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I was working at MetroWest Medical Center (MWMC) in Framingham, MA many years ago (1996) when I received a message from ACRP regarding a new certification for research coordinators. The national ACRP office was looking for test sites where this test could be administered. At the time, I was a regulatory coordinator and the IRB Manager at MetroWest. I thought that hosting the test site would be great exposure for our research program so I signed us up. The test was held at the MWMC and an announcement about the testing and the newly accredited people appeared in the ACRP newsletter. I was one of the newly accredited CCRC and was quite pleased with the publicity we received.
A couple of months later, someone with who I had interviewed with the previous year called me quite unexpectedly and asked if I was interested in interviewing for a newly created position at his company.
When I arrived for the interview, he told me that he had seen my name and what I had done in arranging for MWMC to be a test site and that he was impressed with my initiative. He offered me a job that I accepted and which put me on a path in my career that has been both rewarding and professionally satisfying.
Over the intervening years, I have seen many changes in the organization but the education, training and credentialing of individuals has remained a core value for ACRP. I have maintained my certification all these years because I believe to do so demonstrates my commitment to my profession, while serving as an example to others that the certification continues to be important to me personally.
In my work, I have had a chance to train research coordinators through site visits and other more formal classroom settings. I always recommend membership and certification to the coordinators I meet. I do this because, so often, in community based research and in academic settings, coordinators are isolated in their job functions with no one to talk to about their jobs. Some are learning on their own and some have been doing their jobs their way without knowing if they are doing it correctly. Involvement in ACRP helps these individuals with their knowledge base and their confidence.
ACRP and its accreditation programs isn’t just about membership and a series of letters that we can include after our name. Involvement with this organization has introduced me to other professionals, allowed me to continue to improve my skills and knowledge and continues to provide me with opportunity and the chance to meet and become colleagues with other like-minded individuals who also strive to improve and grow. I have been the treasurer for our local New England chapter for over ten years, before that I worked on membership. I am involved because I want to share this professional opportunity with other, younger, individuals who will keep this professional organization and all that we do, alive for our patients, hospitals, companies and research in general for many years to come.
A couple of months later, someone with who I had interviewed with the previous year called me quite unexpectedly and asked if I was interested in interviewing for a newly created position at his company.
When I arrived for the interview, he told me that he had seen my name and what I had done in arranging for MWMC to be a test site and that he was impressed with my initiative. He offered me a job that I accepted and which put me on a path in my career that has been both rewarding and professionally satisfying.
Over the intervening years, I have seen many changes in the organization but the education, training and credentialing of individuals has remained a core value for ACRP. I have maintained my certification all these years because I believe to do so demonstrates my commitment to my profession, while serving as an example to others that the certification continues to be important to me personally.
In my work, I have had a chance to train research coordinators through site visits and other more formal classroom settings. I always recommend membership and certification to the coordinators I meet. I do this because, so often, in community based research and in academic settings, coordinators are isolated in their job functions with no one to talk to about their jobs. Some are learning on their own and some have been doing their jobs their way without knowing if they are doing it correctly. Involvement in ACRP helps these individuals with their knowledge base and their confidence.
ACRP and its accreditation programs isn’t just about membership and a series of letters that we can include after our name. Involvement with this organization has introduced me to other professionals, allowed me to continue to improve my skills and knowledge and continues to provide me with opportunity and the chance to meet and become colleagues with other like-minded individuals who also strive to improve and grow. I have been the treasurer for our local New England chapter for over ten years, before that I worked on membership. I am involved because I want to share this professional opportunity with other, younger, individuals who will keep this professional organization and all that we do, alive for our patients, hospitals, companies and research in general for many years to come.
