Transitions Within MD-PhD Programs: Reassurance for Students

Chrzanowski, Stephen M.

doi:10.1007/s40670-017-0472-7

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 21 publications

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“…This, more flexible, integrative model would serve to enhance students’ appreciation of the clinical relevance of their research, and likewise, the research that underlies their clinical training. Furthermore, this integration may ease the stressful transitions reported by students and junior doctors due to their abrupt nature, unclear expectations and feelings of unpreparedness [ 34 , 35 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The clinician-scientist track: an approach addressing Australia’s need for a pathway to train its future clinical academic workforce

Eley

2018

BMC Med Educ

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BackgroundClinician-scientist training represents the epitome of preparation for biomedical scientific discovery. The significance of, and need for, clinician-scientists is universally recognised as essential to progress medical research across what is regarded as the ‘translational gap’. Despite a rich history of cutting-edge biomedical research, Australia has no infrastructure or career pathway for training clinician-scientists.DiscussionThe Clinician-scientist Track (CST) was developed to address this concern at the University of Queensland. The CST concept began in 2010 with the Concurrent MD-Masters that allowed students to undertake a research Masters concurrently with their medical program. The rationale was to offer an attractive and realistic option to recruit our highest performing students into a research higher degree, with the underlying aim of encouraging those most capable, to transfer to the MD-PhD. The Concurrent MD-Masters was immediately popular and remains so. Over 8 years, enrolments rose seven-fold (60 MD-Masters, 36 MD-PhDs). The transfer rate from MD-Masters to MD-PhD is 28% supporting our original aim.ConclusionsMany challenges remain for the future of the program. These challenges are underpinned by a culture that values clinician-scientists as crucial to ensuring that high quality health and medical research is undertaken and translated to patient care, but lags behind in establishing an infrastructure to develop and maintain a new generation of this vital workforce. A future challenge is to develop a coordinated approach to a supported Australian MD-PhD pathway for our most talented and committed students beginning in the undergraduate Bachelor’s degree into the medical degree and throughout specialty training. Shared responsibility is necessary between institutions and stakeholders to support and nurture newly trained MD-PhDs into the post-graduate years. Flexibility across this medical training continuum that allows integration of both degrees will help ensure students make the most meaningful connections between the research and the medicine. What is paramount will be acknowledging the career expectations of an emerging cohort of medical students, in particular females, wishing to pursue research. Without these considerations we risk losing our next generation of potential clinician-scientists.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The clinician-scientist track: an approach addressing Australia’s need for a pathway to train its future clinical academic workforce

Eley

2018

BMC Med Educ

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Gamification: an Innovative Approach to Reinforce Clinical Knowledge for MD-PhD Students During Their PhD Research Years

et al. 2019

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The Integration of Clinical and Research Training: How and Why MD–PhD Programs Work

Jones

Sivapragasam

et al. 2019

Academic Medicine

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For over 60 years, MD–PhD programs have provided integrated clinical and research training to produce graduates primed for physician–scientist careers. Yet the nature of this integrated training is poorly characterized, with no program theory of MD–PhD training to guide program development or evaluation. The authors address this gap by proposing a program theory of integrated MD–PhD training applying constructs from cognitive psychology and medical education. The authors argue that integrated physician–scientist training requires development of at least three elements in trainees: cognitive synergy, sense of self, and professional capacity. First, integrated programs need to foster the cognitive ability to synergize and transfer knowledge between the clinical and research realms. Second, integrated programs need to facilitate development of a unique and emergent identity as a physician–scientist that is more than the sum of the individual roles of physician and scientist. Third, integrated programs should develop core competencies unique to physician–scientists in addition to those required of each independently. The authors describe how programs can promote development of these elements in trainees, summarized in a logic model. Activities and process measures are provided to assist institutions in enhancing integration. Specifically, programs can enact the proposed theory by providing tailored MD–PhD curricula, personal development planning, and a supportive community of practice. It is high time to establish a theory behind integrated MD–PhD training as the basis for designing interventions and evaluations to develop the foundations of physician–scientist expertise.

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Transitions Within MD-PhD Programs: Reassurance for Students

Cited by 3 publications

References 21 publications

The clinician-scientist track: an approach addressing Australia’s need for a pathway to train its future clinical academic workforce

The clinician-scientist track: an approach addressing Australia’s need for a pathway to train its future clinical academic workforce

Gamification: an Innovative Approach to Reinforce Clinical Knowledge for MD-PhD Students During Their PhD Research Years

The Integration of Clinical and Research Training: How and Why MD–PhD Programs Work

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