Kaleab Z. Abebe, PhD

As assistant vice chancellor for clinical trials, Dr. Abebe seeks to standardize the infrastructure and processes for clinical trials as well as develop networks of existing clinical and data coordination efforts across the University of Pittsburgh’s schools of the health sciences. Dr. Abebe joined the School of Medicine faculty in 2009 after receiving his MA and PhD in statistics from the University of Pittsburgh. He holds a primary appointment in the Department of Medicine’s Division of General Internal Medicine. He also holds secondary appointments in the School of Public Health’s Department of Biostatistics and at the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for Clinical Research Education, where he directs the Clinical Trials Research Track for the Master of Science in Clinical Research program.

Dr. Abebe also directs the Center for Research on Health Care Data Center as well as the Center for Clinical Trials and Data Coordination within the Division of General Internal Medicine. His collaborative research focuses on design, conduct, coordination, and analysis of multicenter randomized controlled trials. He is the principal investigator (PI) of two large NIH-funded consortiums: the COPE-AKI (Caring for OutPatiEnts after Acute Kidney Injury) Consortium Scientific and Data Research Center, which is developing and testing interventions to reduce morbidity and mortality in acute kidney injury, and the Data Coordinating Center for the REBIRTH Study, which will assess the effect of bromocriptine on left ventricular ejection fraction in women with peripartum cardiomyopathy. Additionally, he is co-PI for the CaRISMA study, which is a pragmatic trial examining the effectiveness of computerized cognitive behavioral therapy (vs. pain education) on pain intensity in adults with sickle cell disease. Dr. Abebe’s methodological interests revolve around the design and analysis of cluster randomized trials.

Beyond his roles at Pitt, Dr. Abebe is a standing member of the Kidney, Endocrine, and Digestive Disorders (KEDD) Study Section at the National Institutes of Health. He also serves on the board of the Society for Clinical Trials and as chair of its Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee.