"Pressure injuries" from intubation can be painful, and sometimes even require plastic surgery to fix, making the hospital stay even more complicated for patients who are already facing serious illness. A group of UNC researchers with support from FastTraCS, the medtech incubator at NC TraCS, is working to make these complications a thing of the past through development of a mouthguard that secures the endotracheal tube without putting pressure on a person's skin.

Anna Kahkoska (previous TraCS K Scholar) and Angela Fruik are managing the "ChargeUp" study to scale new evidence-based treatments to reduce distress in people with Type 1 diabetes. But before diving into screening participants and testing interventions, they used community feedback sessions facilitated by the Patient and Community Engagement in Research (PaCER) program at NC TraCS.

Chris Sayed, a dermatologist at the UNC School of Medicine, has spent much of his career focused on what he calls the worst and most common disease you've never heard of: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). Sayed didn't have the funding or resources to undertake a study on the fundamental science of a mysterious illness. So, he turned to NC TraCS and used a TraCS pilot grant to kickstart his research career.

Alicia Bilheimer, MPH, is the director of Engaged Science at NC TraCS. In her role, she oversees the Patient and Community Engagement in Research (PaCER) program and provides strategic direction to other NC TraCS programs and services in their work related to inclusive and engaged research. We recently spoke with Bilheimer about what drives her to prioritize communities in research, and barriers she's encountered in building partnerships between researchers and the community.