Forming & maintaining a research network: Emergency medicine pharmacotherapy research network (EMPHARM-NET)

Emergency medicine pharmacists (EMPs) are essential to optimizing medication use in the emergency department (ED), yet research in emergency medicine (EM) pharmacotherapy has remained fragmented and largely single-centered. To address this, the EM Pharmacotherapy Research Network (EMPHARM-NET) was established in 2019 as a national, EMP-led collaboration designed to unify investigators, foster mentorship, and advance high-quality, generalized research in acute care pharmacotherapy. Operating as a grassroots, volunteer-driven network, EMPHARM-NET connects over 25 sites and 50 investigators across diverse practice settings, enabling multicenter studies supported by standardized methodologies, shared resources, and inclusive participation from learners to senior researchers. Since its inception, EMPHARM-NET has completed multiple multicenter investigations, produced over a dozen peer-reviewed publications, and earned national recognition for its scholarship, and impact on clinical practice. Despite challenges such as limited protected research time for clinical pharmacists and logistical complexities of coordinating across institutions, EMPHARM-NET has demonstrated that a distributed, pharmacist-led model can generate rigorous, practice-changing evidence while fostering a sustainable culture of mentorship and collaboration. Looking ahead, the network aims to expand its scope through implementation science, pragmatic clinical trials, and health services research, to solidify EMPHARM-NET as a leading model for advancing pharmacotherapy and patient outcomes in EM.