Research Workforce Research Articles

Diversity in Family Medicine Research.

In conjunction with the North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) Annual Conference in 2023, leaders in the field of family medicine came together to discuss and produce a Family Medicine Research Agenda. While multiple areas were discussed, diversity, equity, and inclusion did not rise to the top as research priorities. This article discusses the 3 areas family medicine leaders see as necessary to produce high-quality research. The authors present ideas on how diversity, equity, and inclusion can be prioritized in each area. In the first area, "Grow the family medicine research workforce by expanding pathways and strengthening mentorship," the authors present existing models, with an emphasis on those pathway programs proven to increase scholarship and research, such as the Leadership Through Scholarship Fellowship sponsored by the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) and the Building Research Capacity Program sponsored by the Association of Departments of Family Medicine (ADFM). In the second area, "Increase funding for family medicine research and advocate for enhanced health policy and support," the authors present ideas on greater utilization of NIH diversity supplements as well as institutional advocacy by family medicine chairs to create seed grants and provide opportunities for diverse faculty to engage in research. Chairs can also increase the diversity of the researcher pool by recruiting among local full-time clinicians, a more diverse group than most faculties. For the final area, "Build a national infrastructure for organizing and optimizing family medicine research opportunities," the authors present solutions including following demographic data surrounding authorship and reviewing for journals; having dedicated committees or editors focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion; and using demographic data from conference submissions to encourage those from underrepresented backgrounds to translate their presentations into a manuscript. These strategies can help equity, diversity, and inclusion become central to our research and be used as a national model for other specialties attempting to do the same.

Increased Survival in Contemporary Parkinson's Disease - a 47 year autopsy study.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. The main clinical features are: bradykinesia, rigidity and resting tremor. Other neurodegenerative disorders such as progressive supranuclear palsy and multiple system atrophy share some of these clinical manifestations. All those disorders are collectively known as parkinsonism or Parkinson syndrome (PS). Definite diagnosis of PD requires brain autopsy. There is no known cure for PD. Since its discovery in the 1960s, levodopa (LD) has remained the best and most widely used medication in PD. The impact of that is important to understanding the neuroepidemiology of PD. The incidence of PD rises with advancing age. In the last six decades, life expectancy in the general population has increased resulting in a larger pool of at-risk persons. Onset age of PD is the most reliable indicator of PD survival, as older onset cases have shorter survival. We report on survival in autopsy-confirmed PD cases with onset-age <70 years treated with LD and compare that with similar onset age cases of PD before the discovery of LD. The Saskatchewan Movement Disorders Program (SMDP) has operated uninterrupted since 1968. Long follow-up and autopsy studies are a special interest of the SMDP. All PS cases followed by the SMPD during 47 years (1968-2015) that came to autopsy were considered. Those with autopsy-confirmed PD and onset <70 years were included and were compared with pre-LD cases of similar age of onset. 392 PS cases were seen in our clinic between 1968-2015 and had brain pathology studies. 314 (80%) of those had PD. 128 (41%) of the PD cases had onset <70 years and were included in this study. Their median survival was 18 years. Prior to widespread use of LD, nearly all PD cases had onset <70 years and mean survival was 9.4 years. Longer survival in our study is attributed primarily to modern treatment. Increased survival has resulted in a larger number of older, chronically treated, higher comorbidity, and complicated PD patients. These changes present new challenges. It requires a larger and increasingly diverse workforce for patient care and research.

Youth Mental Health: The Role of Culture &amp; KTE Approaches in Expanding the Research Workforce

ABSTRACTDespite efforts to expand the youth mental health workforce, disparities continue to persist in service provision, the effectiveness of existing programs and practices, and in research. While there is no quick fix to rectify these issues, expanding the research workforce can serve as a preliminary step in reducing many of the disparities that exist. The current work highlights the necessity for increased efforts to recruit a population of experts (i.e., practitioners) into the research workforce that possesses a level of knowledge and expertise largely untapped by research producers. Furthermore, knowledge transfer and exchange (KTE) methodologies are offered as innovative approaches that can be harnessed to facilitate this change. To provide rationale for expanding not only the research workforce but reimagining historical notions of what research is, and who qualifies as belonging in this space, with examples of action steps that can be utilized by producers to attract practitioners. The use of KTE and related approaches to attract practitioners to research has positive implications including but not limited to expanding the youth mental health workforce.

