Center Overview

At Ball Memorial Hospital, Inc., we are committed to providing our patients with the most advanced research treatments available in health care. Since the early 1980s, our physicians and staff members have been actively involved in national and international medical research studies with the goal of improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of medical care.

The Department of Research at Ball Memorial was established in 1989. Our purpose, then and now, is to make available to the residents of East Central Indiana a variety of state-of-the-art research protocols and assist in the protection of human research subjects by attracting reputable sponsors and professional organizations.

Our staff has made a commitment to medical research with the knowledge of the positive and profound impact it has upon patients' lives and their futures.

Clinical Research Experience

Our research center has clinical trials experience in the following areas:

• Stroke Treatment & Prevention
• Radiation Therapy Oncology
• Pain Management
• Prostate Cancer
• Renal/Nephrology
• Breast Cancer Prevention and Treatment
• Infectious Disease
• Bladder Cancer
• Urological Conditions
• Health Outcome Registries
• Biomarker Expression Studies
• Peripheral Vascular Disease
• Tissue Repository Studies

Our research center has worked with a variety of sponsors including but not limited to:

• American College of Radiology
• Amgen
• AstraZeneca
• Duke University Research Institute
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
• Eli Lilly
• Ev3
• FoxHollow Technologies
• Genentech
• Hoosier Oncology Group
• Indiana University
• Johnson & Johnson Research & Development
• Kyphon, Inc.
• Medtronic
• Merck
• Novartis
• NSABP Foundation, Inc.
• Omnicare Clinical Research
• Pharm C-Trials
• PPD Development, LP
• Quintiles
• Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
• Southwest Oncology Group
• St. Jude Medical
• United BioSource Corp
• Ball State University
• Yamanouchi

Facility Description

Ball Memorial Hospital is the flagship of Cardinal Health System, an integrated network of hospitals, diagnostic centers, pharmacies, a primary care physician network, comprehensive rehabilitation services, urgent care centers, and managed care partnerships dedicated to providing the highest quality of care for the people of East Central Indiana.

Founded in 1929, BMH serves as a 400-bed regional tertiary referral center and teaching hospital.

It boasts a 260-member clinical staff, which represents more than 45 medical specialties, and approximately 87 percent of that group is board certified, a figure that is well above the national average.

With more than 1.2 million square feet of facilities it offers a full-range of cutting-edge, state-of-the-art services.

The hospital campus is also home to the third largest physician teaching program in Indiana, with four ACGME accredited residency programs. BMH is also affiliated with the Indiana University School of Medicine, and serves as an educational site for the first two years of medical school. As part of the graduate medical education program, Ball Hospital operates Family Medicine and Internal Medicine clinics, which provide low-cost medical care with over 25,000 patient visits a year.

For the sixth straight year Cardinal Health System has been named among the Top 100 Integrated Healthcare Networks based on information compiled by Verispan, a Chicago-based healthcare information company.

The Tenth Annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study ranked Ball Hospital as No. 1 in Indiana and in the top five percent in the nation for cardiac surgery based on surgical outcomes. HealthGrades also awarded BMH its five-star rating for cardiac surgery and coronary bypass surgery.

Research Department Description:

• Patient examination rooms
• Secure Drug Storage
• Monitoring Room with telephone and high speed internet access
• Copier/Fax Machine
• Secure Record Storage
• Dedicated refrigerator
• Coordinator Offices
• Conference Room
• Reception area
• Access to most state-of-the-art medical and diagnostic equipment
• Our experienced coordinators are dedicated and certified

Investigator Experience

This is just a sampling of our experienced clinical investigators:

William Stephen Cassel, MD
Vascular Surgery

Yunjie Xie Lin, MD, PhD
Radiation Oncology

A. Stephen Tilmans, MD
Radiation Oncology

John Jacobs, MD
Radiation Oncology

Neal E. Coleman, MD
Anesthesiology/Pain Management

Ravi Sarin, MD
Nephrology

Regi Joseph, MD
Nephrology

Jeffrey C. Ulrich, MD
Urology

Robert S. Williams, MD
Urology

John D. Wulff, MD
Neurology

Hal S. Dickson, MD
Neurology

Joseph B. Landwehr, Jr., MD
Obstetrics/Gynecology

Jeffrey Bird, MD
Family Practice

Brandon Dickey, MD
Internal Medicine

Michael Burrell, MD
Vascular, Colon & Rectal Surgery

Antonio Navarrete, MD
Cardiac/Electrophysiology

Alex Cocco, MD
General Surgery

Joni Miller, MD
Internal Medicine/Pediatrics

Paul Stewart, MD
Colon/Rectal Surgery

Fred Francis, MD
Radiation Oncology

Albert Bruno, MD
Urology

Samuel Kim, MD
Urology

Please contact us for more detailed Investigator credentials and CVs

Staff Expertise

Charles E. Sanders, Jr., MD
Vice President, Medical Education & Research
More than 16 years experience in clinical research

Sherry Simmonds, BSN, RN, CCRP
Clinical Research Coordinator
More than 7 years experience in clinical research

Julie Foster, BSN, RN, CRRN, CCRC
Clinical Research Coordinator
More than 3 years experience in clinical research

Alfreda Bright, AB
Administrative Specialist
More than 18 years administrative support experience

Patient Demographics

• Stable population
• Multi-county area
• Midwest location
• University town
• A unique blend of urban and rural settings

Other Information

• JCAHO accredited
• ISO 9001:2000 certified
• ACGME accredited residencies
• Dedicated IRB Administrator: Gail Goethals, BSW
• IRB meets monthly with written approval. Usually less than 30 days
• Prompt review and execution of contracts

Contact Information

Julie Foster
RN, BSN, CRRN, CCRC
Ball Memorial Hospital
Department of Research
2401 W. University Avenue
Muncie, IN 47303
USA
Phone: 765-747-8457
Fax: 765-747-8459
EMail: jfoster@chsmail.org
Web Site: http://www.accesschs.org

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