(from the application): This trauma research training program has derived from the research laboratories within the Departments of Surgery, Medicine. Pediatrics, Emergency Medicine and Neurosurgery at the University of Colorado. We have incorporated and benefited from the previous special emphasis review panel (1995) and three formal external reviewers (1999). We envision this fellowship as an opportunity to immerse young academically oriented surgical residents into the basic and clinical investigations concerning the pathophysiology of trauma/burn injuries. The administrative structure of this training program continues to be coordinated through the Principal Investigator/Executive Director/Program Director of the Trauma Research program and a core associate staff. Structurally, each of the trauma research trainees will be based in the surgical core laboratories with access to basic scientists and clinicians on the faculty of the University of Colorado both at Denver Health Medical Center and the University Hospitals. Since our initial funding of two trauma research trainees eight years ago, the Department of Surgery has successfully attracted an NIH Trauma Center grant. The """"""""Center"""""""" convenes weekly to critique and share data as well as all equipment. In this fashion, we have constructed the Center as greater than the sum of its parts. The Program Directors are responsible for the recruitment/selection of all trainees and the individual development and integrative direction of each research program. The Program Directors in concert with the multi-disciplinary basic and clinical core associate staff provide both the administrative and scientific link between trainees and their clinical/research endeavors. It is the primary responsibility of the Program Directors to supervise the design and guarantee the implementation of a balanced research training program within the proposed two-year time frame. Each trauma surgical research trainee develops a """"""""research proposal"""""""" in concert with the core associate staff prior to initiating the two-year research fellowship. These proposals are reviewed by the Program Directors and presented and critiqued by the entire trauma research center. Thus each trainee has some direction (but typically very little experience) in basic investigation prior to starting the program. During the research training period, each trainee actively participates in the formal weekly research conferences. Each trainee also receives formal didactic instruction in biostatistics, computer application to trauma surgical investigations and biomedical ethics. Trainees have successfully presented their work at meetings of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the Association for Academic Surgery, the Society of University Surgeons, the Surgical Forum, the American Burn Association and FASEB. We have been gratified by the productivity of our Trauma Research trainers. The program is designed to promote the academic and investigative development of surgical residents at the PGY-Ill and PGY-V levels. At both levels the training program is seen as a two year dedicated opportunity (with no clinical responsibilities) to learn the discipline of rigorous basic/clinical investigation. As our young trauma research training program matures, we are gratified that over 90 per cent of our graduates have chosen careers in academic surgery, five have achieved university faculty positions in trauma surgery and two have successfully competed for NIH trauma research funding. Our research-training program is committed to equal opportunity. During the past several years, one-third of our trauma research trainees have been female and one was a minority (currently a NIH-funded member of the trauma faculty at Morehouse University).
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