Joanna Shisler, PhD

Joanna Shisler, PhD, is an affiliate in the Department of Microbiology in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology. Research in the Shisler Lab is primarily focused on virology, where projects and collaborators are diverse, and designed to ask probing questions about fundamental properties of viruses. 

Tell us briefly about your research project.
We conducted a study evaluating SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission among adults vaccinated with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.  The study was designed to determine if the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine can prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2, limit virus in the nose, and reduce transmission of the virus from vaccinated persons to their close contacts. This is a nationwide study led by the COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN), headquartered at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and funded by the Federal COVID-19 Response Program and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease.  We were fortunate to have great local partners, including Champaign-Urbana Public Health District and OSF HealthCare Heart of Mary Medical Center, and the support we received on campus was tremendous.

Why did you seek project build services? How did the project build affect what you/your team were able to accomplish? 
We sought project build services because of a very short timeline and complexity of the project.  We would not have been able to start the study as quickly as we did without it!  The project build services ensured that the project was set up correctly and would function the way we needed.  We were able to focus on other aspects of study set-up and quickly train our team on REDCap once the build was complete.  

Have you/your team received research-related training or support from the Illinois REDCap team or other units/resources on campus? If so, how has this support affected what you/your team were able to accomplish?
Our project manager has attended REDCap workshops and was fortunate to have completed the REDCap Certificate Series.  We continually seek support from the Illinois REDCap team as projects evolve.  The support is essential to keeping data collection streamlined and continuing the study uninterrupted.

Has using REDCap led to efficiencies or otherwise improved your research process?
Absolutely.  We are able to have one location for all of our data collection and entry, add collaborators across campus, and easily access the platform.  The electronic consent framework is great- eliminates paper copies and provides an easy method for remote collection, which has been vital over the past two years.

What should your colleagues know about Illinois REDCap?
That the Illinois REDCap team is great!  Also that it is free for users, HIPPA-capable, has an e-consent framework, allows for both participant-facing and research team-facing materials, and you can customize what users have access to within a project.