of Chicago. Most attending physicians at NorthShore are on faculty at the Pritzker School of Medicine. NorthShore is an integrated delivery system that includes Evanston, Glenbrook, Highland Park and Skokie Hospitals as well as NorthShore Home Services, NorthShore Medical Group, NorthShore Research Institute, and the NorthShore Foundation.

History of Centers:

Evanston Hospital:
With a history dating to 1891, the 476 bed Evanston Hospital is the nucleus of NorthShore University HealthSystem. Evanston Hospital demonstrates leadership in cancer and cardiac care, providing specialized cancer services at The Kellogg Cancer Care Center and comprehensive heart care at the Cardiovascular Care Center. Physicians work alongside leading researchers to translate the latest technology, treatment and research into improved patient care. As the regional center for high-risk obstetrics, the Women’s Hospital offers a comfortable birthing environment where high-risk mothers and their babies have access to the latest technology and a highly-trained staff. The hospital is a licensed Level I Trauma Center.

Glenbrook Hospital:
Opened in 1977, Glenbrook Hospital is a 143-bed hospital facility offering high-tech medical care in a community hospital setting. Few hospitals of its size deliver such diverse services as cardiac care including cardiac catheterization and ultra fast CT scan, total hip and knee replacement, the Eye and Vision Center for LASIK and other eye surgery, and neurological services including a sleep center, a cognitive and memory disorder program and a Parkinson's Disease clinic. Glenbrook Hospital also features a “state of the art” GI suite with advanced technology. Paired with a highly qualified team of physicians, the gastroenterology program is among the strongest in the region for research, diagnosis and treatment. Children's at Glenbrook provides outpatient pediatric services and ambulatory surgery in partnership with Children's Memorial Hospital. Glenbrook Hospital is a Level II Trauma Center.

Highland Park Hospital:
Founded in 1918, Highland Park Hospital has provided high-quality healthcare for more than 80 years. The 239-bed hospital is the site of the first open heart surgery in Lake County. The new Ambulatory Care Center offers advanced capabilities, including multi-disciplinary cancer care at the Kellogg Cancer Care Center, a CT/PET scan for diagnostics and a CT Simulator and Linear Accelerator for radiation therapy. A wide variety of mental health services, including a center for eating disorders, adolescent psychiatric care and the Doreen E. Chapman Center for substance abuse, are also available.

Skokie Hospital:
Founded in 1963 and joining the NorthShore University HealthSystem in 2009, Skokie Hospital has provided high-quality healthcare for nearly five decades. The 175-bed acute care hospital is nationally recognized for its expertise in cancer care, cardiac care and orthopedics.

The Illinois Foundation for Quality Health Care has recognized the Hospital as one of 43 hospitals nationwide for its Surgical Care Improvement - Project Commitment to Quality Award. Additionally, in the Blue Cross Blue Shield Hospital Survey, for its comprehensive cardiac care, the Hospital was named one of the Top 100 Cardiovascular Hospitals in the nation for cardiology and heart surgery programs. Skokie Hospital’s Level II Trauma Center—Emergency Department—is staffed by experienced trauma team members specially trained in pediatric life support.

NorthShore Research Institute:
Today, a large number of our stellar clinician-scientists have received highly competitive grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These men and women are members of the Corporation's "million- dollar club" by virtue of their million-dollar-plus grants for studies ranging from Advanced Imaging to the secrets of killer cells with far-reaching implications for diseases such as cancer and arthritis.

The Institute serves as a focal point for nearly 200 externally funded research faculty and $100 million in external research funding. The Research Institute has approximately 110,000 net square feet of research space. Emphasis is on translational and clinical research allowing discoveries from the basic sciences to be brought promptly to the bedside. Funding from the NIH places the hospitals of NorthShore University HealthSystem among the top 10 multi-specialty independent research hospitals in the country. Our growing reputation as an academic medical institution has contributed to the Institute's spectacular success.

The Corporation's commitment to research allows the NorthShore Research Institute to adhere to its mission:

• To enhance the academic medical center environment at NorthShore University HealthSystem
• To create an environment and an endowment to recruit and retain externally funded research investigators
• To integrate "leading edge" research into improved clinical care
• To recruit the nation's top clinicians and differentiate NorthShore University HealthSystem and its clinicians in the marketplace
• To establish and enhance strong links to area corporations and the University of Chicago.

The Charles R. Walgreen, Jr. Building: is a new research and administrative building on the Evanston Hospital campus containing offices and laboratory space for research staff and faculty and is a hub for clinical research efforts. The building houses the Center for Advanced Imaging, which provides up-to-the-minute imaging technology to support physician-scientists in every medical specialty.

Center for Advanced Imaging:
The center has two MRI scanners exclusively devoted to research: the Siemens 1.5T Avanto and the new Siemens 3T Verio (wide bore) with the latest software updates including full cardiovascular capabilities. Additional facilities include subject preparation rooms, consultation rooms, image processing lab, RF development lab, animal preparation room, C-arm for endovascular and other x-ray based imaging. Our image processing laboratory is equipped with a broad range of clinical and research based systems. Siemens Leonardo, GE Advantage, and Vitrea workstations provide a full scope of clinical level analysis of cardiovascular MR and CT images. Research image processing is served by 3 PCs with Linux and several standard image processing software packages including MATLAB, SPM, FSL, FreeSurfer, 3D Slicer as well as ImageJ 1.32 from the National Institutes of Health. CAI is well equipped to perform functional MRI (fMRI) studies. fMRI data are collected on a Siemens Verio 3T scanner with a 12-channel head coil, providing excellent signal-to-noise. State-of-the-art equipment for visual display, audio headphones and subject microphone with noise cancellation, and a 4-button response pad provides flexibility in task design. We also have two dedicated research technologists with extensive research experience. This is a significant advantage in clinical trials where strict adherence to protocol is important.

