We aim to provide advanced multidisciplinary research training in the emerging field of resuscitation science to physician- and PhD-scientists to jump-start their progression to independence as investigators. Resuscitation science is defined in this proposal as the medical treatment of ischemia-perfusion injury (i.e., cardiac arrest), shock (i.e., tissue hypo-perfusion), acute lung injury, and subsequent other-organ injury such as renal impairment. Collectively, these conditions afflict millions of patients every year and are associated with high mortality and substantial morbidity. The proposed program will help alleviate a critical shortage of well-trained and well-funded resuscitation science investigators. Most critically, the cross-discipline research training afforded to program trainees should make them well-positioned to advance the field as a whole due to the common risk factors, pathogenic mechanisms, and outcome phenotypes shared by conditions requiring resuscitation. The strong multidisciplinary faculty/mentorship T32 program team is comprised of resuscitation scientists who excel in both research and mentorship. Their expertise spans the fields of emergency medicine, cardiology, nephrology, as well as pulmonary critical care, anesthesia critical care, surgical critical care, and pediatric critical care. Research conducted by the mentorship team uses a wide spectrum of approaches which include clinical trials, epidemiology/data science, and laboratory science, with many mentors combining two or more approaches. Trainees in our program will focus their research training in one of these approaches; all will however receive preliminary training in, and multidisciplinary exposure to, all three approaches. The NHLBI has noted this sort of integration is critical for breakthrough advances in public health [1], and our emphasis on this point will produce truly multidisciplinary, and in many cases translational investigators. The specific fellowship training will combine a formalized didactic curriculum with a mentored project, training in research communication, and career mentorship. The didactic program will draw from courses run by Harvard Catalyst (CTSA), the Harvard School of Public Health, and the Center for Resuscitation Science and will include required common and track-specific core courses and elective courses. Each fellow?s coursework will be individually tailored to match personal objectives and goals developed with the mentorship team. The individualized mentored research project will be designed and executed by the fellow under the guidance of his or her primary mentor with assistance from other members of the program faculty. Fellows will be encouraged to collaborate with mentors and fellows outside of their chosen track to broaden their research expertise. Training in communication of research results through conference presentations and research papers, grant writing, and general career development advice will be valuable additions to the core research training. At the completion of this program fellows will be expected to meet defined metrics - multiple abstract presentations, manuscript publications, and grant submissions - all key steps in their path toward research independence.
The overall goal of this fellowship is to provide advanced training in resuscitation science research to junior physician-scientists and PhD-scientists. Resuscitation focuses on common yet highly lethal conditions such as cardiac arrest (i.e., heart no longer beating and requiring CPR), shock, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS, difficulty with breathing/oxygenation), therefore impacting the lives of millions of people each year. Our program will address a current shortage of investigators in this critically important discipline by providing high-quality research and career development training for the next generation of resuscitation scientists.
