Eric’s journey into clinical trial research started with his career at West Michigan’s largest health care system, where he worked on and coordinated dozens of trials for neurological diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, and oncology. He joined the clinical research team at FVR in 2020, where he now enjoys research focused on one narrow but very critical slice of human health: the retina.
Eric traces the roots of his research career all the way back to his freshman year at Hope College, where he began four years of research in biology and forest ecology in west Michigan. His commitment to a career in research has never wavered.
Conducting clinical trials is highly technical, involving a myriad of rules, regulations, and standards set by the government and pharmaceutical companies. Eric thrives in this environment. He enjoys engaging with people and their health, so he is motivated by the fact that all the data is utilized to help produce the safety data that we all see on medication bottles and hear in commercials. The end goal of research is to produce new FDA-approved medications and implants. Eric’s love of research comes from knowing that the methodical documentation he produces enlarges the scientific knowledge base and actually ensures the health and safety of current and future patients.
“It is an honor to be a part of the process which brings new medical technologies to patients in order to improve the effectiveness or ease of treatment, or help patients who do not respond to currently available medications.”
