Therapeutic Areas

Cardiology/Vascular Diseases
Endocrinology
Family Medicine
Gastroenterology
Immunology
Internal Medicine
Musculoskeletal
Nutrition and Weight Loss
Obstetrics/Gynecology (Women’s Health)
Pulmonary/Respiratory Diseases
Rheumatology
Vaccines

Center Overview

Rochester Clinical Research (RCR) is a dedicated clinical research center providing clinical research services to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. RCR was founded in 1994 by Patricia Larrabee, RNNP with the assistance of Dr. Mervyn Weerasinghe. Ms. Larrabee continues as the Chief Executive Officer of RCR, and Dr. Weerasinghe is the Medical Director.

RCR’s experienced clinical research personnel engage the patient and their primary care physician to become informed partners in every clinical trial.

With over sixteen years of successful clinical trials experience, RCR has established a reputation for reliability and expertise having conducted over 500 Phase II, IIb, III, IIIb, and IV clinical studies in the therapeutic areas of:

RCR Facts

• RCR provides outpatient services in a 9,000 square foot modern facility and has climate controlled secure drug storage rooms, dedicated monitor rooms with high speed broadband for RDE(remote data entry) access, and on-site long term storage.
• RCR has the ability to use a central IRB when required to accommodate individual sponsor requirements
• RCR maintains a Patient Tracking System. RCR staff are experienced with RDE
• RCR has an established Internal Audit Program to ensure protocol compliance
• Patient recruitment is typically achieved by the following means:
  • Excellent community wide recruitment program
  • Over 19,929 patients in RCR’s database, and over 20,000 patients in each of the referring physicians private practice databases.
  • Physician referrals from large Rheumatology, Dermatology, Gastroenterology and Gynecology private practices
  • Advertising: television, newspaper, radio, direct mail, community posters
  • Periodic newsletter delivered to patient database, and established mailing lists that are sorted by therapeutic areas.
  • Web recruitment from our website, www.rcrclinical.com

Clinical Research Experience

Facility Description

Diagnostic/Clinic Equipment

• EKG
• Centrifuge
• Refrigerated Centrifuge
• Stadiometer
• Spirometry
• 24 hour ambulatory BP monitoring equipment
• -20C° Freezer [2]
• -70C° Freezer [1]
• iDXA; Bone Density, Body Composition
• Arterial Compliance Monitor
• Cholestech Analyzer
• Phlebotomy Station
• Refrigerated Drug Storage
• Metrika Hemoglobin A1C

Facility

• Climate controlled secure drug storage rooms
• Dedicated monitor rooms with high speed broadband for remote data entry
• Easy access off major expressway for patients and sponsors
• On-site long term storage

Investigator Experience

Four [4] Investigators who are board certified in Internal Medicine, Rheumatology and Family Practice, with interest and expertise in multi-therapeutic areas and two [2] NP sub-investigators with a combined 30 years of experience in clinical research.

Mervyn Weerasinghe, MD
Mweerasinghe@rcrclinical.com
Internal Medicine, Medical Director and Primary Principal Investigator

Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator on more than 325 clinical research studies with over twenty-one years experience conducting research. Dr. Weerasinghe is board certified in Internal Medicine and has extensive practice experience in a managed care setting. He was the Medical Director for an HMO for eight years, of a hospital for seven years, and of a multi-specialty group practice for 10 years. He has served as Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator in the areas of hypertension, diabetes, obesity, hyperlipidemia, asthma, osteoarthritis, hormone replacement therapy, smoking cessation, peptic ulcer disease, and contraception.

Matthew Davis, MD
Mdavis@rcrclinical.com
Family Practice, RCR Associate Medical Director

Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator on more than 300 clinical research studies with over fourteen years of research experience. Dr. Davis has held the position of Chief Physician for an after hours medical care division of a Rochester health care provider. His clinical research experience includes studies in erosive esophagitis, herpes labialis, osteoarthritis/RA, sinusitis, dyspepsia, IBS, erectile dysfunction, cholesterol, diabetes, and contraceptives.

