Dr. Veronica Luzzi is the medical director for clinical trials and research at TriCore Research Institute, Albuquerque, New Mexico. She obtained a Ph.D. in Biology at the University of California, Irvine, in March 2000 the Department of Physiology and Biophysics, and completed her training in Clinical Chemistry in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri in 2003. Dr. Luzzi is a diplomate of the American Board in Clinical Chemistry and is a Fellow of the Academy in Clinical Biochemistry.
Dr. Luzzi’s experience in the clinical laboratory has been diverse. Shortly after her postdoctoral training, at Washington University in St. Louis, she became the CLIA medical director of the Core Lab for Clinical Studies. In that role, she successfully merged a few small research laboratories into a single entity, delivered projects to pharmaceutical partners, and initiated studies with in-vitro diagnostic companies. During her tenure at Henry Ford Hospital, in Detroit, Michigan, she developed and maintained a Clinical Chemistry curriculum for the Pathology residency program and sponsored several residents to publish their work. She also contributed to obtaining ISO 15189 certification and became well versed on the ISO standards. More recently, at Providence Health & Services in Oregon, Dr. Luzzi had multiple roles. She was the CLIA medical director of the Core Laboratory and successfully helped create and expand the Toxicology department, designed a team structure to support the rapid response laboratories using centralized expertise, identified quality gaps in the operations and corrected them, and worked with clinical experts to modify ordering practices and promote test utilization.
Currently, her central role focuses in identifying, delivering, and participating in clinical device trials and related opportunities that directly align with TriCore’s strategic needs. She is responsible for providing a centralized infrastructure to promote quality research, ensure fiscal and regulatory compliance, encourage collaborations, and expand clinical device trials and related offerings. Among other activities, she implements solutions to meet quality standards for all stages of analytical testing, writes analytical procedures, and teaches different aspects of clinical chemistry to laboratory scientists, residents, and fellows.