CTSA K12 Program at The University of Iowa

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PROJECT SUMMARY The University of Iowa (UI) Health Care strategic plan for 2022-2027 expressly challenges the institution to (1) further expand clinical and translational science and research throughout our health care system, 2) build a diverse clinical and scientific workforce and to (3) enhance healthcare across the state through innovations in the systems of clinical and translational science (CTS) as well as clinical care. The Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (ICTS) is the scientific home for the CTS infrastructure and many of the training programs that support the university and is the entity charged with integrating CTS into the health care and research environments at the UI. As we envisioned the K12 program, we used the UI Health Care strategic goals to design a program that meets the needs of our state and that trains a CTS workforce to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery driving science from the bench to the bedside and into the community. Nearly 40% of Iowa's population lives in rural regions of the state where access to health care is challenged and many disease outcomes are inferior to those seen in urban populations. Resolving these rural disparities requires scientific and health care approaches that can adapt to geographic distance and make use of the existing systems of care that are in place in sparsely populated areas. Health delivery in rural Iowa is dependent on team-based care that incorporates allied health providers such as pharmacists, physical therapists, mid-level practitioners, dentists and importantly, community services. Our research agenda addresses the need to engage rural populations in practical ways closer to their homes and to train our scientists to work in multidisciplinary teams that include and value integration of community and allied health providers into research. Accordingly, our K12 program intentionally solicits Scholars from all health professions. The Objectives of our K12 Program are 1) Recruit and train outstanding Scholars (currently junior faculty or postdoctoral fellows with a pending faculty appointment) who will engage in an individualized curriculum and in mentored health care research during a three-year period in this multidisciplinary, multicultural K12 program. 2) Enhance the mentoring environment for translational research Scholars through a robust program for both mentors and mentees built on the NRMN training platform. 3) Provide a highly focused mentored research experience that fosters Scholars' successful transition to independence and continued engagement as leaders of translational health care teams. Meeting these objectives will require continued campus-wide, multidisciplinary participation of faculty as members of mentoring teams for K12 Scholars. Additionally, the ICTS, home of the only CTSA in the State of Iowa, will collaborate with CTSA hubs across the United States to enhance the learning environment and increase the opportunities for our K12 Scholars to build successful careers in translational science.