Tammi Shlotzhauer, MD
Tshlotzhauer@rcrclinical.com
Rheumatology & Internal Medicine, Assistant Medical Director

Dr. Shlotzhauer is a practicing rheumatologist and the Assistant Medical Director of RCR who is board-certified in both internal medicine and rheumatology. She has been involved in over 210 clinical trials with over eleven years of research experience and has served as a consultant for protocol development. Dr. Shlotzhauer has held positions as Chief Physician of a rheumatology division at a local hospital, Medical Director of a local medical group and Chair/Advisor for a local medical group’s management and quality division. She is also a partner in a successful Rheumatology practice located in our building. Her interests include osteoporosis, OA, RA, fibromyalgia, collagen vascular disorders and pain syndromes, as well as common internal medicine diagnoses.

Keith Pryhuber, MD
Kpryhuber@rcrclinical.com
Rheumatology & Internal Medicine, Associate Medical Director

Dr. Pryhuber is a practicing rheumatologist who is board-certified in both internal medicine and rheumatology. He has participated in over 190 clinical trials with over eleven years of research experience and is partner in a successful Rheumatology practice located in our building. His interests include OA, RA, fibromyalgia, and osteoporosis, as well as common internal medicine diagnoses.

Michael Brennan, FNP
mbrennan@rcrclinical.com
Family Practice, RCR Sub-Investigator

Michael Brennan, FNP, has 18 years of clinical experience working in local Family Practice, Urgent Care, and Emergency Medicine. He has also been involved in the training and clinical preceptorship of Nurse Practitioners. Michael’s areas of research interest include hypertension, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia with over two years of research experience.

MANAGEMENT

Patricia Larrabee, RN, NP, CCRC
Plarrabee@rcrclinical.com
Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Ms. Larrabee, who has been extensively involved as a Sub-Investigator in over 465 clinical trials for over 29 years, founded RCR in 1994 to provide residents of the Greater Rochester area access to research studies. Her clinical experience as a researcher and lecturer on high blood pressure, as well as her relationship with local physicians in a managed care setting, provided an opportunity to conduct research with a varied patient base. RCR has conducted over 500 trials in many therapeutic areas due to Ms. Larrabee’s high-energy, compassionate and detail oriented approach to research.

Staff Expertise

• Prior to joining RCR, our nurse coordinators have held positions as study monitors, or in hospital or office practices.
• We provide funding and training for all of our coordinators to become ACRP certified clinical research coordinators (CCRC).

Other Staff

• Medical Assistants
• Phlebotomists
• Patient Recruiters
• Regulatory Affairs Specialist
• Remote Data Entry Specialist
• Full-time Information Technology Manager

Programs/Certifications

• Comprehensive new-staff training, mentoring, and Continuing Education programs
• RCR’s Good Clinical Practices (GCP), Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and internal audit program we can assure your company of the necessary requirements for excellent patient care and data collection.
• ACRP training and CCRC certification of all Study Coordinators when eligible
• IATA certified staff for the shipment of hazardous materials
• HIPAA compliance and OCR Regulations training
• Credentialing Program for Investigators
• OSHA compliant
• New York State CLIA Certified Limited Service Laboratory

Patient Demographics

• RCR is located in Rochester, New York, which is known as a world leader in the development of photographic, and communications equipment, optics and laser graphics, biotechnology, and is the home to such multinational high tech companies as Kodak, Bausch & Lomb, and Xerox. Over 60% of the adult population is college educated.
• The Metropolitan area, which includes Monroe County and portions of five other counties, has a population of over 1.2 million people
• Over 19,929 patients in RCR’s database and over 20,000 patients in each of the referring physicians private practice databases. RCR’s patient database is comprised of 64% female and 36% male patients. The age breakdown is:

Other Information

Industry Sponsors

Contract Research Organization Sponsors

Rochester Clinical Research has received the TOP 100 Company Award in the Rochester Region from the Rochester Business Alliance and Chamber of Commerce for 2003, 2004 and 2009.

RCR is also a multi-year winner of the Rochester’s Choice Award, which is chosen by the residences of Rochester, as the BEST Clinical Research Site.

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.