Leadership & Administration

Leadership

Christa Lese Martin, PhD, FACMG, is Geisinger's chief scientific officer. A geneticist with an interest in the identification and characterization of genomic variation in individuals with neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disabilities, such as autism, Dr. Martin currently guides the growth of research across Geisinger and helps develop research in the clinical area as well as in the research centers and institutes.

Working alongside Dr. Martin are several senior faculty members who direct a variety of research institutes, centers and departments. These include Christopher Still, DO, director of the Obesity Research Institute; Adam Buchanan, director of the Genomic Health Implementation Institute; David Carey, PhD, interim chair of the Department of Molecular and Functional Genomics; and Dan Davis, PhD, director of the Center for Translational Bioethics and Health Care Policy.

Research in clinical divisions is generally guided by the division chairs and department heads, while some divisions have directors of research. Administrative directors and managers also provide organizational support to the research community.

Administration

Research at Geisinger is supported by an administrative infrastructure that provides operational, financial and managerial support to researchers, as well as human resources compliance and training. This infrastructure helps the community comply with the myriad requirements that govern research and provides the administrative, operational, financial, compliance and regulatory infrastructure for research at Geisinger, as well as for other projects with external funding. Research Administration helps balance compliance requirements with researcher needs and facilitates collaborations and partnerships within the Geisinger system and with external entities. Some operations are directly overseen by Research Administration, while others are managed indirectly by the office's coordination and oversight.

Research Administration includes the Office of Sponsored Projects, Research Contracts, Investigator Initiated Research Operations, Research Finance, Industry Relations, Technology Transfer, the Human Research Protections Program, the Institutional Biosafety Committee, the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and Research Compliance. Research Administration also works with Geisinger's legal counsel, contracting, government relations and with administrative and business development units in Geisinger's research centers and clinical divisions.

Financial Conflict of Interest at Geisinger

Geisinger is committed to overseeing the conduct of research in a manner that ensures the integrity of the research process and maintains the trust of the public, research volunteers and sponsors in the integrity and credibility of its researchers, staff and research programs. Geisinger recognizes the importance of relationships between researchers and outside organizations and seeks to encourage such relationships. These relationships can give rise to significant discoveries and to the translation of those discoveries into useful products to help prevent, treat and cure diseases. Productive relationships with outside organizations also inspire new avenues of inquiry and provide opportunities to test ways to improve the delivery of healthcare to and the health of the Geisinger community and people around the world.
Financial incentives that accompany such relationships have the potential to lead to financial conflicts of interests that have the potential to create real or apparent bias in research. Even the appearance of conflict of interest may reduce public confidence in the research conducted at Geisinger. Geisinger's Policy on Financial Conflicts of Interest in Research is designed to maintain that trust and to help ensure our compliance with government regulations concerning outside financial relationships and research.

To request information about an investigator's financial conflict of interest related to research funded by the Public Health Service, please send an email to ORC@geisinger.edu, or send a letter to The Office of Research Compliance, M.C. 30-69, 100 N. Academy Ave., Danville, PA 17822. Please include your return email or mail address and the name of the investigator in your correspondence. Our staff will reply to your request within five business days of receiving your request.