Program Director: Douglas Owens, MD, MS

Associate Directors: Alan Garber, MD, PhD, Mary K. Goldstein, MD, MS, Ruth Cronkite, PhD

The Physician Post-residency Fellowship Program in Health Services Research and Development seeks to train physicians who will become leaders in health services research and primary care research and education. The program of study during the fellowship is flexible and accommodates a variety of career goals. The primary focus of the program is to provide research skills needed for a career in academic medicine. The main areas of research are clinical decision making, decision analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, outcomes research, guideline development, quality of life assessment, and secondary database analysis. Physicians who complete the fellowship will also be skilled in clinical care and teaching

Background

The Physician Post-residency Fellowship Program in Health Services Research and Development is offered by the VA Palo Alto Health Care System in conjunction with the Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research (PCOR), a research center within the Department of Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine. This combined sponsorship facilitates involvement in several innovative programs of the VA and PCOR.

The VA Palo Alto Health Care System has one of the largest VA-sponsored research programs in the country and has approximately 150,000 medicine and surgery outpatient visits per year. It is the site of the Center for Health Care Evaluation, a nationally recognized multidisciplinary center of excellence in health services research. It is also the site of the Health Economics Resource Center -- a VA-wide center for economic studies -- and a VA Cooperative Studies Coordinating Center. These resources provide outstanding opportunities for research and collaboration.

Stanford University also has a unique training environment, with a strong research program and a long history of successful training programs. Stanford is home to nationally and internationally renowned research programs in several fields including health services research, medical education, medical informatics, medical economics, decision theory, and the epidemiology of cardiovascular risk factors. We have close working relationships with preeminent faculty on the main campus in related fields, including faculty in economics, biostatistics, sociology, business, and education. The activities of trainees in the Physician Post-residency Fellowship Program will be integrated closely with our other highly successful training programs.

Admission to the Program

Applicants must have completed an ACGME (Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education) or ECCOPT (Executive Committee of the Council on Postdoctoral Training) residency program in internal medicine, primary care medicine or or family practice; must be board-certified or board-eligible; must have a full unrestricted license to practice in the United States, and must be a U.S. citizen. Applicants will be selected on the basis of their leadership potential, academic promise and clinical excellence.

Admission Deadlines

Early applications are advantageous. Applications due April 15, 2007

We are occasionally able to fund one position for individuals applying within a year of the anticipated matriculation date. If you are interested in applying to the fellowship after the listed deadline dates, please contact Mary Herda at (650) 723-1803.

Program Overview

The fellowship includes coursework, clinical responsibilities, and teaching and research opportunities under supervision. Fellows also have opportunities to become involved in ongoing projects at the VA and Stanford and can attend a variety of classes at Stanford.

Research

Supervised research is the major component of the fellowship training. The fellows will design and execute one or more research projects under the supervision of program faculty; submit at least one manuscript to a peer-reviewed journal; present at a national research meeting; participate in grant writing; learn and use the latest technology in teaching; participate in and lead inter-professional teams.

Coursework

Fellows are encouraged to obtain a master of science in health services research (for information, see http://med.stanford.edu/hsr/), although the fellowship does not provide tuition. Regardless of whether they are enrolled in a degree program, fellows can attend classes at Stanford University, including courses in biostatistics, healthcare research methodology, decision analysis, medical informatics, practice management, and related fields. Fellows may also participate in seminars sponsored by the Stanford Faculty Development programs, an innovative program to improve clinical teaching and presentation skills.

Clinical Responsibilities

Clinical responsibilities include outpatient care and supervision at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. Fellows will supervise housestaff, medical students and nurse practitioners on a regular basis. Fellows will have the opportunity to teach conferences on aspects of primary care.

Salary

Salary will reflect the appropriate PGY (post-graduate year) level. Health insurance and other benefits are available.

Address all materials and queries to:

Mary P. Herda
CHP/PCOR
Stanford University
117 Encina Commons
Stanford, CA 94305-6019
(650) 723-1803 (voice)
(650) 723-1919 (fax)
mherda@stanford.edu