Research and Scholarship

Your four-year research project will be on a topic of your choice and you will be mentored by the med-peds program director. A one-month research elective is available.

Most research is conducted within the departments of Medicine or Pediatrics, often working with specialists.

We provide travel funds if your research is accepted to a conference.

Research options typically include:

• chart reviews
• simple prospective designs
• surveys

Examples of some recent research project topics are:

• “Reduction of Readmission Rates by Implementation of a Computerized Signout System”
• “Can Laboratory Testing Be Used to Help Determine Severity in Sickle Cell Crisis”
• “Type A Aortic Dissection Associated with Cocaine Use”

If you find a mentor who is doing other research such as bench research, translational research, clinical studies or trial, we will encourage you to become involved.

You will meet with the med-peds program director twice per year to discuss progress and next steps. Specific time for work on the research project is set aside during each ambulatory block rotation (1 half-day per week).

You will follow a national research curriculum:

• 1^st year – discovering interest areas
• 2^nd year – develop question, literature search, develop hypotheses, research proposal
• 3^rd year – submitting research proposal to IRB, collecting data
• 4^th year – data analysis and interpretation, disseminating the data through poster presentation, oral presentation or manuscript

You will be expected to present your research at the end of your PGY-4 year at the Department of Medicine Research Day and/or as part of the pediatrics research presentation schedule.

These are group projects with the residents at each continuity clinic presented each June at the final med-peds conference of the year.

The QI topic is chosen by the residents and led by the senior resident at each continuity clinic.

Previous topics have included:

• “Improving Lung Cancer Screening Rates on Patients with Long Term History of Smoking”
• “Improving Diet, Nutrition and Exercise Intake During Pediatric Annual Visits”
• HCV screening
• “Improved Blood Pressure Monitoring with Patient Home Blood Pressure Monitoring on Hypertensive Patients”

For more information about conducting research during your residency, please contact: