“This year has showcased the many strengths of the Department of Internal Medicine and the immense value of our missions of research, education and patient care. Through our creativity, innovation, dedication, and teamwork, we were able to mobilize and provide vital care on the frontlines while continuing to pursue new answers and solutions that will make a difference for many in the future.” - Rodica Pop-Busui, MD, PhD. Learn more about Dr. Pop-Busui.
COVID and Post-COVID-Related Clinical Research and Care
From the beginning, many of our faculty became engaged in COVID-19-related research, whether to unveil distinct mechanisms for complications, to develop and validate the best therapeutic strategies for the acute care to prevent severe forms, to understand the impact of social determinants of health, to pioneer new drugs or to participate in the new vaccine trials.
Michigan Medicine COVID-19 Cohort
The Michigan Medicine COVID-19 Cohort (M2C2) was established to examine and understand the impact of the acute inflammatory and immune pathways triggered by COVID-19. M2C2 is a funded and ongoing multidisciplinary cohort which has currently enrolled more than 1,500 adult patients with severe COVID-19 who had previously been admitted at University of Michigan Health. The purpose of M2C2 is to define the in-hospital course of these patients and understand the role of inflammation as a determinant of organ injury and outcomes in COVID-19.
Clinical & Health Services Research Connection
Internal Medicine has a sizable and accomplished history in health services research. Researchers from our department make up the largest group within U-M’s Institute for Healthcare Policy & Innovation (IHPI). Because our health services research footprint is so vast, we have the perfect opportunity to stimulate the development of clinical research projects that address pressing topics already being investigated by our IHPI colleagues, from healthy aging to the opioid epidemic. As our clinical trialists identify effective interventions, our outcomes researchers can examine them in clinical practice. And if an intervention falls short in practice, our trialists can compare alternatives. With our health services and clinical researchers working together, we can make quicker advancements to improve patient care.
