Female lower urinary tract disorders, such as urinary incontinence and urinary tract infections, are common (affecting millions of women each year), costly, and sub-optimally managed. Additionally, insufficient research is performed in this area, preventing the development of new and personalized therapies and strategies to optimize care and well-being. This is, in part, because few physicians and scientists are trained to rigorously study these disorders. This T32 will help meet this need by training MD clinical fellows and PhD post-doctoral fellows to become leaders in the field of clinical outcomes research in female lower urinary tract disorders. Specifically, the aims of this Washington University School of Medicine T32 Program are to: 1) establish a rigorous recruitment and selection process to identify the most promising and diverse research-focused MD and PhD fellows; 2) provide a structured, yet flexible, environment in which trainees receive individualized mentoring and comprehensive training in female lower urinary tract disorders, research methods, the ethical conduct of research, and grant-writing; 3) provide financial support and (protected) time to allow trainees to obtain a Master?s degree in Clinical Investigation or Population Health Sciences, or relevant coursework in clinical outcomes research; 4) continue and augment a robust existing conference and didactic series in which trainees discuss current, clinical topics in female urinary tract disorders and research methods relevant to these disorders; 5) implement a robust professional and career development program tailored to enhance trainees? transition to junior faculty status; 6) create a supportive, responsive, and flexible administrative structure to attract and nurture the most exceptional trainees, particularly women and under-represented minorities; and 7) continually evaluate and improve the Program in response to trainees? needs. This Program will accept clinical (MD, MD/PhD) and post-doctoral PhD fellows for up to three years of research training by a mentoring team composed of at least one clinical and one methodologic (clinical outcomes) researcher. At least one of the mentors (the primary) will be a senior researcher or clinician who is established in his/her field, funded, and has an excellent mentorship track record. The Program structure is designed to foster a trans-disciplinary and collaborative culture, with the goal that these cooperative relationships will carry into the future. To that end, MD and PhD trainees will be united at weekly clinical and research conferences and in career and professional development activities. Fellows will also have the option of matriculating in a Master?s degree program to learn clinical outcomes research methods, or enhancing their existing skill set with specific graduate level courses. This program will prepare the next generation of MD and PhD researchers in female lower urinary tract disorders to perform high- quality clinical outcomes research, bringing much-needed methodologic rigor and a collaborative, trans- disciplinary approach to the most pressing questions in this field.
Our T32 training program proposes to equip MD clinical fellows and PhD post-doctoral fellows with the necessary tools (i.e., didactic training, experiential training, career development, and a trans-disciplinary approach) to perform high-quality clinical outcomes research in female lower urinary tract disorders and to serve as future leaders in this field. Developing this critical mass of highly-trained academic physician- scientists and researchers is important to address the many remaining unanswered questions in this field and to improve the lives of millions of women with bothersome lower urinary tract disorders.