Clinical imaging facilities, consisting of five 1.5 T MR systems, are also available for research. Two scanners are located at Evanston Hospital, including a 1.5 T CVi system with 40 mT/m gradients and a 1.5T Siemens Espree wide bore system to be installed Spring of 2009.

NorthShore Medical Group: is comprised of 600 employed primary and specialty care physicians throughout the north and northwest suburbs of Chicago. Attending physicians are on faculty at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

Recognition and Awards:

• 2004 Davies Award for Excellence for Healthcare Organizations presented by The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS)
• 2004 CUBIC Award, Corporate University Best in Class (International Quality and Productivity Center) – Most innovative industry resource
• 2004 KLAS Recognition - achieved the highest value rating from the KLAS Research Consulting Firm that monitors and reports the performance of healthcare information technology vendors
• 2004 CHIME Collaboration Award – CIO received award in recognition of the successful relationship and joint efforts displayed during installation of Epic application
• 2005: Consumers Digest identified only three Illinois hospitals as an exceptional US hospital in safety: Evanston, Glenbrook and Highland Park Hospitals.
• 2005 Award for Excellence in Medication-Use Safety (ASHP Foundation) - for 100% elimination of transcription-related medication errors
• 2005 CIO Managerial Award -Top 100 Bold Ones: Honored at the 18th annual CIO 100 awards which celebrated 100 organizations that demonstrate “boldness”. According to CIO magazine, “boldness is the willingness to embrace significant risk for the sake of great reward. Organizations and leaders that are bold are playing to win, not just survive”.
• 2005 CEO IT Achievement Award presented to Mark R. Neaman, President and CEO of NorthShore University HealthSystem.
• 2007 Leapfrog Group – named to “Leapfrog Top Hospitals” list for second consecutive year
• 2007 & 2008 Top 100 Most Highly Integrated Healthcare Networks (Verispan)
• National Institutes of Health – ranked 10th in the nation among independent, multi-specialty research hospitals.
• 2009 Gold medal Award (American College of Healthcare Executives) – CEO honored for building one of the first systemwide electronic health-record systems that demonstrated improved quality, safety and efficiency
• 2009 HIMSS Analytics Stage 7 Award – among the first 15 hospitals that operate in a paperless environment and represent the best practices of the EMR
• Learning in Practice Award (Chief Learning Officer Magazine) – Bronze Award for Leading Business Change
• The Midwest Business Group on Health (MBGH) added NorthShore University HealthSystem to their list of hospitals that have embraced the concept of publicly reporting efforts to reduce medical errors.
• Top 100 U.S. Hospitals for 15 of the last 17 Years
• 100 Most Wired Hospitals Award for 9 consecutive years

2010 Statistics:

Mission Statement:
The core mission of NorthShore University HealthSystem is to preserve and improve human life. This mission will be achieved through the provision of superior clinical care, academic excellence, and innovative research.

NorthShore University HealthSystem is a not-for-profit corporation principally formed to provide quality healthcare services for the communities it serves. The delivery of healthcare services is provided in a wide range of inpatient and ambulatory healthcare settings, community-wide, employing modern technology and expertise. Support for qualified residents who may not be able to pay the entire cost of their care is a part of the organization’s commitment. The organization’s primary service area includes Chicago’s "north shore," northern suburbs, and its environs. In support of its primary mission of patient care, the corporation engages in a wide range of academic activities in medical education and research, and does so largely by way of its affiliation with the University of Chicago. This statement recognizes the Board of Directors responsibility to maintain the organization’s viability to meet its long-term commitment to the communities it serves. It further recognizes the responsibility to maintain technologically current assets for this purpose. This includes the cultivation and development of our physicians, employees, physical plant, equipment, and other resources to assure orderly growth of our services.

Institutional Review Board:
NorthShore University HealthSystem has two Institutional Review Boards operating under Federal Wide Assurance -Number FWA00003000 - on file with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. One Board meets the 1st Friday, the other meets the 3rd Friday of each month. Principal Investigators are invited to attend the IRB meeting at which their project is being discussed, in order to facilitate approval process the IRBs oversee a clinical research program of 800 active trials.

NorthShore University HealthSystem Research Institute has worked with the following sponsors:

All major pharmaceutical companies and device manufacturers including:

• Abbott Laboratories
• AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
• Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc
• Astellas Research Institute of America (ARIA, formerly Fuijisawa)
• Baxter Healthcare/Baxter International Inc.
• Boston Scientific Corporation
• Bristol-Myers Squibb Co
• Eli Lilly & Co.
• Genentech, Inc.
• Glaxo Smithkline Pharmaceuticals
• Guidant Corp.
• Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, LLC
• Medtronic, Inc.
• Merck & Company, Inc.
• Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
• Ortho-McNeil Inc
• Parke-Davis Pharmaceutical Research
• Pfizer
• Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
• Schering-Plough Research Institute
• Wyeth Pharmaceuticals

Investigator Experience

Contact Center

If you are interested in contacting this center to discuss placing a clinical trial there, please complete and send the email form below. A representative from the research center will then follow up with you.