Navigating the Modern Libraryscape: The Changing Roles, Labor, and Education of Public Librarians

Public libraries and their staff have recently faced a wide array of challenges. Some of these challenges include supporting services for incarcerated individuals, unhoused patrons, and others experiencing crises (American Library Association, 2023; Gross et al., 2024; Knox, 2023; Wahler and Johnson, 2024). These recent challenges give us, as scholars and educators, an opportunity to take a step back and trace the dynamic work of public library professionals. In response, public library workers take on a variety of tasks. These may involve connecting patrons to social service resources, partnering with community organizations, or creating programs to support specific community needs and interests. Some of this work undertaken by public library staff involves routine, everyday tasks. Other labor is in response to community crises. Understanding this work is central to our ability to consider how the realities of public library work impact LIS scholarship and education. This panel provides a space for open conversation among panelists and the ALISE community to address the following overarching questions: What does the work of public librarianship look like, in terms of roles and labor? How can a better understanding of these roles and the reality of public library work inform how we approach LIS scholarship and teaching? Our panel will consider several aspects of public library work, with a view toward connecting theory, research, and practical workforce preparation.

Perspectives of an NCI T32 Training Program Designed to Train a Diverse Workforce in Cancer Health Equity Research.

With cancer health disparities on the rise in the United States (USA), there is an increased need for novel approaches to address these challenges. One such approach that may help address these disparities is increasing diversity in the biomedical research workforce. The Cancer Health Equity and Career Development Program (CHECDP) embodies this approach by recruiting and training underrepresented minorities in cancer research to develop the skills and training needed to be competitive for independent research careers, thus diversifying the biomedical research workforce. The training model that CHECDP employs is unique with its funding through the NCI training mechanism, its strong institutional support, and its participant-driven curriculum. The curriculum includes educational, career, and leadership opportunities that are continuously evaluated for sustained impact. The program has been comprised of mostly under-represented minorities that have been propelled to independent careers with a high rate of funded career development awards. Our T32 program serves as a model of success for other programs seeking to diversify the biomedical research workforce and reduce cancer health disparities.

The Duke Paired Undergraduate Mentoring Program in Uronephrology: PUMPing Up the Research Workforce

The Duke Paired Undergraduate Mentoring Program in Uronephrology: PUMPing Up the Research Workforce

Development and Evaluation of Project Management Training for Cancer Research in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Globally, there were 19.3 million new cancer cases and 10 million cancer deaths, with the African continent contributing approximately 1.1 million new cases and over 700,000 deaths to the global cancer burden in 2020. High quality research is required to understand the etiology and risk factors for common cancers in the region to develop context specific strategies aimed at minimizing the future cancer burden in Africa. Our study addresses a significant gap in the knowledge and resources available for training a project management (PM) workforce for cancer research in Africa. We developed and evaluated a training program to strengthen the research capacity of project managers involved in cancer research in Africa. This workshop was held in collaboration with the Men of African Descent and Carcinoma of the Prostate (MADCaP) Consortium. The PM working group of the MADCaP Consortium had previously developed a project manager toolkit to provide a structured approach to PM for cancer research in Africa. We implemented and evaluated this training toolkit in a hybrid workshop in Nigeria. Among 29 participants from 10 African institutions, PM skills improved after training by 16.6% compared with pretraining levels. In a 1-year follow-up survey, training skills remained better (80.8%) than before the training (70.8%). The training program successfully upskilled the trainees with a significant improvement in knowledge of PM practices including planning, execution, monitoring, and evaluation of projects. The majority (80%) reported an excellent training experience. PM skills training can be successfully implemented in Africa with long-term retention of knowledge geared toward developing a workforce critical for the implementation of cancer research in the region.

