Why We Do What We Do: Building and Protecting Life-Changing Research
When we build and maintain the mechanics of a building, we don鈥檛 always get to hear the stories of how that facility impacts quality of life for the people who use it, benefit from it, or work in it.
This is not so in the case of the tower. This is a story that makes the connection between what we do and why it matters.
A flagship project for P1 Group, the mechanical scope of the project was awarded in 2018. The Research Tower project consisted of two phases, with final completion in early 2021.
Following this milestone, P1 recently announced our pledge of $50K over five years to the Research Institute. P1 President Kollin Knox and Mechanical Team Leader/Senior Project Manager Carey Minihan were able to tour the facility this fall.
The tour was hosted by Ruth Gardner, Children鈥檚 Mercy Hospital Manager of Corporate Philanthropic Giving.
鈥淎s the tour ended, I thought 鈥榯his is why we do what we do,鈥欌�� Kollin said. "It may seem difficult to describe P1 Group鈥檚 鈥榳hy鈥�, but the following description of the institute summed it up for me.鈥�
The Children鈥檚 Mercy Research Institute (CMRI) integrates research and clinical care with multidisciplinary teams at the point of care while bringing together nationally recognized expertise in genomic medicine, precision therapeutics, population health and health care innovation.
As a result, we accelerate the development of groundbreaking individualized therapies and treatments that transform the potential of all children, one child at a time.
Both Kollin and Carey note the profound impact the Institute鈥檚 work will have on children鈥檚 health, and how humbling it is to be part of its creation.
鈥淧1 gets to put our expertise to work installing complex HVAC and plumbing systems for a facility used to create cures and treatment for children. I cannot think of a more worthy cause,鈥� Carey said.
鈥淢ost funding for medical research comes from the NIH (National Institute of Health)," Ruth explained. "Historically, 90% of those dollars go to adult medicine, not pediatrics.鈥�
Ruth says research has been an integral part of the Children鈥檚 Mercy Hospital mission since its inception in 1897, serving as one of the hospital鈥檚 three founding pillars: clinical care, research, and education.
鈥淚n the past, pediatric medicine has mostly just treated children as small adults,鈥� Ruth explained.
鈥淲e鈥檙e learning kids metabolize things differently, their endocrine systems are very different, and they need different types of treatment, not just smaller doses of adult treatments.鈥�
The Institute has four main areas of focus:
Genomic Medicine
This area supports the clinical process and sequence of the whole genome, asking 鈥渋s there something in a genome that helps identify root causes of disease and conditions?鈥�
The Genomic Answers for Kids flagship program is the first and only of its kind. By collaborating with other pediatric hospitals around the world, this data repository helps identify answers and treatments for pediatric genetic conditions, particularly 鈥渞are鈥� diseases.
As this data base builds, it will be easier to identify larger groups with a 鈥渞are鈥� disease 鈥� for example, there may be only two cases in Kansas City, but a total of 5,000 around the world.
The significance of this is large companies, such as pharmaceuticals, will be more likely to develop medicine or needed resources, since they require a certain size population with the disease.
Population Health
This area looks at personal and socio-economic factors in communities where kids are having prevalent health problems, including water quality, food access, and environment. It asks 鈥渨hy is this occurring and how can we help?鈥�
Precision Therapeutics
This area focuses on developing pharmacology designed for kids, like ensuring kids are getting the right dosages of medicine the first time, aiming to avoid multiple trials.
Healthcare Innovation
Everyone at Children鈥檚 Mercy is encouraged to be a researcher. No Ph.D. necessary: if someone has an idea for innovation, they can bring it to the Research Institute for further exploration/development.
How P1 Work Impacts Safety and Progress
Throughout this project, P1 has not only followed the mechanical installations, but the important job of maintaining the equipment serving the tower鈥檚 critical environments.
Immunotherapy
The backbone of cancer care, immunotherapy is manipulating T cells in a lab setting. These facilities require humidity and temperatures must remain highly regulated at all times.
Bio Samples
Essential samples are stored in both the genomic program and immunotherapy labs. These are samples that might be nearly impossible to obtain again. Loss due to any mechanical failure could be catastrophic on many levels, including years of research lost.
BSL 3 LAB
Biologic Safety Level 3 (BSL 3) labs house infectious agents or toxins that may be transmitted through the air and cause potentially lethal infections. They are home to some of the most dangerous viruses, like Zika, Covid, and measles. Having this lab allows the research teams to explore emerging threats.
Ruth says the mechanical systems and maintenance P1 provides ensure a high level of safety in not just containing these elements, but also in protecting the individuals who have to work with them.
鈥淐hildren鈥檚 Mercy took no chances with systems,鈥� P1 Service Manager Adam Collier said.
鈥淭he key ingredient is redundancy. If they needed one air handler, four were installed.鈥�
Whether it鈥檚 a lab environment or guest seating area, Adam says what might seem like overkill is not 鈥� it鈥檚 simply making sure the facility is covered, no matter what.
鈥淔or the lab environment air, there are four tunnels of air available, and technically only two are needed,鈥� Adam explained. 鈥淓ven for the common areas and office space, they have redundant air handlers just in case. They have backed up every single thing.鈥�
Pictured, Center: Adam demonstrates maintenance protocol for a lab air handling unit; Right: This chiller pump skid for the data systems is a ready-to-go backup that may never be used. The system already runs on chilled water from the plant, but in the event of compromise, this backup is ready.
Commitment to the Future
Ruth says P1鈥檚 unrestricted gift can be distributed as needed, and these are just some of the ways it might be used.
- Help take research ideas into reality
- Create seed money
- Pay for research coordinators
Research coordinators organize trials and research, recruit families to come on board, apply for additional grants, etc. - Lab equipment
- Educational materials for families embarking on a trial
Ruth notes that from people - to research - to treatment - the Research Institute is one more way Children鈥檚 Mercy is attracting the best in the country to Kansas City.
鈥淎t the end of the day, our focus is translational research 鈥� getting it from the lab to the bedside as quickly as possible.鈥�
See the importance of translational research at work.
