Hawaii Medical Student Aging Research Training Center

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application is being submitted in response to the RFA from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) entitled: "Summer Research Training in Aging for Medical Students". We propose to establish a Hawaii Medical Student Aging Research Training Center, designed to achieve the goal of providing short-term research, clinical and didactic experiences, and to expose medical students to career opportunities in aging research and academic geriatrics. The research focus of this center will be epidemiology of neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases in elderly populations, due to the existing experienced faculty with funded research projects in these areas. These diseases of aging represent the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in the elderly population, and have been designated by the NIA as important areas of research. Specific Aim 1: To recruit five first-year medical students each year for summer research scholarships, which will provide early exposure to the excitement of ongoing research in aging, specifically targeting medical students from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The University of Hawaii is a federally designated minority institution, and the majority of medical students are of minority ethnic backgrounds. Specific Aim 2: To provide high quality training in research design and methodology through one-on-one and group education methods, including training in principles of ethical conduct of research. Specific Aim 3: To provide medical students with hands-on research experience by participating in existing projects and completing a secondary data analysis project for presentation. Specific Aim 4: To encourage medical students to pursue academic careers in aging research, with a focus on epidemiology of chronic diseases of aging, to meet the needs of an increasing older population. Specific Aim 5: To create a tracking system to follow-up on ultimate career choices made by medical students participating in this program.