Increasing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Health and Health Services Research Workforce: A Systematic Scoping Review.

Health and health services research institutions seek to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to overcome structural bias. The objective of this review is to identify, characterize, and evaluate programs aimed to strengthen DEI in the health and health services research workforces. We conducted a systematic scoping review of literature of 2012-2022 North American peer-reviewed empirical studies in PubMed and Embase using the Arksey and O'Malley approach. This review identified 62 programs that varied in focus, characteristics, and outcomes. Programs focused on supporting a spectrum of underrepresented groups based on race/ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, and socioeconomic status. The majority of programs targeted faculty/investigators, compared to other workforce roles. Most programs were 1 year in length or less. The practices employed within programs included skills building, mentoring, and facilitating the development of social networks. To support program infrastructure, key strategies included supportive leadership, inclusive climate, resource allocation, and community engagement. Most programs evaluated success based on shorter-term metrics such as the number of grants submitted and manuscripts published. Relatively few programs collected long-term outcomes on workforce pathway outcomes including hiring, promotion, and retention. This systematic scoping review outlined prevalent practices to advance DEI in the health and health services research field. As DEI programs proliferate, more work is needed by research universities, institutes, and funders to realign institutional culture and structures, expand resources, advance measurement, and increase opportunities for underrepresented groups at every career stage.

Abstract B175: Addressing the urgent demand for clinical research professionals through a novel training initiative

Abstract Training and retaining diverse, qualified clinical research professionals that reflect the demographics of the community is pivotal to design inclusive clinical protocols, recruit underrepresented populations, and increase generalizability of scientific advancements. The University of Chicago's Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCCCC) and the Professional Education (UCPE) office job market analysis found an urgent and growing—and chronically unmet—demand for clinical research professionals across the United States. Nearly 6,930 employers nationwide had active clinical trials job postings from May 2023-2024. Illinois is among the top ten states with unique clinical research job postings. Further, internal UChicago analysis revealed high turnover in entry-level clinical research positions, highlighting a competitive job market for qualified individuals. As 60% of all clinical research activities at UChicago are cancer-focused, the UCCCC pursued novel strategies to diversify, grow, and retain the clinical research workforce. The overarching goal is to optimize pathways from undergraduate programs to clinical research careers. City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) and the UCCCC’s Clinical Trials Support Office (CTSO), Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and Office of Education are collaborating on a three-module Cancer Clinical Research Professionals (CCRP) Program to create new pathways into clinical research careers. The yearlong CCRP Program provides hands-on training and development opportunities to community college students interested in biomedicine via a 6-week summer internship, monthly academic year engagements, and a semester-long apprenticeship. The program expands CCC’s capacity to combine classroom learning with practical experience and professional opportunities, which are critical components of students’ education. It promotes career awareness, specialized skill development, and employment in cancer clinical research among CCC students, a diverse and highly motivated talent pool. The internship attracted 49 applicants in its first year. Out of 22 qualified applicants, 6 interns were selected and will begin their training in June 2024. Detailed findings from the internship evaluation will be available in September 2024. We expect the CCRP Program to be most students’ first experience with clinical research careers, greatly expanding their access to opportunities. Our evaluation will present lessons learned during the first year of the CCRP and plans to modify program components. Findings will also inform related training initiatives such as developing an Associate Degree in Clinical Research. We are confident that our forthcoming data will be of interest to other cancer centers and academic medical centers working to enhance their cancer clinical research workforce, which is essential for inclusive research and cancer health equity. Citation Format: Camilla Frost-Brewer, Aspen Ward, Lauren Wall, Megan Mekinda, Eileen Dolan, Jasmine Tiro, Matt Cohn. Addressing the urgent demand for clinical research professionals through a novel training initiative [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 17th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2024 Sep 21-24; Los Angeles, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2024;33(9 Suppl):Abstract nr B175.

Employment Decisions of Newly Graduated Occupational Therapists.

