Research Assistant II, General Internal Medicine (OBAT)

Position: Research Assistant II, General Internal Medicine (OBAT)       

Location: Boston, MA

Schedule: 40 hours per week, On-site

ABOUT BMC:

At Boston Medical Center (BMC), our diverse staff works together for one goal — to provide exceptional and equitable care to improve the health of the people of Boston. Our bold vision to transform health care is powered by our respect for our patients and our commitment to ensure everyone who comes through our doors has a positive experience.

You’ll find a supportive work environment at BMC, with rich opportunities throughout your career for training, development, and growth and where you’ll have the tools you need to take charge of your own practice environment.  

POSITION SUMMARY:

The RA2 will be responsible for supporting the management of an NIH-funded study that will be implemented within Boston Medical Center’s (BMC), Office Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT) Program, the largest addiction treatment program of its kind in New England. The primary purpose of this position to implement activities as part of a hybrid effectiveness implementation trial to compare office-based methadone (novel in this setting) and office-based buprenorphine (treatment as usual) within BMC’s OBAT Clinic. BMC is one of six sites involved in this research as part of NIDA’s Clinical Trials Network (CTN-0131).

The RA2 maintains contact with the lead study site, as well as other partners to ensure project deliverables are achieved in a complete and timely manner. This includes data collection, maintaining participant profiles,  and supporting the research team with the preparation of data and other reports. May oversee training and orientation of junior Research Assistants and students.  Develops and implements patient recruitment strategies and changes to study protocols.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Responsible for the administrative aspects of the research study, including: managing program records and handling communication needs of the program.
• Provides assistance in the development of reports, presentations, and data analysis. Assists in data collection and provides feedback on study’s progress.
• Recruits subjects to participate in the study by using approved methodologies, such as, reaching to healthcare providers for referrals, visiting clinics, sending mailouts, using approved advertisements, etc.
• Conducts the enrollment of study participants, including explaining research procedures, and obtaining informed consent of subjects and/or their families, and completing randomization procedures.
• Schedules appointments of study participants; conducts reminder phone calls and/or sends mailouts.
• Provides technical guidance to junior staff. Obtains and distributes participant reimbursements for participation. 
• Perform administrative duties associated with the study’s safety monitor, tracking and reporting adverse events and collecting data specified by the lead site.
• Supports preparation/maintenance of Institutional Review Board (IRB) approvals and correspondence, with both the Boston Medical Center IRB, as well as the central IRB used for the multi-site trial, including amendments and renewals as necessary.
• Conducts literature searches. Assists Investigators with manuscript and presentation preparation and research.
• Participates in staff meetings/initiatives including appropriate quality improvement and education activities, or if unable to attend non-mandatory activities, accepts responsibility to review meeting minutes and becomes knowledgeable of issues discussed.
• Makes independent judgements of suitability of potential participants for clinical trials. Develops and implements patent recruitment strategies. Recommends changes to protocols and evaluates data.
• Oversees work of new or junior research assistants.

The above statements in this job description are intended to depict the general nature and level of work assigned to the employee(s) in this job.  The above is not intended to represent an exhaustive list of accountable duties and responsibilities required

JOB REQUIREMENTS

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor's degree in related discipline is required. Masters degree a plus.
• With a Master's Degree, no work experience is required.

EXPERIENCE:

• Minimum of 1+ years of experience in research or clinical program activities required. Knowledge of medical terminology required.
• Exp