Resident Research Training Program (RRTP)

Many graduate medical education programs at UCSF are working to facilitate clinical and translational research opportunities for residents who plan to make research a part of their careers. The Clinical and Translational Science Training Hub has established a research elective and other initiatives to help promote residents' career development. The goals are to create opportunities for all residents to gain a foundational understanding of clinical and translational research methods and evidence-based medicine skills, and to inspire and facilitate residents to pursue future opportunities for career development as investigators.

The program is comprised of training, career development, courses, funding opportunities for clinical research, and travel to present findings at scientific meetings; and an annual research symposium.

RRTP Ambassadors

The Resident Research Training Program has appointed ambassadors for each residency program. The ambassadors will provide guidance and information to residents interested in pursuing research training. Please click on a department's name for information on that program.

Department Research Page Ambassador
Anatomic Pathology Patrick Treseler
Anesthesia and Perioperative Care Helen Kim
Clinical Pathology Kristie White
Dermatology Wilson Liao
East Bay Surgery Terrence Liu
Emergency Medicine Robert Rodriguez
Family and Community Medicine Diana Coffa
Internal Medicine, Categorical Jeff Kohlwes
Internal Medicine, SF Primary Care Joan Addington-White
Internal Medicine, UC Primary Care Jane Jih
Laboratory Medicine Steve Miller
Neurological Surgery Shawn Hervey-Jumper
Neurology Nerissa Ko
Obstetrics, Gynecology and RS Tami Rowen
Occupational and Environmental Medicine Robert Harrison
Ophthalmology Nisha Acharya
Orthopaedic Surgery Alfred Kuo
Otolaryngology Steven Pletcher
Pediatrics Megumi Okumura
Pediatrics, CHORI Celeste Allen
Pharmacy Amanda Morris 
Physics Martina Descovich
Plastic Surgery Scott Hansen
Preventive Medicine George W. Rutherford and James P. Seward
Psychiatry Maithri Amereseker and Susan Voglmaier
Radiation Oncology Steve Braunstein
Radiology and Biomedical Imaging Thomas Link and Soonme Cha
Surgery  Hobart Harris
Urology Kirsten Greene

Designing Clinical Research Course

Designing Clinical Research for Residents (Epi 150.03) is a course that requires 50% protected time and is taught twice a year, in August and September, in a one-month format. Modeled after the highly successful Summer Clinical Research Workshop of the Training in Clinical Research (TICR) program, the elective will lead residents through the essential components for writing a clinical research protocol, developed around their own clinical research question. The tangible product of the course is a 5-page clinical research protocol. The residents will attend bi-weekly group lectures and small resident-only seminar groups led by core faculty for the CTST resident initiative with additional faculty participating to meet resident enrollment.

NOTE: It is very strongly recommended for those applying to Resident Research Funding and Resident Research Travel to have successfully completed the Designing Clinical Research (DCR) course or equivalent didactic training in clinical research.

We are limiting DCR registration to the first 40 residents.

There are a number of courses in clinical and translational research available to residents. For those residents with at least one year of protected time for research, we encourage enrollment in the Advanced Training in Clinical Research Program Certificate Program (ATCR). Residents pursuing ATCR without departmental support should consult CTST to determine the availability of tuition assistance.

Mentor of the Year Award

2022-2023: Elan Guterman, MD, PhD nominated by Catherine Suen

"It has been an academically enriching opportunity to work with Dr Elan Guterman on clinical research the last two years. She has empowered me as a resident to ask important and targeted research questions with the goal to conduct high quality, impactful data analyses. She has modeled how to take an idea or academic curiosity and translate it to successful research projects. Dr Guterman has also demonstrated patience working with me as I performed my own statistical analyses with a limited data background and provided direct one-on-one guidance on how to navigate Stata and coding. She constantly provided examples and references to assist me in each step of the research process. We have met almost monthly if not more regularly the last two years to discuss updates and next steps in our work together. She has also introduced me to important collaborators who have contributed significantly to my work. She constantly encourages and supports my participation in academic opportunities to share my work, which has allowed me to present my project on status epilepticus and EEG hospital availability as poster presentations, an oral presentation at a national conference, and a peer reviewed publication in Neurology Clinical Practice, a high impact journal in our specialty. Dr Guterman demonstrates all of the qualities of an excellent research mentor. She is eager to work with trainees, always available and responsive, highly knowledgeable, motivating, respectful, and a role model of strong work ethic with her own research endeavors. I continue to highly recommend all interested trainees to work Dr Guterman as I cannot imagine a better research mentor."

In addition to announcing the Mentor of the Year Award recipient, the RRTP would like to acknowledge the following mentors who were nominated for the award this year. Each mentor has made significant contributions to the research and career path of their mentee. The RRTP would like to express our sincerest thanks and gratitude to the mentors below, as well as to the many outstanding mentors at UCSF that make this program possible.

 

Kouanda Abdul, MD, nominated by Karena Puldon

Anwar Shafkat, MD, nominated by Derek Ponce

Hemal Kanzaria, MS, MD, nominated by Hannah Decker

Jennifer Lai, MD, nominated by Melinda Wang

Patricia Loftus, MD, nominated by Jacquelyn Callander

Priya Shete, MD, MPH, nominated by Matthew Murrill

Jae Ho Sohn, MD, MPH, nominated by Xiao Wu

Ana Velazquez, MS, MD, nominated by Henry Litt