As one of the premier surgical training programs in the country, the University of Washington Department of Surgery fosters trainees along their path to independent surgical practice. Residents engage with local, national, and international surgical leaders as they master clinical and technical skills in their respective fields. Our graduates demonstrate excellence in clinical medicine, research, and leadership across a broad range of practice settings. 
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Featured Researcher: Danielle Lavallee, PharmD, PhD

Since joining the Department of Surgery in 2012, Dr. Danielle Lavallee’s work has focused on advancing methods to incorporate the patient perspective into both clinical care and research activities through the capture of patient–reported outcomes (PROs) and active patient engagement.

Dr. Lavallee’s interests stem from her experience practicing as a pharmacist while obtaining her PhD at the University of Maryland. “I constantly fielded questions from people that were framed in such a manner that existing evidence couldn’t answer them. Either they wanted to know how disparate therapies compared – often a medication to a more holistic treatment approach – or how a certain treatment would affect outcomes not captured in traditional research, such as quality of life or time away from work.” PRO measures provide insight on experienced symptoms, function, health status, quality of life, and mental well–being, and are an important first step in addressing these types of patient concerns. Since joining the faculty, Dr. Lavallee has supported the efforts of the Comparative Effectiveness Research Translation Network (CERTAIN) to capture data directly from patients to support quality improvement and research initiatives, including the development of CERTAIN Hub – a web–based portal supporting real–time capture and reporting of PRO data to both patients and providers. MORE