Training for Clinician Scientists in Imaging Research

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is the competitive renewal of a T32 training grant that has provided intensive training in Imaging Research with the overall goal of increasing the number of clinician scientists employing imaging in their future research careers. There is an increasingly serious need for such physicians to become the future teachers and mentors in our major clinical specialties. In particular, Radiology has had a relatively weak history of providing formal training and research opportunities as part of the Clinical Residency Program and yet imaging methodology is now pervading many medical/scientific disciplines. Given the interdisciplinary nature of imaging, we have been fortunate to be able to include in addition to Radiology, T32 proposed departments/programs such as General Internal Medicine, Neurology, Neuropathology, Psychiatry, Surgery, and in this renewal, Oncology and Pediatric trainees. During the last 4 years and expected year 5, we have successfully filled the majority of our slots uniquely co-funded by several NIH institutes. Non-faculty residents and fellowship physicians, especially in Radiology and the T32 proposed departments/programs, will obtain a structured, rigorous research training that they would not normally receive. Didactic coursework will be obtained during the clinical years including identification of training mentors and labs followed b a minimum of 1 to 2 years of formal full- time T32 funded research. This also will directly be integrated with existing more advanced training programs, including M.S and Ph.D. degree granting programs and clinical investigation, as well as opportunities and basic science and public health programs. By starting early in their careers, we anticipate this may ultimately have a major effect on the career paths these trainee physicians will take. The ultimate outcome will be increased numbers of physicians who will carry out a research career integrated with both basic and applied approaches. The training program will consist of explicit didactic courses prior to the training year, followed by a full semester of courses during the T32 training years and carefully assigned mentors and laboratories. The faculty is drawn not only from Radiology but from the associated basic departments including Bioengineering, Electrical Engineering, Psychology, and Public Health. Thus, trainees will train not only in Radiology and the other T32 proposed department/program laboratories, but in affiliated departments at Johns Hopkins University and Intramural NIH (Baltimore and Bethesda), as well as potential industrial scientific labs, providing a true intra-disciplinary research training experience. Evaluation will include formal progress reports, mock grant preparation and review, as well as publications and required national presentations. The long-term goal is to attract resident physicians into a career employing imaging research as a major component of their future academic careers.