This application proposes a research training program to prepare postdoctoral trainees (M.D.s and Ph.D.s) for successful careers in complementary therapies research (referred to also as complementary and alternative medicine-CAM). Included also will be pre-doctoral trainees who are enrolled in a health professionals program leading to either the Ph.D. or the M.D. degree and who are interested in research training experiences related to CAM. The program is an interdisciplinary effort among three major schools at the University of Virginia (medicine, nursing, engineering and applied sciences- its Department of Biomedical Engineering) and the Center for the Study of Complementary and Alternative Therapies (CSCAT). Postdoctoral trainees will participate in courses offered through the Department of Health Evaluation Sciences (HES), the General Clinical Research Center, Center for Nursing Research, and the Multidisciplinary Training Program in Clinical Investigation. Pre-doctoral trainees will complete the professional training curricula of the Schools of Medicine or Nursing or the Department of Biomedical Engineering, a course in complementary therapies and optional courses from the Department of HES and other departments offering research training courses that will round out their training need for CAM-related research. Mentors will be selected from established researchers in the collaborating schools/departments who represent conventional practitioners and researchers, basic scientists and credentialed CAM practitioners. Postdoctoral trainees, who qualify and have an interest in earning a Masters degree with specialization in CAM research training will have the opportunity to do so if they wish to add a third year to the research training program. Postdoctoral trainees will devote the two years to preparation in grant/scientific writing; mentored research experiences in an area of interest related to CAM; and coursework that rounds out their preparation depending upon their prior relevant training. A course in evidence-based complementary therapies is included in the coursework. Core coursework addresses requirements of research training and will emphasize issues and concerns in CAM-related research. Trainees will acquire the needed knowledge and skills for successful careers in CAM research.
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