The Nemours Children’s Health System, one of the largest pediatric health systems in the country, is conducting a national search for an established investigator to serve as the Founding Director of the Nemours Precision Medicine (NPM) program. The incoming director will oversee the development of a multidisciplinary, collaborative program to generate and implement high quality clinical evidence, and optimize the safety, outcomes and transition of care for Nemours’ patients. The existing clinical and research strengths and priorities of Nemours and partner institutions overlap with those of the NIH and with the needs of the community. As one of the largest pediatric health care systems in the country and a leader in health informatics, Nemours is in a unique position to create a Precision Medicine program that will address the organization’s mission, align with NIH priorities, and lead to discovery and outcomes that are generalizable to pediatric populations across the country.

Required Qualifications
The Nemours Department of Biomedical Research seeks a renowned investigator to serve as the Founding Director of Nemours Precision Medicine (NPM). The desired candidate will have a track record of progressively increasing success in obtaining external funding at the federal agency or national foundation level. Experience with competitive, multi-institutional, programmatic grants is a preferred strength. The successful candidate will possess an M.D and/or Ph.D., have a demonstrated history of collaboration and ability to publish in well-regarded scientific journals, and be highly regarded in the international scientific community. Expertise in Clinical Genetics, Genomics, and/or Bioinformatics is required.

Roles and Responsibilities
• Coordinate and synergize core services that support NPM priorities across campuses, including the centers for applied clinical genomics, bioinformatics and biomedical informatics, and ensure alignment with Nemours clinical and research priorities.
• Develop and maintain a self-sufficient research center by enabling and supporting center faculty applications for federal and foundation funding.
• Cultivate and coordinate cross-campus collaboration between research and clinical groups, and external collaborations with academic and clinical institutions and associated funded programs in the Delaware Valley and Florida.
• Continue to head an active and successful research program with significant external funding.
• Work with community stakeholders (providers, advocacy groups, community non-profit or industry-based organizations) as partners who actively participate in implementation, recruitment and conduct of research, and dissemination of research findings.
• Develop and oversee a strategy to remain on the cutting edge of care, incorporating existing, evidence-based knowledge, and leading the way toward discovery of new knowledge to improve care of Nemours’ diverse patient populations.
• Build upon existing program strengths to better interpret the wealth of existing health record data and integrate genetics, pathways, and biomarkers to inform clinical decision-making and predict outcomes.
• Build upon expertise and synergies that exist within Nemours partner programs, including PEDSnet, DE-CTR, COBRE and INBRE.

Nemours Precision Medicine
The Nemours Precision Medicine program will generate and implement high quality clinical evidence to optimize the safety, outcomes, and transition of care for Nemours’ patients, and to improve public health in Delaware. Infrastructure will include informatics support for quality data management, integration through a sustainable data warehouse, and a computational informatics infrastructure that can link “’omics” – and other forms of Big Data, including quality of life metrics, socioeconomic factors and early life exposures – to outcomes. Nemours Precision Medicine (NPM) will build upon current infrastructure, as well as research focus, thematic areas, and existing labs and centers, including the following:

• Nemours Center for Applied Clinical Genomics (CACG)
• Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory (MDL)
• Center for Pharmacogenomics and Translational Research (CPTR)
• Biomolecular Core Laboratory (BCL)
• Bioinformatics Core Facility (BCF) and a planned comprehensive Biomedical Research Informatics Center
• Healthcare Delivery Science
• Nemours Biobank
• Nemours High Throughput Screening (HTS) and Drug Discovery Laboratory
• Biomedical Analysis Lab (BAL)
• Roche Molecular Center of Excellence

Nemours actively participates in multiple successful federally-funded programs whose existing resources and collaborations will strengthen NPM. Many are supported by the Institutional Development Award (IDeA) program of the National Institute for General Medical Sciences (NIGMS).

• PEDSnet, a Clinical Data Research Network (CDRN) centered at CHOP and funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
• Center for Pediatric Research (CPR), a Center for Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) program funded since 2004
• Comprehensive Sickle Cell Research Center (CSCRC), a COBRE program funded in 2014
• Delaware Clinical and Translational Research (DE-CTR) ACCEL, funded since 2013 and comprising the University of Delaware (UD), Nemours, Christiana Care Health System (CCHS) and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)
• Delaware IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE), funded since 2001 to support programs at UD, Nemours, CCHS and other Delaware academic institutions
• Clinic for Special Children

Specific Objects of Nemours Precision Medicine Program
The objective is to grow the NPM program over the next 5 years as a major component of the Research and Integration Initiative of the Nemours 2020 strategic plan. The plan is to build upon and sustain research infrastructure established by previous NIH funding and advance Nemours into the Top 10 in NIH grant funding for children’s hospitals and recruit individuals with research teams that bridge clinical work and reserach activity. Additioanlly, position Nemours to excel in a value-driven healthcare economy by integrating the NPM program with three research thematic areas, as follows:

• Applied Clinical Genomics – Use genomics and related big data to improve ability to prevent, diagnose, and treat disease at the individual patient level
• Clinical Research Services – Further develop the capacity to analyze big data sets and patient and population dashboards to improve outcomes, risk stratify patients and evaluate population level effects
• Healthcare Delivery Science– Build analytic capacity to understand the processes that affect delivery, safety, outcomes, cost, quality, and value of pediatric health care, e.g., by integrating quality of life measures in big data sets.

About the Nemours Children's Health System
As one of the nation’s leading pediatric health care systems, Nemours is committed to providing all children with their best chance to grow up healthy. They offer integrated, family-centered care to more than 280,000 children annually in the pediatric hospitals, specialty clinics and primary care practices in Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Nemours strives to ensure a healthier tomorrow for all children – even those who may never enter their doors – through world-changing research, education and advocacy efforts. At Nemours, the Associates help deliver on the promise made to every family they serve: to treat their child as if they were their own.

The mission of Nemours Biomedical Research is to improve the health and health care of children by seeking new approaches to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of childhood diseases and to educate the next generation of leaders in children’s health. Ranked 11th in the nation for National Institutes of Health research funding among free-standing children’s hospitals, Nemours conducts more than 450 active research projects and clinical trials under the direction of 100 Nemours physician-scientists, 22 PhD center directors and laboratory heads, and 206 support staff. With comprehensive pediatric diagnostic testing, technology transfer and physician-scientist mentoring programs, Nemours clinical investigators, educators and scientists integrate research and scholarship across all of Nemours, advancing the delivery of pediatric care.

Their dedication to professionals who are dedicated to children frequently earns Nemours a spot on the list of top workplaces in the communities they serve. The Associates enjoy comprehensive benefits, including a unique “Bridge to a Healthy Future” pediatric health plan, an integrated wellness program, opportunities for professional growth, and much more. As an equal opportunity employer, Nemours is committed to focusing on the best-qualified applicants for their openings.