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Kick Starting your Health Science Research Career

Kick Starting your Health Science Research Career. Jamie McPhee, MD VA Boston Healthcare. Kick-starting at a glance…. Are you a kick-starter? On Mentorship What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? Get some Edumacation Eventually you may need some $$ Be a finisher.

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Kick Starting your Health Science Research Career

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  1. Kick Starting your Health Science Research Career Jamie McPhee, MD VA Boston Healthcare

  2. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  3. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  4. A word on kick-starting… • Preaching to the choir at Hahvid • There are kick-starters and those that require jump-starting… • Kick-starter…. • Jump starter… • Suffice it to say, nobody can make you do this stuff if you’re not interested

  5. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  6. “Fake it ‘til you make it” • Jennifer Tseng, MD, MPH, Division Chief, Surgical Oncology, BIDMC • She wasn’t always a big-shot • 2005, UMass with similar research interests created…S.O.A.R. • Surgical Outcomes Analyis & Research • I wanted to name it: Worcester House Officer Research Effort But she wouldn’t let me -Taught me collaboration is key, reached out to students/residents/other faculty members with similar interests and the ongoing projects grew exponentially

  7. Slap a name on it, and ask for money for it…

  8. Choosing the right mentors….. • Phone may ring at inopportune times (i.e. 8:00 Sunday a.m. on your weekend off) • Important not to shirk any great opportunities • Residency/Fellowship is a unique time where you’re surrounded by many people with great ideas, always can find a way to make it happen…..

  9. But….“Don’t overcommit” “Want to write another book chapter?” • Try to never say “no” to these opportunities • But….you better “get ‘er done” or they won’t come knocking again • Make sure the book is the “real deal” before you commit. • Nothing sadder than an orphaned book chapter (except maybe an actual orphan)….

  10. The book chapter that wasn’t….

  11. Mentorship tips… • Work with people that have a history of being “finishers” • Avoid projects too grandiose for your immediate skill-set/time allotment, “Let’s look at all operations done at BWH since it opened…” • Mentors with immediately available data/datasets (+/- fine tuning) much preferred to a “log book”/Excel sheet of performed cases with the need to fill most/all of blanks on your own

  12. Never too soon to go from Mentee-to Mentor….. • HSPH is crawling with people (Canadians, students) looking to collaborate on projects • I found this med student wandering around the halls of the Shapiro building….

  13. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  14. Data (almost) anyone can get • 1) Take advantage of institutional data while in training • 2) Prospectively maintained, legwork done for you, IRB may be streamlined • 3) Previously published randomized trial data may be available for participating centers • 4) When you graduate and have less access to strong institutional data…..try some of these

  15. HCUP data • NIS (Nationwide Inpatient Sample) • Administrative data (strength in numbers, short on clinical info), released annually • Linked with AHA hospital level data • Cheap, 50$/year with student ID • Great for in-hospital mortality/trend analyses • KID (Kids’ Inpatient Database) • Similar idea for Pediatric population • Released periodically http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/

  16. HCUP data continued • State Inpatient Database (SID) • Unlike NIS can track pts across multiple admissions • Only available for certain states (NY/CA most commonly used) • More $ than NIS

  17. NSQIP Data • Free if you work at NSQIP affiliated hospital (Most) • Simple data request and they will send you all requested years in SAS or however you want • 30 day follow-up (unlike NIS) • Clinically “rich” er than typical administrative data

  18. Regional/Cooperative Datasets • Specialty driven • Vascular Surgery…VSGNE (Vascular Study Group of New England) • Data is free if your institution participates (Not free to participate) • Data requests go through a research advisory committee…most reasonable offers accepted • 1 year follow-up, rich in clinical detail • Participants also eligible for VQI (Vascular Quality Initiative), national equivalent of VSGNE, larger group of pts.

  19. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  20. “Insert catchy statistical quip here” • “They should require a license to analyze statistics” Fran Cook, HSPH

  21. Advanced Degree Options • MPH, MS, MSCe, etc. • Expensive • HSPH caters to clinicians/physicians with Summer only programs/Compacted Master’s Programs • PCE – 1 full-time Summer • MSCE- 2 full-time Summers and 1 thesis • MPH – 3 Full-time Summers • Something to consider when looking for a lab and or a job ($$$)

  22. On advanced degrees… • Gives you practical/relevant info • Gives you some added weight when applying for data/grants/responding to reviewers • Puts you in an environment of exposure to other ideas/collaboration projects/contacts for future questions • The more you can do on your own the less reliant you are on (SAS/STATA/SPSS): • Funding support for basic data analysis • Deadline crunches /other people’s schedules

  23. Response to Reviewers…. My Personal Record: - 4 reviewers (#4=Statistical) - Reviewer #1: 10 issues - Reviewer #2: 2 Issues - Reviewer #3: 22 issues - Reviewer #4: Paraphrased: “May want to consider a new hypothesis, study design dataset, analysis, and authors” - If they wanted to reject it they would have. Try to work with reviewers. Compromise is key, don’t have to change every last request.

  24. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  25. Things to consider when taking a job… • Academic jobs may not always be salary negotiable but one can negotiate for other things… • Protected Academic time (1/2 day, 1 day) • Financial support for travel/presenting • Start up funds for research assistant/biostatistical support until grant goals achieved • $$ For advanced degree pursuit • Clinical Protection for advanced degree pursuit

  26. $$ • Early career awards abound • ACS/ Other sub-specialty groups • Career development awards • K awards • Most will require Confirmed mentorship • Most will require dedicated %/protection from clinical workload

  27. Consider a Research Plan…Pilot data • “Seinfeld Career” • Over time hone in area of research (Pancreas paper, Upper GI paper, AAA paper, Colorectal paper…) • Preliminary studies/Pilot data are good to acquire while in training • Many grants will want to see established productivity in the area of interest (First authorship)/ongoing works/Pilot data • Publicly (Cheap) available data may be a good source for pilot studies

  28. Job Choice • Be clear on degree of protection for academic endeavors • Larger departments may be better at this • An established history of this may be more reliable than spoken/written assurance of same

  29. Academic Protection • Physical absence / off-site workspace would be the best recommendation - Avoids the “scratching at the door” phenomenon observed if one remains in their standard clinical arena • REMINDER: • Spouses unlikely to be impressed by CV • Kids definitely not impressed by CV • If you have “protected” time during week this may keep things less intrusive on weekends

  30. Kick-starting at a glance… • Are you a kick-starter? • On Mentorship • What’s available to you right “out of the gates”? • Get some Edumacation • Eventually you may need some $$ • Be a finisher

  31. Keep a low “A:P” ratio on your CV • Abstracts are easy • Publications are more difficult • Try to “finish what you started” • CV looks strange when you have 25 abstracts presented and 2 papers written. • Fellowship directors/Division Chiefs want to hire people who do things start finish without harassment

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