Primary Care Rural and Frontier Clinical Trials Innovation Center: PRaCTICe
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. PRaCTICe is co-led by Dr. Melinda Davis at the Oregon Rural Practice-based Research Network (ORPRN) and Dr. Allison Cole at the WWAMI region Practice and Research Network (WPRN).
We collaborate with 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 and community representatives to identify priorities and co-design future research
- Partner with rural and frontier primary care clinics to implement research studies
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
- 322 affiliate clinics (154 WPRN Affiliates and 168 ORPRN affiliates)
Researchers: PRaCTICe is a collaboration between researchers at two different practice-based research networks, the Oregon Clinical and Translational Research Institute at Oregon Health & Science University, and the Institute of Translational Health Sciences at the University of Washington. 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 | Champion PRaCTICe activities in regional communities |
| 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 |
PRaCTICe Clinical Trials
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 PIs: McNeely, Liebschutz) 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.
Contact Us
PRaCTICe Newsletters
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:
Past PRaCTICe Newsletters
PRaCTICe News and Interviews
- Pacific NW CTSA hubs and PBRNS receive collaborative NIH award to enhance rural health
- Podcast 57: Integrating the BeatPain Study With PRaCTICe, a New Network Research Hub
- October 8, 2025: Engaging Rural Communities in Pragmatic Clinical Trials, in This Week’s Rethinking Clinical Trials Grand Rounds
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™.