Abstract
BackgroundDual degree program MD/PhD candidates typically train extensively in basic science research and in clinical medicine, but often receive little formal experience or mentorship in clinical and translational research.MethodsTo address this educational and curricular gap, the University of Wisconsin Medical Scientist Training Program partnered with the University of Wisconsin Institute for Clinical and Translational Research to create a new physician-scientist preceptorship in clinical and translational research. This six-week apprentice-style learning experience—guided by a physician-scientist faculty mentor—integrates both clinical work and a translational research project, providing early exposure and hands-on experience with clinically oriented research and the integrated career of a physician-scientist. Five years following implementation, we retrospectively surveyed students and faculty members to determine the outcomes of this preceptorship.ResultsOver five years, 38 students and 36 faculty members participated in the physician-scientist preceptorship. Based on student self-assessments (n = 29, response rate 76%), the course enhanced competency in conducting translational research and understanding regulation of clinical research among other skills. Mentor assessments (n = 17, response rate 47%) supported the value of the preceptorship in these same areas. Based on work during the preceptorship, half of the students produced a peer-reviewed publication or a meeting abstract. At least eleven peer-reviewed manuscripts were generated. The preceptorship also provided a structure for physician-scientist mentorship in the students’ clinical specialty of choice.ConclusionThe physician-scientist preceptorship provides a new curricular model to address the gap of clinical research training and provides for mentorship of physician-scientists during medical school. Future work will assess the long-term impact of this course on physician-scientist career trajectories.
Highlights
Dual degree program MD/PhD candidates typically train extensively in basic science research and in clinical medicine, but often receive little formal experience or mentorship in clinical and translational research
A systematic approach for connecting trainees to physician-scientist mentors within the same medical specialty could have a long-lasting positive impact. To address these gaps in training and mentorship, we report our experience with a novel curricular advance at the terminus of MD/PhD training—the Physician Scientist Preceptorship in Clinical and Translational Research—designed to provide an opportunity for students to conduct clinical or translational research balanced with clinical practice through an apprenticeship-style learning experience with a physician-scientist mentor
Preceptorship participants and projects The Physician-Scientist Preceptorship in Clinical and Translational Research was started in 2014 and continues to be conducted according to the objectives and components outlined in detail in the Methods section above and in Tables 1 and 2
Summary
Dual degree program MD/PhD candidates typically train extensively in basic science research and in clinical medicine, but often receive little formal experience or mentorship in clinical and translational research. Trainees encounter numerous barriers along the path towards becoming independent and productive physician-scientists, including the need to excel in both clinical medicine and scientific research, which require distinct skills, to publish high-quality work consistently, to secure funding, and to persist on this challenging path throughout an extraordinarily long training time [16]. These challenges are amplified by increasing medical and scientific specialization, which requires extensive time for trainees to master before pursuing the goal of translational research [14]. Training in clinical and translational research as a whole is often limited and is a key unmet need in the field [21]
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