Clinical research is essential for any health care system. It is vital to the Medical Center of the America’s vision of enhancing health, lengthening life, and reducing the burdens of illness and disability in El Paso, Las Cruces, and Juarez. Clinical research assists our health care organizations to gain insights and answers about the safety and effectiveness of drugs and other therapies. Furthermore, clinical research is the foundation of any process to better understand diseases, injuries, and illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, COVID-19, respiratory diseases, among many others.

In recent years, opportunities for formal education in clinical research have become more plentiful and accessible. However, the industry is still experiencing a critical talent shortage. Individuals filling positions as clinical research coordinators, clinical research assistants, and trial investigators are often trained as apprentices with little to no experience or training beyond their baseline medical training. This approach fails to create a robust pipeline of clinical research professionals, limits the candidate pool, and places more responsibility for training a future clinical researcher on existing sites creating a significant financial burden. Many outpatient clinics that have attempted to participate in clinical research or trials have failed to make the new business venture profitable or create long-term sustainability.

So why should YOU consider a career in clinical research? Let’s start with the FACT that you can enjoy a long-term career with sustainable wages, meaningful work, and career progression. Second, you contribute to the advancement of medical treatments that improve health outcomes in our region. Third, clinical research and clinical trials narrow the gap in health care access disparities for people who do not normally participate in innovative care provisions. Fourth, you can make a difference in the region and enrich the lives of our neighbors by helping them live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. Finally, you can enter this new career field with minimal training and start at approximately $44,000 per year salary and within few years achieve an annual salary of anywhere between $60,000 - $120,000.

The Medical Center of the Americas Foundation has partnered with Bristol Meyers Squibb to provide a free Association of Clinical Research Professionals training course to motivated individuals in the Paso del Norte region. The 12-week “adult learning” certification course is available to advanced health care professionals with a bachelor’s degree, but you DO NOT need a degree to succeed in clinical research. Certain positions do not require a bachelor’s or associate degree. Hiring managers are more interested in your experience and how they may integrate you into their clinical research strategy. If you are interested in beginning your lucrative career now, please contact Michaele Linden-Johnson at michaele@mcamericas.org or Chris Lindner at chris@mcamericas.org for more information.