CRC - Who We Are

Director - Gerald Messerschmidt, MD

Associate Director - John J. Schrogie, MD

Through his experience in government, industry and academia, Dr. Schrogie has gained broad expertise in all aspects of drug research and development. Dr. Schrogie received his MD degree from Yale University, followed by a residency in internal medicine at St. Luke’s Hospital in New York and a fellowship in clinical pharmacology at Johns Hopkins Hospital. As a Commissioned Officer in the United States Public Health Service, he served as the Director of the Research Division at the FDA and the Contraceptive Development Branch at NICHD. Subsequently, he became Director of Clinical Pharmacology at Schering-Plough Research Institute and then Senior Director of Clinical Pharmacology at Merck Research Laboratories.  He was appointed as the founding Executive Director of the Philadelphia Association for Clinical Trials (PACT), established under the sponsorship of the medical institutions of Philadelphia. After PACT was acquired by another entity, he joined Jefferson Medical College as Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine associated with the Clinical Pharmacology Unit and Assistant Director of Health Policy and Clinical Outcomes. He served two terms as Secretary-Treasurer of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (ASCPT) and was elected President in 2007.

Manager, Clinical Research – Judy Spahr, MLS, MEd

Ms. Spahr has worked in clinical research for over 10 years. She has served as a study coordinator and provided regulatory support across a spectrum of medical specialties including oncology, ophthalmology, cardiology, neurology, and radiology. In addition, Ms. Spahr is experienced in Standard Operating Procedures and protocol development, informed consent document writing, case report form and source document creation, and provides training classes in Good Clinical Practice.

A summa cum laude graduate of Colby College (ME), Ms. Spahr holds a Master of Library Sciences degree from Simmons College (MA), a Master of Education degree from Plymouth State University (NH), and is a candidate for the Master of Public Health degree from West Chester University (PA). She has completed certificate programs in Clinical Research Administration ( George Washington University), Technical Writing ( California State University), and Cancer Data Management ( Northeastern University). She is certified by both the Association of Clinical Research Professionals (ACRP) and the Society of Clinical Research Associates (SoCRA). Ms. Spahr is also an invited lecturer on clinical research at West Chester University.

Biostatistician - Michael R. Chernick, PhD

Dr. Chernick has worked his entire career in industry, including aerospace, insurance, and even energy research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. For the last 17 years he has worked on clinical trials for medical device and pharmaceutical companies. At LIMR, Dr. Chernick provides statistical support for clinical trials in oncology, cardiology and electrophysiology. He also gives input for grant proposals to the Sharpe-Strumia Foundation and the National Institutes of Health in support of advanced research methods with animal models and molecules.

Dr. Chernick received his PhD in statistics from Stanford University in 1978. He is a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, a member of the International Biometrics Society, the Royal Statistical Society, the Institute of Mathematical Statistics and the Bernoulli Society.  Dr. Chernick is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Biopharmaceutical Statistics and an Editorial Board member for the Pakistan Journal of Statistics and Operations Research. He has published over 40 articles on statistics and statistical research in medicine and engineering. He has published two editions of his book “Bootstrap Methods” and has authored or coauthored two introductory biostatistics books and “An Introduction to Bootstrap Methods with Applications to R”.  He is currently writing a text on adaptive designs.  Dr. Chernick has also taught for many years, and is currently teaching an online course on the bootstrap method.

Clinical Business Manager – John Wellenbach

Mr. Wellenbach is responsible for ensuring that the language in clinical trial contracts protects the patients, reflects the Principal Investigator’s scope of responsibilities, and accurately reflects the role and interest of any Main Line Health entity providing services. He is also responsible for negotiating the trial budget on behalf of the Principal Investigator with the Sponsor. Mr. Wellenbach sits on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and represents LIMR on the MLH Human Resources Policy Committee.

Mr. Wellenbach received his BBA from George Washington University and an MPA from New York University. Prior to coming to LIMR, he directed the Department of Medicine outpatient clinical operations in several local large academic medical centers. For the last several years, he has sat on the executive board of the Delaware Valley Chapter of the Society for Research Administrators, which promotes the dissemination of clinical research policies and best practices in research administration.