Fellowship Research Goals

Cari McCarty, Ph.D.November 2, 2012

Divisions of General Pediatrics

and Adolescent Medicine, University of Washington

Center for Child Health Behavior and Development

Seattle Children’s Hospital

Outline

Goals of fellowship Task management Selecting a research project Identifying and working with mentors Research resources at Children’s and the

UW

6 Goals of a fellowship

(1) Identify your mission (and agenda) You want to be known for it

(2) Establish mentor(s) You will need them at every stage of your

career

(3) Acquire skills (clinical, research) This is a good time and venue to do so

Goals, continued

(4) Gain practical experience No substitute for it

(5) Have a job/professional talk One project should be ready to present by the

Fall of your second year

(6) Collect pilot data (if interested in research career) You will need it to apply for grants

Caveats

Have passion for what you work on Don’t be afraid to take some chances (say

“yes” often) Don’t spread yourself too thin (don’t be

afraid to say “no”) Don’t take an “elective” approach to your

fellowship

What is your time situation?

Length of fellowship How much time and interest in research? When is your dedicated research time? Are you planning on course work? Where are you headed?

How will you divide your time?

Research Patient care Seminars and conferences Administration/Leadership Course work Teaching

Task Management Strategy:

Mission Statement

Concise statement of what you intend to contribute

Provides you with» Identity» Guiding framework for planning» Rationale for saying YES or NO» Focus ...

Mission Statement

To improve the emotional and behavioral health of children and adolescents through enhanced scientific understanding, promoting social-emotional competencies, and disseminating high-quality treatments

Task Management Strategy:

Objectives at 3 Time Points ~ 6 years: Big goal

» Test an intervention to improve adherence to asthma guidelines

~ 3 years: Worthy in & of itself» Identify reasons for guideline non-adherence

Immediate Steps» Learn methods (epidemiology, biostatistics)

and content areas (chronic illness care, health systems, provider behavior)

Time Sinks

Waiting for data (be realistic) Dead end projects Excessive course work (? advanced

degree) Job search Moonlighting

Selecting Projects: Goals

Acquire skills in research design, methods Develop your agenda Work with particular people Have a product available for job talk

Selecting Projects: Criteria

“FINER” criteriaUseful for Evaluating Fellowship Projects

From: Hulley and Cummings, Designing Clinical Research.

Feasible

• Adequate data• Adequate expertise• Affordable in time and money• Manageable in scope• How risky is the project? (Different

projects have different degrees of risk, e.g. RCTs are high risk, database studies are low risk)

Interesting to you How interesting is the project idea to you? Is the question important? (so what????) Will the results be a contribution no matter

what you find? Will it lead to subsequent questions? Will the project enable you to develop

important skills? With whom will you work?

Novel

• Confirms or refutes previous findings

• Extends previous findings

• Provides new findings

Ethical

• IRB

• NIH Inclusion Policy

• Cultural competence

Relevant

• To scientific knowledge

• To clinical and health policy

• To future research

Choosing a research project

Draw your inspiration from your observations

Do something important: frequency, severity, something you can impact, new information

Do something that is feasible given time and resources

It should lead to subsequent studies

Selecting a project, cont’d

Strike a balance between independence and apprenticeship: make sure you have something that is your own

If feasible, pursue more than one at a time (smoothes down times, decreases risk)

Develop a diverse portfolio

Cultural Competence in Research

Collect and examine data by subgroup, when possible

Develop and validate linguistic and culturally appropriate measures

Disseminate best research practices as they pertain to racial/ethnic minority health

Striving for cultural competence is a process, not a finite action

Identifying Mentors

A mentor is a close, trusted, and experienced counselor or guide.

Mentors provide methodologic expertise, guidance, moral support, connections.

They are critical to success in academia They must be invested in your career You can (and should) have more than one

Working with a Mentor

The success of the relationship depends on you

There are 5 keys to a good relationship

Be Proactive

Do not wait for mentors to contact you

Meet with them regularly (how frequently depends on the project)

Schedule the next meeting at the end of the prior one

Be Respectful

Mentors are typically very busy Ask when it will be convenient to

meet Be punctual (even if they are not) Give them adequate time to review

materials (1-2 weeks for a grant or manuscript)

Be Organized

Prepare a list of points to cover at your meeting

Have some provisional ideas about what you want to do

Be Responsive

Take their advice & comments seriously

Even if you disagree with them, others are likely to raise similar concerns

Give them feedback on how you responded to their advice

Be Appreciative

Acknowledge their time & efforts Keep them abreast of your progress Let them know how helpful they

have been Let their boss know, too

Research Resources

Children’s

CCHBD Hearst Foundation Fellowship Grants (up to $8000; due 3/15/13)

CCHBD Small Grant mechanism (up to $10,000; due 12/15/12)

UW

Catalyst

ITHS - http://www.iths.org/

Research Funding Service

Optional Self-Reflection Assignment

Write out a succinct statement of your research goals for the next year, 3 years, and 6 years

What resources do you need to achieve your goals?

Who are your mentors?