It’s in the Genes
Nurse Researcher Pursues Quest for Learning

Lorraine Frazier, D.S.N., had an established history with the Texas Medical Center before ever becoming a student, and eventually an associate professor, at The University of Texas School of Nursing at Houston.

When Frazier was 11 years old, her father was diagnosed with hypertension and kidney disease. Her family frequented the Texas Medical Center during his course of treatment.

“I remember walking around the Texas Medical Center, looking at the different parts of the hospitals, and waiting in his room for the doctors and nurses to make their rounds. I wanted answers to our questions,” Frazier said. “I thought, ‘I need to find these answers, for my parents and me.’ This gave me a real interest in research.”

It was from this early age that Frazier knew she wanted to become a nurse. She first became a registered nurse before obtaining a Bachelor of Science in nursing from the University of Oklahoma – and she hasn’t stopped learning. She since earned Master and Doctor of Science in nursing degrees from the UT-Houston School of Nursing, and is now working on a Master of Science in clinical research at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. This master’s program is designed for medical school faculty, and Frazier is the only nurse in the program.

After eight years of doctoral and postdoctoral education and training, Frazier is now concentrating on building and developing the research career she’d dreamed of as a child.

“The more education you have, the better researcher you become,” she said.

Frazier is a nurse practitioner by trade, and because of her long-held interest in clinical research, said she is excited to discover how the clinical and bench focuses fit together.

“The UT-Houston Medical School program was a good opportunity for me, because my interest is in designing genetic studies that involve a clinical component. This master’s program gives me the skills and the training that I need to design genetic studies and show their results.”

She said she designs her studies so that when the final data is analyzed, it is done in a meaningful way.

“It has been a really great experience for me to build a research career based on my interest in genetics and cardiovascular disease,” she said.

Although the UT-Houston School of Nursing doctorate program provided a solid foundation in research, the UT-Houston Medical School master’s program gives Frazier further training in research development and design. She is unique because her studies involve thousands of patients who are followed over a long period of time. Most nursing faculty work on small, focused studies.

“Nurses make great researchers because they’re analytical by nature,” Frazier said. “They assess and evaluate situations well.”

Adding to her research role, Frazier is project director of Texas Medical Center Genetics, known as TexGen, a multicenter project partnering The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Heart Institute. Launched in December 2001, TexGen uses unprecedented research to study cardiovascular disease, cancer and stroke – the three leading causes of death in the United States – at the molecular level.

Frazier’s research mentors include Eric Boerwinkle, Ph.D., professor and director of the Human Genetics Center at the UT-Houston School of Public Health; Janet Meininger, Ph.D., UT-Houston School of Nursing’s Lee and Joseph Jamail Distinguished Professor and head of the school’s theory, research and system support division; and Jon Tyson, M.D., director of UT-Houston Medical School’s Center for Population Health and Evidence-Based Medicine. They have been integral in assisting Frazier with securing funding for her research.

One of her current projects, “Inflammatory Markers and Cardiovascular Patient Outcomes,” which looks at genetic differences of patients and their blood-pressure response to hypertensive medicine, was recently awarded a three-year, $337,567 Mentored, Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award from the National Institute of Nursing Research, a branch of the National Institutes of Health.

The inflammatory marker study, one of several Frazier is working on, specifically targets patients who are admitted to the hospital with acute coronary syndrome. She’s looking for markers to determine these patients’ risk of future adverse events.

Blood samples of 20 cc each are taken at 11 a.m. each day from patients’ bedsides at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, and the blood is iced immediately. The samples are delivered to the lab by 3 p.m. and centrifuged the same day. The samples are then frozen and the cells “immortalized.”

“I know firsthand what families go through ... just one little genetic mutation can make a big impact. We want to determine how to treat these patients so they will have the best health care outcomes with the least amount of complications,” Frazier said.

In addition to her research projects, Frazier is an associate professor in the school of nursing’s systems and technology department. She teaches research and genetics, and encourages her students to join her field of study. Recently, she said one of her students expressed an interest in Down syndrome research. As it stands now, palliative research is done for many groups of patients, but not this one in particular. The student, who works in hospice care, felt that the needs of some of these patients have been overlooked and may choose to seek research answers to his question.

“Nurses don’t only see genetic differences in patients,” she said. “They view the patient in one shot, from birth to death. The nursing discipline provides a broad spectrum of the total health care experience.”

A “snapshot” of a researcher’s day has many pieces.

“You’ll find us in many roles,” Frazier said.

The wee hours are precious to Frazier, who begins many days at 4 or 5 a.m. She is able to think clearly and get some things accomplished before her day takes off. She arrives at her office between 6:45 and 7 a.m. and doesn’t leave until 5:30 or 6 p.m.

“Then I’m reading in the evenings and working on weekends. Weekend work really gives you a heads up on the week. If you don’t work weekends, come Monday, it gets really hectic.”

All told, Frazier devotes 60 to 80 hours a week to her job.

“I never have a dull day ... I have lots of hectic days, but never a dull one,” she said. “I’m passionate about my work. To be a researcher, you have to work many, many long hours.”

Frazier said she works with some good researchers with really good habits, and those habits have rubbed off.

“In order to become a better researcher, it is important to work with team members, such as my mentors, with more experience,” Frazier said. “I am a junior team member, but have learned a lot. I must be well prepared, well read, and they always challenge me to be the best that I can be.”

Frazier makes a point to go outside of her discipline, and learns as much as she can about all research project components.

“Transdisciplinary teams are educated in all parts of a research project. As a well-rounded team member, I am confident enough in my knowledge that I can even lead a team as principal investigator,” she said.

When her latest degree is complete, Frazier will be on the lookout for the next learning opportunity that comes her way.

“If something else comes along and I need that information, I’ll be there. The Texas Medical Center offers an abundance of learning opportunities,” Frazier said. “I’ve always loved education, and always liked to learn new things. I guess that’s why I’m here.”

Staying updated on the latest scientific advances is important, Frazier added.

“You can’t discover new information unless you keep learning. Your work is kind of like your baby – you’re always attending to it in some way or another. It’s fun to be part of a great team and the Texas Medical Center is a great place to be.”

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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