Young transplant surgeons and NIH funding.
Transplant surgeons have historically been instrumental in advancing the science of transplantation. However, research in the current environment inevitably requires external funding, and the classic career development pathway for a junior investigator is the NIH K award. We matched transplant surgeons who completed fellowships between 1998 and 2004 with the NIH funding database, and also queried them regarding research effort and attitudes. Of 373 surgeons who completed a fellowship, only 6 (1.8%) received a K award; of these, 3 subsequently obtained R-level funding. An additional 5 individuals received an R-level grant within their first 5 years as faculty without a K award, 3 of whom had received a prior ASTS-sponsored award. Survey respondents reported extensive research experience during their training (78.8% spent median 24 months), a high proportion of graduate research degrees (36%), and a strong desire for more research time (78%). However, they reported clinical burdens and lack of mentorship as their primary perceived barriers to successful research careers. The very low rate of NIH funding for young transplant surgeons, combined with survey results that indicate their desire to participate in research, suggest institutional barriers to access that may warrant attention by the ASTS and the transplant surgery community.
Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI Department of Surgery and Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA. englesbe@umich.edu
M J
MJ
Englesbe
R S
RS
Sung
D L
DL
Segev
D000818:Animals; D003625:Data Collection; D006801:Humans; D009316:National Institutes of Health (U.S.); D016377:Organ Transplantation; D012109:Research Support as Topic; D013043:Specialties, Surgical; D014481:United States