Translational Research and Clinical Education (TRACE) Laboratory

Director: Dr. David Rehfeld

Lab Overview

The Translational Research and Clinical Education (TRACE) Laboratory examines how pre-professional and professional training influence healthcare professionals’ development, clinical decision-making, and patient outcomes in speech-language pathology and related health disciplines. Grounded in learning science, the lab’s work is driven by the premise that how healthcare professionals are trained has significant implications for clinical reasoning, interprofessional collaboration, and the quality and safety of patient care.

Dr. Rehfeld’s research integrates quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches to study pre-professional and professional training across academic and clinical contexts. The TRACE Lab conducts community-engaged and practice-relevant research that supports the development of evidence-based, collaborative care. Undergraduate and graduate students are actively involved as research collaborators, contributing to study design, data collection, analysis, and scholarly dissemination.

Research Focus

Pre-Professional Skill Development and Instructional Design

This research focuses on pre-professional skill development, emphasizing innovative instructional practices that support the learning and retention of key competencies such as clinically-focused critical thinking and decision-making. This work examines how instructional design influences learners’ ability to apply knowledge in increasingly complex clinical contexts.

Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice

A second, related line of inquiry focuses on the development and evaluation of interprofessional education (IPE) experiences in which students from different disciplines learn from, with, and about each other in preparation for interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP). Findings from instructional design and educational technology research inform the creation of interprofessional learning environments that more closely approximate real-world clinical care.

Educational Technology and Professional Development

A third, related line of inquiry examines the use of educational technologies, including clinical simulation and virtual reality, to support professional development and associated learning outcomes. Research in this area evaluates how different training approaches and environments shape learner engagement, reasoning, confidence, and readiness for clinical practice.

Student Opportunities

The TRACE Lab emphasizes student-engaged scholarship as a core feature of its research model. Undergraduate and graduate students gain hands-on experience with research design, data analysis, and dissemination while developing skills that support research-informed clinical practice. Students interested in research opportunities are encouraged to contact Dr. Rehfeld for more information.