Developing a New Generation of Medical Subspecialists with Expertise in Aging and Care of the Elderly T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program Report to T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program Evaluation Team ASP Geriatrics Steering Committee Integrating Geriatrics Project Evaluation Team May 2011 Submitted by: Erika D. Tarver Project Administrator Association of Specialty Professors 330 John Carlyle Road Suite 610 Alexandria, VA 22314 T: (703) 341-4540 F: (703) 519-1890 [email protected] Kevin P. High, MD Principal Investigator William R. Hazzard, MD Co-Principal Investigator Table of Contents Narrative Progress Report Application and Award Progress Summary of Success of T. Williams Scholars Program Appendices A. 2008 Scholars 24-Month Progress Reports Neena S. Abraham, MD (Note: This is Dr. Abraham’s final report) Steven G. Coca, DO Jeffrey G. Horowitz, MD Danelle F. James, MD Heidi Klepin, MD George C. Wang, MD 2009 Williams Scholars Progress Reports and Summary of 18-Month Questionnaire B. Peter Abadir, MD 12-month Progress Report C. Kathleen M. Akgun, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication D. Alison Huang, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication E. Eswar Krishnan, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication F. Rohit Loomba, MD Publication G. Sharmilee Nyenhuis, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication H. Peter P. Reese, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication I. Erik B. Schelbert, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication J. Helen Keipp Talbot, MD 12-Month Progress Report Publication K. Summary of 18-Month Questionnaire 2010 Williams Scholars Mentor Interviews and Summary of Six-Month Questionnaire L. Kellie Hunter-Campbell, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview M. Jessica Chia, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview N. Seong H. Cho, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview O. Vera Luther, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview P. Una E. Makris, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview Q. Alexander K. Smith, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview R. Michael E. Widlansky, MD Six-Month Mentor Interview S. Summary of Six-Month Questionnaire T. Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Specialists’ Transition to Aging Research Funding Opportunity Announcement T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program Evaluation Report The Association of Specialty Professors (ASP)—the organization of specialty internal medicine divisions at medical schools and community teaching hospitals in the United States and Canada—created the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program to improve the care of older adults by identifying, training, and developing a cadre of leaders specifically focused on researching the geriatric aspect of their subspecialty. There are currently two award structures for the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program. Through the first structure, ASP and its partners provide two- to four-year development awards for internal medicine junior faculty at the early stages of their academic career. The total amount of the award varies from $75,000 to $225,000, and it supports the applicants’ research and career development. The second structure of the Williams Scholars award is offered in collaboration with the National Institute on Aging (NIA) through the Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Subspecialists’ Transitions to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR) award program. The GEMSSTAR award, which utilizes the R03 award mechanism, will provide successful applicants up to $100,000 to support research in a geriatric aspect of their internal medicine or surgical subspecialty. To provide opportunities for professional and career development, ASP and its partners will offer the Williams Scholars awards to those GEMSSTAR applicants who have received a fundable score on their application. The Williams Scholars career development awards support applicants’ plans for continued involvement in geriatrics activities or development of research skills (i.e., master’s level coursework in statistical analysis). Similar to the first structure, the Williams Scholars awards provide recipients with two-years of career development support. The total amount of the award is $50,000. For the purpose of this evaluation report, ASP is only evaluating the first structure for the T. Franklin Williams Scholars awards and will provide a summary of the administration of the second award structure. Methods ASP evaluates the success of the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program through scholar questionnaires, scholar progress reports, and mentor interviews. Williams Scholars are required to submit 12- and 24-month research and career development progress reports to ASP and the sponsoring specialty societies. In addition to the progress reports, ASP asks the scholars to complete questionnaires at six and 18 months. Through these questionnaires, ASP gathers specific information about the publication and presentation of the recipients’ research, the status of grants the award recipients have applied for, and their roles in educating others about a geriatric aspect of their subspecialty. Progress reports for the 2008 and 2009 Williams Scholar are included as appendices of this report. A summary of the scholars’ questionnaires is included in this report. In addition to the above, ASP interviews the geriatrics and research mentors of the 2010 Williams Scholar at six months into the award. Mentors are asked about the progress of the scholars’ research and career development plans as well as the scholar’s commitment to research and education in the geriatric aspect of his or her specialty. Mentors are also asked to identify challenges or advantages that may affect the goals of the research project, comment on how the program has helped the award recipient in his or her professional development, and rate the scholar’s success in comparison to other faculty at a similar stage of career development. Lastly, the mentors are asked about their role in helping the scholar implement his/her career development plan and reach independent investigator status. The mentor interviews for the 2010 Scholars are included in the appendices of this report. Quantitative Results Out of the 18 possible responses, 16 Williams Scholars from the 2009 and 2010 cohorts completed the six- and 18-month questionnaires. From those responses, 10 scholars have published a peer-reviewed article. In addition, seven of the 16 scholars presented on their research at a workshop or professional conference within the last year, 11 also applied for or received a grant from the National Institutes of Health in the last 12 months. Seven Scholars out of the 16 also reported involvement in a Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center, John A. Hartford Foundation Center of Excellence, or a Department of Veterans Affairs’ Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center. In an effort to measure the long-term success of the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program, ASP tracks the success of Williams Scholars through the collection of curriculum vitae, publication searches on PubMed, and National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding searches via the NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Results database. Out of 82 T. Franklin Williams Scholars from the 2002-2010 cohorts, 43 scholars obtained extramural funding from NIH that exceeds $40 million dollars. A breakdown of the extramural funding by specialty and NIH institute or center is in Appendix x. Qualitative Results Interviews conducted with the scholars’ geriatrics and research mentors offered additional insight on the progress, successes, and challenges faced by the 2010 Scholars. Based on the interviews, most of the scholars have started working on applications for a K08 or a K23 award, including the Paul B. Beeson Career Development Award. Since the interview was conducted during the first nine months of awards, most mentors felt that Scholars did not have the analyzed or published data to be considered a competitive applicant for an independent investigator award. However, most of the mentors felt that with the protected time from the Williams Scholars award, and the research support, that most Scholars will be ready to apply for an R01 award by the end of the Williams Scholars award (June 30, 2013). While highlighting the successes of the scholars, it is also important to recognize the challenges they face. A challenge that several scholars faced was with their collaborations with both internal and external stakeholders (e.g., institution center on aging and Kaiser Permanente). The challenges they face with the two stakeholders is navigating the political process of research collaborations. With internal stakeholders, the scholars’ project may be delayed because it is not considered as high a priority as other senior investigators’ projects. With external stakeholders, the scholar’s project may be delayed because the research question does not align with the stakeholder’s actual practices (e.g., trying to capture data that is not being tracked in a systematic manner). To work through that, the scholars are working with their established research and geriatrics mentors to help navigate the political processes of collaborating with various stakeholders so their project is not delayed. Administration The award application and selection process is now underway for the 2011 award cycle. The 2011 awards will be offered in collaboration with the NIA GEMSSTAR award program. The partners for the 2011 cycle are: • The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI). • The American College of Rheumatology Research and Education Foundation (ACR REF). • The American Diabetes Association (ADA). • The American Geriatrics Society