Introduction. Employment decision-making is essential for understanding workforce trends. Current occupational therapy workforce research describes distribution disparities of occupational therapists within geographic locations, services such as acute care or community health, and private or public sectors. New graduates of occupational therapy programs are critical to meeting the demand and distribution disparities of occupational therapy services in British Columbia. However, recent employment decision-making of new occupational therapy graduates has not been well studied. Purpose. This study aimed to examine factors that influence newly graduated occupational therapists' employment decisions. Methods. This descriptive study sampled 122 occupational therapists who were registered in one province and graduated from a Canadian occupational therapy program between 2017 and 2022. Data was collected through an online survey about intrinsic factors, extrinsic factors, and past fieldwork experiences that affected participants' employment decision-making. Descriptive data analysis was used to organize participants' responses. Findings. Results identified that work-life balance and mentorship were the highest rated factors that influenced participants' current and first employment respectively. Participants agreed that the variety and number of placements they had as students were more influential to their employment decisions than the length of the fieldwork education. Conclusion. This study identified the intrinsic and extrinsic factors in employment choices that may influence recruitment, retention, and workplace planning of new graduates.

The information services of the students working in the field of scientific research

Students are part of the scientific research workforce in higher education institutions. The structure of scientific resources consists of scientists, material and technical devices, and information services. The information services for students are a component of the overall information services for scientific research. The development of students' information needs and their experiences with bibliographic work are emphasized. Two key functions of the information work performed by students are highlighted.

Evaluation of a Multi-Site Cancer Health Disparities Research Training Program for Underrepresented Undergraduate and Medical Students.

Diversifying the biomedical research workforce is crucial for eliminating cancer health disparities. To address this need, Moffitt Cancer Center and Louisiana State University Health Sciences formed the Southeast Partnership for Improving Research and Training in Cancer Health Disparities (SPIRIT-CHD). A key component of SPIRIT-CHD is the Cancer Research Education Program (CREP), designed to train underrepresented undergraduate and medical students in biomedical science research. The CREP featured an 8-week summer internship with a web-based curriculum, community outreach, and mentored research experiences. Three cohorts (n = 39) completed the CREP. Students were evaluated before and after the internship using the Goal Attainment Scale (GAS), Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI), and Research Appraisal Inventory (RAI), modified to assess CREP outcomes. These scales measured students' intentions to pursue cancer research careers, self-efficacy in communicating scientific information, and perceived research abilities. Paired test results showed significant increases (p < 0.001) in scores across the scales (GAS, STEBI, RAI) pre- and post-training. Trainees reported heightened intentions to pursue cancer research careers (GAS; mean increase of 5.3, p < 0.001) and greater self-efficacy in relaying scientific information (STEBI; mean increase of 9.2, p < 0.001). They also showed increased self-confidence in conducting research (RAI; mean increase of 58.2, p < 0.001). These findings demonstrate the program's success in fostering interest in cancer research careers and enhancing research confidence. Results support the development of programs like CREP to positively impact the academic and professional trajectories of underrepresented students, ultimately creating a more diverse and inclusive biomedical research workforce equipped to address health disparities.

Systematic Literature Review and Bibliometric Analysis Seafarer Supply and Demand

This study conducts a systematic assessment of the literature and does a bibliometric analysis to investigate the fluctuations in the availability and need for seafarers in the marine sector. The study examines a diverse selection of publications from several subfields within the seafarer workforce domain, analysing significant patterns, difficulties, and opportunities for enhancement. The study provides insights into the scholarly landscape of seafarer workforce research by analyzing highly cited articles, prolific authors, and influential journals. The findings highlight the significant impact of technological advancements, demographic shifts, regulatory changes, and economic factors on seafarer supply and demand dynamics. The systematic review and bibliometric analysis offer valuable information for policymakers, industry stakeholders, researchers, and academicians seeking to understand and address the complexities of the seafarer workforce. The initial review of articles obtained from the pilot search informed the formulation of research questions to understand the current state, trends, impactful studies, influential authors, and areas for future exploration within the seafarer workforce literature. Keywords related to seafarers and workforce were identified and refined through a three-step process to create an optimal set of search terms. This systematic literature review has provided valuable insights into various aspects of the seafarer workforce, including trends, challenges, and potential areas for future research. By employing a rigorous methodology and analyzing relevant literature, this study contributes to the ongoing discourse on seafarer supply and demand dynamics, offering a foundation for informed decision-making and further exploration in this field.

