VCU Wright Center Researchers Make a Massive Mark at NAPCRG 2025!
The VCU Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Science demonstrated an impressive presence at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) in Atlanta, GA, contributing approximately 37 posters, presentations, and workshops to the schedule.
A core team of Wright Center-affiliated faculty and staff drove conversations across critical areas, from population health analysis and policy to new methods in cancer and opioid research. Here are some of the highlights from researchers like Alex Krist, Ben Webel, Leah Gregory, Roy Sabo, Emily Zimmerman, and Deborah DiazGranados:
Research for Population Analysis and Community Action
Wright Center researchers led several efforts to translate stratified data into community-driven action:
- Virginia AHEAD (Va-AHEAD): Alex Krist, Emily Zimmerman, Leah Gregory, Roy Sabo, Deborah DiazGranados, and Benjamin Webel were among the contributors to the poster detailing the community framing of data for this translational science initiative.
- Substance Use Treatment: Emily Zimmerman and Leah Gregory presented a poster on building research capacity through a patient advisory panel focused on substance use treatment and recovery.
- Addressing Opioid Mortality: Leah Gregory and Ben Webel co-authored a poster on “The Virginia Operation Stop! Grants: A Community Collaborative to Address Disparate Increases in Opioid Mortality.”
Policy, Practice, and Implementation Science
The team was instrumental in presenting practical tools and policy insights for primary care:
- Policy Workshop: Alex Krist was involved in a workshop titled “How to use research to inform primary care policy: Lessons learned from NASEM’s Standing Committee on Primary Care.”
- Implementation Guide: Benjamin Webel and Sebastian Tong were contributors to a workshop providing “A Practical Guide to Building an Implementation Road Map in Primary Care.”
- Biostatistics Methods: Roy Sabo, along with Adam Funk, led a workshop on “How to improve your research by working with a biostatistician.”
Primary Care Delivery and Workforce
Research focused on optimizing the delivery of care and the primary care workforce:
- Care Planning RCT: Benjamin Webel presented an oral presentation on a Care Planning Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) aimed at “Addressing Health Behaviors, Mental Health, and Social Needs for People with Chronic Disease.”
- APPs in Primary Care: Benjamin Webel and Alex Krist co-authored a poster exploring the role of Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) in improving primary care capacity.
- Staffing and Quality: Alex Krist and Roy Sabo were key contributors to multiple posters focused on assessing care quality, subgroup variation, medication prescribing, and staffing trends in U.S. nursing homes.
The VCU Wright Center’s strong showing at NAPCRG 2025 underscores its commitment to high-impact clinical and translational research that directly addresses critical public health and primary care challenges.
Categories Community Engagement