Mission Statement
Kelsey Research Foundation’s mission is to advance medical research and provide health education opportunities for all Houstonians.

About the Kelsey Research Foundation
Located in Houston, Texas, KRF was founded by the leaders of the Kelsey-Seybold Clinic to promote biomedical research and health education. The collaborative research aims of KRF and its partners are to make scientific discoveries that improve the health of our community and the quality of patient care, leading to healthier lives.

KRF continues to organize and facilitate collaborative research between Kelsey-Seybold Clinic and institutions of the Texas Medical Center. Kelsey-Seybold Clinic is a large multi-specialty medical organization with more than 650 physicians and allied health professionals representing 65 medical specialties. The Clinic provides continual care for approximately half a million Houstonians each year, with over one million clinic visits at 31 locations throughout the greater Houston metropolitan area. KRF actively works with Texas Medical Center institutions, including UTHealth’s McGovern Medical School and School of Public Health, Baylor College of Medicine, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Methodist Hospital, St. Luke’s Health Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, Memorial Hermann Health System, University of Houston School of Pharmacy, and Michael E. DeBakey Veteran’s Administration Medical Center.

History
KRF was established on December 15, 1956, by several physicians of the Kelsey-Seybold Clinic, including John R. Kelsey, Jr., MD, and Mavis P. Kelsey, Sr., MD, with the mission to support medical research and education. The original vision of the Foundation was “To improve constantly, by study and research, the professional and service standards of medicine.”

Initially, the Foundation made grants to institutions and research programs in the Texas Medical Center, including funding for the first electron microscope used in clinical medicine at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, an intra-aortic balloon pump for the Texas Heart Institute, and support for diabetes research at Baylor College of Medicine, among many others. Over the years, the Foundation became the Kelsey Research Foundation and is focused on health services and outcomes research, partnering with physicians, hospitals, universities, as well as the local research community to improve the quality of patient care and health outcomes for all.

Today, KRF continues to improve constantly as it strives to become the leading hub for innovative and collaborative research in medical science, health outcomes, patient health education, and behavioral intervention in the Texas Medical Center and Houston area.