Training for Clinician Scientists in Imaging Research

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This T32 training grant will provide 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. There is a documented shortage of academic radiologists over a number of years now. 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. Resident physicians especially in Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine 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 by a minimum of 1 to 2 years of formal full time T32 funded research. This will also directly be integrated with existing more advanced training programs including M.S. and Ph.D. degree granting programs in clinical investigation as well as opportunities with basic science and public health programs. At least 25% of all the positions will be open for residents of other departments, explicitly Psychiatry, Neurology, Medicine and Surgery who intend on employing imaging (e.g., Neuro-imaging or interventional imaging) as part of their research careers. By starting early in their careers, we anticipate this may ultimately have a major effect on the career paths these 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 full semester courses during the T32 training years and carefully assigned mentors and laboratories. The faculty is drawn not only from Radiology but from the associated departments and also including Bioengineering and Electrical Engineering. Thus trainees will train not only in Psychiatry, Neurology and Radiology laboratories but in affiliated departments at Johns Hopkins University and Intramural NIH (Baltimore and Bethesda) and 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.