In-Situ and in-Operando Li-Ion Batteries for Materials Science Education

Electrochemical energy storage systems, particularly Li-ion rechargeable batteries (LiRB), have a key role to play in fortifying US energy generation, decarbonizing the electricity sector, and limiting anthropogenic climate change. LiRBs suffer from limited lifetimes, insufficient energy densities, and fire risks, which are all materials science and engineering challenges stemming from various irreversible degradation processes occurring at nano and micro-scales. These batteries function via the reversible diffusion of Li ions from a Li-rich cathode to a Li-poor anode, each of which undergo various levels of volumetric phase changes, plastic deformation, and microcracking with each charging cycle, thereby compromising subsequent battery performance. Therefore, it is imperative to understand the nano-mechanical processes associated with LiRB degradation and predict transformative material designs that can lead to manufacturing cheaper, denser, and safer LiRBs. Such understanding and design would be instrumental to achieving the US 2050 Net Zero Goal. Additionally, the US lags 10x behind China in terms of Li battery manufacturing capability, and thus a LiRB-aware Research and Development workforce is paramount for continued US energy security. In this context, we propose a new design for in-situ and in-operando Li-ion battery research and education. This battery design will be used in a classroom/lab setting to discuss fundamental materials science concepts such as diffusion, grain-boundaries, and fracture. This activity will be used to broaden "missing millions" student participation in a crucial area of energy research at a minority serving institution.

Towards robotic laboratory automation plug & play: Reference architecture model for robot integration

Supportive robotic solutions take over mundane, but essential tasks from human workforce in biomedical research and development laboratories. The newest technologies in collaborative and mobile robotics enable the utilization in the human-centered and low-structured environment. Their adaptability, however, is hindered by the additional complexity that they introduce. In our paper we aim to entangle the convoluted laboratory robot integration architectures. We begin by hierarchically decomposing the laboratory workflows, and mapping the activity representations to layers and components of the automation control architecture. We elaborate the framework in detail on the example of pick-and-place labware transportation - a crucial supportive step, which we identified as the number one area of interest among experts of the field. Our concept proposal serves as a reference architecture model, the key principles of which were used in reference implementations, and are in line with international standardization efforts.

Catalysing gender transformation in research through engaging African science granting councils

Science investments should benefit everyone; however, research still predominantly lacks gender integration, resulting in incomplete findings and inequitable outcomes. Moreover, despite some progress, gender disparities persist in the research workforce. Research funders, including science granting councils, are pivotal in driving gender transformation through shaping knowledge production and research infrastructure. We report on key findings from the Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) Gender Equality and Inclusivity (GEI) Project – a multi-year participatory intervention aimed at strengthening the capacities of councils to integrate GEI across their functions. Participating councils were located in 13 African countries, and their actions spanned four domains: building organisational GEI infrastructure; reshaping norms, practices, and power relations that perpetuate gender inequality; implementing targeted measures to address women’s unequal access to resources and research opportunities; and promoting collective ownership of efforts to advance GEI in the research and innovation ecosystem.

Anticipating responses to climate change and planning for resilience in California’s freshwater ecosystems

