Craig Research Program

History of the Craig Research Department

Over Fifty Years of Research History

The Research Department at Craig Hospital was established in 1974 when Craig was first awarded a Spinal Cord Injury Model System (SCIMS) grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).

Craig Receives the TBI Model System Designation

In 1998, Craig Hospital’s brain injury program received a similar designation when it was first named a Traumatic Brain Injury Model System (TBIMS). Each Model System grant consists of a three-pronged research effort: contributing to a national longitudinal database, conducting local research projects that are of interest and importance to Craig, and collaborating with other Model Systems in research of common interest.

Craig Named TBIMS National Data and Statistical Center

In 2006, Craig was named the TBI Model Systems National Data and Statistical Center, managing the TBI National Database, now the largest TBI longitudinal database in the world, and coordinating research among all TBI Model Systems,  Perhaps the greatest benefit of the Model Systems programs is the research climate they have spawned here at Craig Hospital, giving us the expertise and confidence to successfully compete for and obtain funding from other sources as well.

Research Funding Sources

Craig currently receives research funding not only from NIDILRR, but also from the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) which is part of the Department of Defense, MINDSOURCE (formally the Colorado TBI Trust Fund), the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, the Craig Hospital Foundation, other foundations, other researchers via subcontracts, and pharmaceutical and medical equipment companies.

As research has become more important to the mission and reputation of Craig, the Research Department has increased collaboration with other institutions by leading and participating in multi-center research and becoming a national research coordinating center.

Craig Hospital Research Conflicts of Interest Policy