Staff and Faculty Fellowships

Staff Research Development Fellowships

These fellowships will be short-term (2-week) training in Nashville of research staff (coordinators, research assistants/associates) in research ethics, clinical trials administration, and regulatory oversight. Staff fellows will attend a one-week responsible conduct of research (RCR) program offered by Vanderbilt’s Biomedical Research Education and Training division, complete research ethics training, observe multiple meetings of the Vanderbilt IRB, and regularly review and discuss case studies on RCR and research administration. They will also be taught to use Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) to create a portal to track grant submissions and progress of ongoing clinical trials. Fellows will also meet with leadership from Vanderbilt’s Trial Innovation Center (TIC) and the Study Start-up Core to discuss how clinical trials of drugs/therapies can be conducted more rapidly and efficiently. Trainees will meet with TIC leadership and the Study Start-up Core, whose mandate is the design and implementation of practices to get trials underway as quickly as possible. Fellows will also meet with VUMC Clinical Trials Center staff to observe best practices in the review, preparation, and conduct of clinical trials. Finally, Fellows will meet with leading VUMC clinical trialists to learn first-hand about their experiences in conducting clinical trials at VUMC and abroad and exchange ideas. The emphasis of discussions at these meetings will be on logistical considerations, study start-up, and research compliance and administration.

Applicants must:

• Be a current staff member at AKTH (research assistant, associate, coordinator, etc.)
• Commit to participating in all fellowship activities, including securing release from clinical and other duties to travel to Vanderbilt to complete the training
• Complete the application found here (including CV/biosketch, statement of interest, and letter of support)
• Priority will be given to AKTH staff currently involved in ongoing NIH-funded research projects  

Faculty Development Fellowships

These fellowships present three-month-long training opportunities for research-oriented physician faculty from AKTH. The fellowships will be held at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, TN, USA) and will provide focused training in key areas of clinical trials implementation. AKTH Fellows will be matched with Vanderbilt mentors who will provide an individualized training experience. Fellows will shadow established clinical trialists, share best practices and lesson learned through a peer mentoring panel, give regular presentations through Works in Progress meetings, and attend monthly career development seminars. They will also complete two short courses at Vanderbilt: the Clinical and Translational Scientist Short Course (8 weeks) and the Implementation Science and Quality Improvement Short Course (4 weeks). Descriptions of these short courses are provided below. 

Clinical and Translational Scientist Short Course (8 weeks):

Fellows in this course will co-mentor each other through a mentoring panel, conduct regular Work-in-Progress presentations, and participate in twice-monthly career development seminars and case studies on RCR and research administration. Fellows will have access to Vanderbilt’s library resources, biostatistics consultations, manuscript-preparation work groups, and “design studios” that bring together methodology experts to vet research hypotheses, study designs, research strategies and grantsmanship. These resources will help fellows generate new hypotheses, enhance the quality of their proposals and publications, and improve their chances of eventual funding success. Depending on specific needs/interest of the Fellows, they will be offered a menu of courses to “audit” while at Vanderbilt. Fellows will be required to fully engage with the audited class material, to include attendance and completion of all assignments and evaluations. Examples of courses include: Epidemiology I, Biostatistics I, Data Management for Clinical and Translational Research, and Foundations of Biomedical Informatics.

Implementation Science and Quality Improvement Short Course (4 weeks): 

This is an intensive 4-week curriculum devoted to building implementation research skills by introducing trainees to implementation research concepts and methods applicable to health service delivery in the US and abroad. Vanderbilt’s Center for Clinical Quality and Implementation Research (CCQIR) supports education and training in implementation research through a variety of learning opportunities. Fellows will participate in didactics and workshops linked to the Implementation Science training grants in the center, specifically the PROgRESS program, which aims to foster training of the next generation of learning health system scientists to advance and improve population health. Fellows will participate in bi-weekly scholarly series, journal clubs, a peer mentorship group, and sit in on graduate courses housed within the MPH program. The 4-week training will focus on specific areas of need, to include: Patient-reported data and outcomes; (including methods related to measurement, implementation); Comparative effectiveness research; Pragmatic clinical trials; and Implementation Science Basics (Process of Care; Quality measures and improvement; Dissemination and Sustainability).

Applicants must:

• Be a current research-oriented physician faculty member at AKTH (assistant professor level)
• Commit to participating in all fellowship activities, including securing release from clinical and other duties to travel to Vanderbilt to complete the training.
• Complete the application found here (including CV/biosketch, statement of interest, and letter of support)
• Priority will be given to AKTH faculty from the departments of cardiology, nephrology, infectious diseases, gastroenterology, neurology, pediatrics, pathology, and public health who currently serve as co-investigators on ongoing HIV-related NIH-funded studies.