Primary Care Rural and Frontier Clinical Trials Innovation Center: PRaCTICe

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What is PRaCTICe?

PRaCTICe is a Network Research Hub engaging rural health care partners in research. Funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) CARE for HealthTM Initiative, PRaCTICe aims to strengthen partnerships with rural and frontier primary care clinics in the northwest United States to identify community-driven health priorities, implement research studies relevant to primary care, and expand primary care's role in clinical research.

We collaborate with regional clinical sites in the northwest United States to address health priorities meaningful to their communities. We are using the model of the continuum of community engagement to work on two main activities:

  • Engage with rural and frontier primary care clinics to identify research priorities and co-design future research
  • Partner with rural primary care clinics to implement research studies
Image of PRaCTICe Model of Community Engagement Continuum

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Want to Get Involved with PRaCTICe?

Practice-based evidence is important to create health care innovations that work in rural primary care settings. The PRaCTICe Research Hub currently has rural partner clinics throughout the Pacific Northwest. 

Affiliate Clinics and Priority Clinical Site Partners

  • 6 US States: Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Alaska
  • 28 PRaCTICe Priority Clinical Site Partners for Year 1 and 2
  • 154 WPRN affiliate clinics
  • 168 ORPRN affiliate clinics

Researchers: PRaCTICe is a collaboration between researchers at two different practice-based research networks and their universities. Investigators who are interested in working with our team can reach out directly (practice@ohsu.edu) for more information on opportunities to collaborate with our research team. 

Clinics: Our partner clinics have a chance to be involved with new opportunities from NIH and shape future opportunities by co-designing research with our research team. Participation centers around engagement activities, such as learning what is important to you and your community, identifying which community organizations and members are critical in the region, and supporting opportunities to host regional events or get involved in future research trials. 

PRaCTICe Team Engagement and Support Clinical Partner Activities
Match each partner clinic with a Regional Engagement Specialist Participate in quarterly meetings with a Regional Engagement Specialist
Invite partners to share ideas for future PRaCTICe research opportunities Review and assist in the prioritization of research activities developed by PRaCTICe
Provide opportunities to join existing NIH-funded studies Consider engaging in selected NIH studies (i.e., be matched with a clinical trial)
Provide on-the-ground research support and expertise to clinics that participate in PRaCTICe-matched studies Endorse studies within the local community, as needed
Provide opportunities to design new research studies collaboratively Participate in the “co-design” of new research with the academic research team and provide input on new initiatives
Help identify patient and community advisors for PRaCTICe
Provide recruitment support for regional listening sessions, if needed

PRaCTICe Clinical Trials

In addition to community research infrastructure in rural primary care, PRaCTICe implements national clinical trials, matched through CARE for HealthTM. See below for a list of studies we have partnered on so far:

  • BeatPain (UH3NR019943, PI: Fritz) is a study pairing telehealth physical therapy with pain education to treat back pain. This study is a great fit for rural practices, where access to physical therapy can be challenging with sometimes large distances to travel to see specialists. It includes up to 12 free remote (phone or video) physical therapy sessions and optional online assessments over the course of one year. PRaCTICe recruited and enrolled 67 people from the Columbia Gorge and Southern Oregon regions to take part in the clinical trial, which is ending in late 2026.
  • Co-Care (CTN-0139, UG1DA013035 PI: McNeely) is testing a collaborative care intervention to address polysubstance use in primary care and reduce days of opioid, stimulant, and heavy alcohol use. Patients in the intervention arm receive support from a study Nurse Care Manager and addiction specialist who coordinates with their primary care provider. PRaCTICe recruited and enrolled 32  people from Eastern Oregon to take part in the trial, which runs through February 2027.
     

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New opportunities coming this Spring!

Sign up here if you want to hear about research studies when they are launched

Recent PRaCTICe News

Photograph of Clearwater River in Orofino Idaho. There is a calm river flowing alongside a rocky, tree-covered hillside under a cloudy sky. The scene features reflections of clouds on water surface, green vegetation near riverbank, and a mix of coniferous trees on the slope.

You talked, we listened!

We’ve hosted six listening sessions with rural communities, leaders from rural primary care clinics and health systems, community-based organizations, state agencies, and people who receive care.

Here’s what we heard about how to make research more accessible for rural partners:

  • Conduct practical, action-oriented research that leads to meaningful change
  • Focus on “doing what works” and align research with existing programs or services
  • Support upstream solutions with the findings, such as policy change, resource allocation, and improvements to housing and behavioral health systems
  • Involve the community and listen to local voices
  • Build local capacity through training and support
  • Integrate research into existing planning efforts or service delivery
  • Make research relevant

Read more about the listening sessions here:  

  • Insert Link to Listening Sessions one-pager PDF (after we confirm it's accessible)
  • Insert LINK to the newsletter with listening sessions article  

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Past PRaCTICe Newsletters

Insert Link to a page with prior newsletters 

PRaCTICe News and Interviews

Acknowledgements

PRaCTICe is a partnership between the Oregon Rural Practice-based Research Network (ORPRN), the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho) region Practice and Research Network (WPRN), and their institutions’ Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) programs. Funding is provided by the National Institutes of Health, Award Number: 1OT2OD038368-01, through CARE for Health™.
 

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