? ? Background and Purpose: As federal funding for biomedical research remains stagnant, as women continue to enter the medical profession, and as the new generation of physicians-in-training value a more balanced relationship between work and home life, entry into and retention of the physician-scientist workforce continues to decline. As evidence of this phenomenon, the proportion of physicians actively involved in research as compared to the overall physician population has diminished from a high of 4.6 percent in 1985 to a low of 1.8 percent in 2003 (1). This decline is problematic because physician-scientists are vital to the advancement of medical knowledge; they bring to medical research the unique perspective of asking scientific questions inspired by their experience of caring for patients. To address the decline, the Association of Professors of Medicine (APM) intends to spearhead a concerted, long-term effort to identify, develop, and implement substantive but practical solutions that will ensure the survival and growth of the physician-scientist workforce of the next generation. Objectives: Hold a consensus conference in the fall of 2007; develop recommendations-specifically targeting entities such as federal agencies and legislators, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, foundations that support medical research, and institutions of higher education-that will improve and encourage entry into and retention of the physician-scientist workforce; organize an alliance of committed organizations that will actively and continuously pursue the goal of securing a vibrant career path for physician-scientists; and complement and add to previous initiatives that addressed the physician-scientist workforce decline by studying the entire continuum of biomedical research, not only clinical and patient-oriented research. Workplan: Informed by APM's data gathering and subsequent analysis, the consensus conference agenda will address the various aspects of the academic, research, and policy arenas that diminish the viability of a physician-scientist career. The agenda, format, and participant list will be developed by a conference planning committee of well-respected researchers, foundation representatives, and trainees with varying research experiences, backgrounds, and specialties. The majority of the conference agenda will include small breakout sessions, facilitated by recognized leaders in the field, in which participants will recommend methods to influence each unique policy dilemma. Outcomes: APM intends to conclude the conference with a clear, articulated set of recommendations for advancing and promoting the physicianscientist workforce. APM will publish the recommendations, along with a summary of the conference, reproductions of plenary presentations, and articles from invited thought-leaders. A coalition of stakeholders will work to advocate on behalf of the recommendations. The conference is therefore only a starting point for implementing a long-term initiative for influencing and counteracting the decline in the physician-scientist workforce. ? ? ?
| Schafer, Andrew I (2010) The vanishing physician-scientist? Transl Res 155:1-2 |