As human-caused climate changes accelerate, California will experience hydrologic and temperature conditions different than any encountered in recorded history. How will these changes affect the state’s freshwater ecosystems? Rivers, lakes, and wetlands are managed as a water resource, but they also support a complex web of life, ranging from bacteria, fungi, and algae to macrophytes, woody plants, invertebrates, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. In much of the state, native freshwater organisms already struggle to survive massive water diversions and dams, deteriorating water quality, extensive land cover modification for agriculture and urban development, and invasions of exotic species. In the face of climate change, we need to expand efforts to recover degraded ecosystems and to protect the resilience, health, and viability of existing ecosystems. For this, more process-based understanding of river, lake, and wetlands ecosystems is needed to forecast how systems will respond to future climate change and to our interventions. This will require 1) expanding our ability to model mechanistically how freshwater biota and ecosystems respond to environmental change; 2) hypothesis-driven monitoring and field studies; 3) education and training to build research, practitioner, stewardship, and policy capabilities; and 4) developing tools and policies for building resilient ecosystems. A goals-driven, hypothesis-informed collaboration among tribes, state (and federal) agencies, nongovernmental organizations, academicians, and consultants is needed to accomplish these goals and to advance the skills and knowledge of the future workforce of practitioners, regulators, and researchers who must live with the climate changes that are already upon us and will intensify.

A/B Testing of User Enrollment Forms to Enhance Diversity in the Biomedical Workforce via the National Research Mentoring Network: User-Centered Design Case Study.

The National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) is a National Institutes of Health-funded program for diversifying the science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine research workforce through the provision of mentoring, networking, and professional development resources. The NRMN provides mentoring resources to members through its online platform-MyNRMN. MyNRMN helps members build a network of mentors. Our goal was to expand enrollment and mentoring connections, especially among those who have been historically underrepresented in biomedical training and the biomedical workforce. To improve the ease of enrollment, we implemented the split testing of iterations of our user interface for platform registration. To increase mentoring connections, we developed multiple features that facilitate connecting via different pathways. Our improved user interface yielded significantly higher rates of completed registrations (P<.001). Our analysis showed improvement in completed enrollments that used the version 1 form when compared to those that used the legacy form (odds ratio 1.52, 95% CI 1.30-1.78). The version 2 form, with its simplified, 1-step process and fewer required fields, outperformed the legacy form (odds ratio 2.18, 95% CI 1.90-2.50). By improving the enrollment form, the rate of MyNRMN enrollment completion increased from 57.3% (784/1368) with the legacy form to 74.5% (2016/2706) with the version 2 form. Our newly developed features delivered an increase in connections between members. Our technical efforts expanded MyNRMN's membership base and increased connections between members. Other platform development teams can learn from these efforts to increase enrollment among underrepresented groups and foster continuing, successful engagement.

Training Outcomes and Satisfaction in Canadian MD/PhD and MD/MSc Programs: Findings from a National Survey.

Despite the impact of physician-scientists on scientific discovery and translational medicine, several reports have signalled their declining workforce, reduced funding, and insufficient protected research time. Given the paucity of outcome data on Canadian MD/PhD programs, this study presents a national portrait of the sociodemographic characteristics, training trajectories, productivity, and satisfaction in trainees and alumni from Canadian MD/PhD and MD/MSc programs. Quantitative data were collected in a national survey launched in 2021. Respondents included 74 MD/PhD alumni and 121 trainees across 12 Canadian MD/PhD and MD/MSc programs. Among MD/PhD alumni, 51% were independent practitioners/researchers while others underwent residency training. Most trainees (88%) were in MD/PhD programs. Significantly more alumni identified as men than did trainees. Significantly more alumni conducted clinical and health services research, while more trainees conducted basic science research. Average time to MD/PhD completion was 8 years, with no correlation to subsequent research outcomes. Self-reported research productivity was highest during MD/PhD training. Concerning training trajectories, most alumni completed residency, pursued additional training, and practised in Canada. Finally, regression models showed that trainees and alumni were satisfied with programs, with significant moderators in trainee models. Survey findings showed Canadian MD/PhD and MD/MSc programs recruit more diverse cohorts of trainees than before, provide productive research years, and graduate alumni who pursue training and academic employment in Canada. Both alumni and trainees are largely satisfied with these training programs. The need to collect in-depth longitudinal data on Canadian MD/PhD graduates to monitor diversity and success metrics is discussed.

Building Institutional Research Workforce in Postsecondary Education: Exploring Institutional Research Professionals’ Conceptualizations of their Professional Identities

Building Institutional Research Workforce in Postsecondary Education: Exploring Institutional Research Professionals’ Conceptualizations of their Professional Identities