The Ambulatory Research Center (ARC) is the University of Minnesota’s state-of-the-art facility for psychiatry research. Experienced investigators, dedicated study coordinators, and efficient administrative staff team up to provide successful clinical trials in nearly all areas of psychiatry, including schizophrenia, mood disorders (depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety), impulse control disorders (kleptomania, gambling addiction, compulsive shopping), eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder), and substance abuse. The ARC provides its staff, subjects, and monitors with over 4000 square feet of space devoted entirely to psychiatry research. Our facilities, overlooking the beautiful Mississippi river valley, include a spacious waiting room, two fully equipped exam rooms, several large interview rooms, phlebotomy area, designated CRF room, and complete laboratory.

The University of Minnesota is one of the top research universities in the United States. Our highly qualified research team has many years of education, training, and experience. The faculty undertake a large number of federally sponsored studies, along with an increasing number of industry-sponsored trials.

In January 1997 University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics became a partner in the newly-formed Fairview University Medical Center (FUMC), which includes both Fairview and University of Minnesota campuses. This partnership formed Minnesota’s largest hospital, with more than 1800 licensed beds. The ARC easily accesses areas for imaging procedures, including ultrasound, CT scan, and magnetic resonance. Our research group also employs multiple MRI-based methods for examining metabolic, structural, and perfusion abnormalities in the brain.

The ARC is conveniently located just minutes from downtown Minneapolis and offers easy access to two interstate highways. Sponsors and monitors appreciate the fact that we are located just 18 minutes from the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport.

The faculty at the University of Minnesota have a long history of research supported by various federal agencies. More recently they have also been concentrating on the field of industry sponsored clinical trials. In the aggregate, the investigators with an interest in this type of research have over 30 years of experience and have participated in 30 + placebo controlled multi-center trials.

U of MN Department of Psychiatry Research Specialties
David Adson, M.D.	Mood disorders, Depression, Treatment Resistant Depression, Anxiety Disorders, Bipolar Disorder, Seasonal Affective Disorder
Gerald August, Ph.D.	Child and adolescent ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Elke Eckert, M.D.	Eating Disorders (Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder)
Elizabeth Egan, Ph.D.	Prevention research, particularly involving ATOD use.
I.I. Gottesman, Ph.D.	Genetic aspects of Schizophrenia and other major mental disorders and personality disorders.
Dorothy K. Hatsukami, Ph.D.	Nicotine Addiction
S.W. Kim, M.D.	Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Matt Kushner, Ph.D.	Substance Abuse co-occurring with Psychiatric Disorder, especially anxiety and depressive disorders.
Kelvin O. Lim, M.D.	Magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy of brain, schizophrenia, substance abuse, dementia
Thomas Mackenzie, M.D.	Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Richelle Moen Moore, Ph.D.	Eating disorders, borderline personality, working therapeutically with the whole developmental life-span – including in particular teenagers with individual, group and family therapy
Stephen C. Olson, M.D.	Schizophrenia, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, psychotic disorders, cognition in major psychiatric disorders, neuropsychiatric disorders
Jose V. Pardo, M.D., Ph.D.	Neuroimaging
Nancy C. Raymond, M.D.	Eating Disorders and Sexual Disorders
Barry Rittberg, M.D.	Mood Disorders, Depression, Treatment Resistant Depression, Anxiety Disorders, Bipolar Disorder, Seasonal Affective Disorder
George Realmuto, M.D.	Child and Adolescent ADHD and Autism
Sohail Sheikh, M.D.	Treatment Resistant Depression
Sheila Specker, M.D.	Addiction psychiatry, eating disorders
John Vuchetich, M.D., Ph.D.	Schizophrenia/psychotic disorders and psychiatric genetics
Joseph Westermeyer, M.D., Ph.D.	Epidemiology, alcoholism and addictions, treatment outcome, trauma and its consequences ( PTSD, refugees, torture victims, combat vets), course of disorder, disorders co-morbid with addictive disorders, cross-cultural, cross-language research
Tonya White, M.D.	Child and Adolescent Schizophrenia
Ken C. Winters, Ph.D.	Addiction (drug abuse and gambling)

The ARC staff has extensive experience in sponsored and federally-funded clinical research, including study coordination, regulatory coordination, IRB/human subjects protection, and proper laboratory procedures. Our study coordinators are certified in Good Clinical Practices, hazardous materials shipping and handling, phlebotomy, and bloodborne pathogens. Well versed in both paper and remote data entry CRF completion, all take pride in keeping accurate and thorough records. The ARC owns and operates its own EKG machines, blood pressure monitors, and vitals monitors. Statistics professionals, a designated accountant, and helpful support staff round out our team.

The Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area’s population of over two and one-half million offers the numbers and diversity necessary for a good research sample, and while the majority of our research subjects are from the Twin Cities metro area, many are referred from a five-state area: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

CenterWatch is listing the following trials that are actively recruiting patients at this center.

• Eating Disorder Research Study
• Research Study Females
• Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorders, Minneapolis, MN

For more information, please contact:

Joani Van Demark
Ambulatory Research Center (ARC)
University of Minnesota Department of Psychiatry
606 24th Avenue South, Suite 602
Minneapolis, MN 55454 USA
Phone: 612-627-4809
Fax: 612-627-4808
E-mail:

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.

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Last updated on August 21, 2008