The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation
Clinical Scholars
Photo: Harold Shapiro
Change Agents In Medicine
For More Than 40 Years
Mission
Develop physician leaders to improve US health and
healthcare with a commitment to service and patients.
Alumna Tammy
Chang (second from
left, Michigan CSP 1113) and community
partner Zachary
Rowe (left) with
community members
Photo: Harold Shapiro
About the Program
• Founded in 1969; adopted by RWJF in 1972
• Oldest RWJF Human Capital program
• Long-standing collaboration with US Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA)
– RWJF and VA fund Scholar stipends and health insurance
– RWJF supports research related expenses
– VA provides in-kind faculty, clinical and research resources
Diversity Commitment
The Program:
• Embraces racial, ethnic, gender and disciplinary
diversity
• Encourages candidates with diverse
backgrounds to apply
• Provides all qualified candidates an equal
opportunity to compete for a Clinical Scholar
position
Scholar Training Sites and National Program
Office
Training Sites:
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of Michigan
• University of Pennsylvania
• Yale University
National Program Office
The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Director
Desmond “Des” Runyan, M.D., Dr.P.H.
(former Clinical Scholar, UNC ‘79-’81)
Deputy Director
Kristin Siebenaler, MPA
Program Administrator
Kathy Donnald
National Program Office (NPO)
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Advise training sites on curriculum development
Provide technical assistance to training sites
Plan and host the annual Clinical Scholars research meeting
Direct nationwide applicant recruitment and program
marketing
Pursue an applicant pool from diverse medical specialty and
racial backgrounds
Oversee the scholar selection process
Engage the Clinical Scholars alumni network
Maximize expertise of the Clinical Scholars national advisory
committee
National Advisory Committee (NAC)
Selected national leaders in health and healthcare willing to
commit to the goals of this program and its scholars
NAC members involved in a wide range of activities:
• Curriculum design
• Scholar selection
• Scholar mentorship
• Training site selection
• Training site oversight
Scholar Experience
and Curriculum
Scholar Experience
• Unmatched post-residency opportunity for 20
physicians to:
– Conduct innovative research in health policy, health
services, and community-based participatory
research
– Work in a leadership role with communities,
organizations, practitioners, and policy-makers
– Pursue two years of master’s degree study (degrees
awarded)
Scholar Experience, continued
• Funding provided for stipends, tuition, travel to scientific
meetings, and research
• Protected time for research (20%) and scholarship (80%)
• Attend annual research meeting to present research and
foster networking
• Develop skills to serve as an innovative and
accomplished leader in healthcare
• Tap into program alumni
network of over 1,200
individuals who serve as
resources
Yale Clinical Scholars
Prepare Scholars for External Drivers in
Health Care System
• Disparities in access, quality, and outcomes
• Spiraling health care costs
• Aging of America
• Translating research into practice
Core Competencies
• Critically evaluate qualitative, quantitative, clinical, and
health services research
• Recognize different levels (e.g., molecular, familial,
community) of health problems and develop strategies to
address them at more than one level
• Design and conduct scientifically sound and important
research
Core Competencies, continued
• Identify strategies for data analysis and
execute those analyses
• Interpret and communicate results with
public health, practice, and policy
implications
• Translate research findings into
creative interventions to improve health
care quality and outcomes
Examples of Scholar Publications
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Gordon Sun (Michigan CSP 11-13, VA Scholar) and Matthew M. Davis. “The
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010: Impact on Otolaryngology
Practice and Research.” Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, 26 January
2012
Timothy J. Daskivich (UCLA CSP 12-14, VA Scholar), Kang-Hsien, F, Koyama T,
Albertsen PC, Goodman M, Hamilton AS, Hoffman RM, Stanford JL, Stroup AM,
Litwin MS, Penson DF. Impact of Age, Tumor Risk, and Comorbidity on Competing
Risks for Survival in a U.S. Population-Based Cohort of Men with Prostate
Cancer. Ann Intern Med. 2013 May 21; 158(10): 709-17
Kelly Doran (Yale CSP 11-13, VA Scholar), Raven MC, and Rosenheck RA. “What
Drives Frequent Emergency Department Use in an Integrated Health System?
National Data From the Veterans Health Administration.” Annuals of Emergency
Medicine, April 2013.
Lisa Rosenbaum (Penn CSP 12-14, VA Scholar), "How Much Would You Give to
Save a Dying Bird? Patient Advocacy and Biomedical Research." New England
Journal of Medicine. 2012 Nov;367(18):1755-9. doi: 10.1056/NEJMms120711
After Graduation
Program graduates have become:
• Directors of major federal, state and local health
agencies and departments
• Hospital presidents and foundation CEOs
• Leaders in the fields of health services research and
health economics
• Members of the Institute of Medicine
Alumni Statistics
Clinical Scholar Alumni
• More than 1200 alumni located in 41 states + DC, 12 countries
• 45 Members of the Institute of Medicine
• Academic Medicine
– 8 Medical and Public Health School Deans
– >145 Chairs, Vice-Chairs, division chiefs
– >193 professors, 139 associate professors, 184 assistant professors
• Government
– Federal/International: DHHS, CDC, CMS, House of Representatives,
AHRQ, VA, NIH, WHO, Office of the Surgeon General
– State and Local Health Departments
• Hospital CEOs
Distribution of 365 Scholars By Major Specialty
2000-2013
8
29
33
24
Emergency Medicine
33
Family Medicine
Internal Medicine
17
Neurology
OBGYN
Pediatrics
126
71
Psychiatry
Surgery
Urology
15
9
Other
Scholar Distribution by US State (Updated October 2013)
51 and over
26 - 50
11 - 25
6 - 10
1-5
Scholars Outside of US
and Canada:
(Argentina 1; Australia 1;
China 1; Germany 1;
Japan 1; Nigeria 1; South
Africa 1; Switzerland 1;
United Kingdom 3;
Zimbabwe 1)
Scholars in Canadian Provinces:
(Alberta 2; British Columbia 4; Manitoba
1; Nova Scotia 2; Ontario 9; Quebec 13)
Alumni Feedback
“There is no other program like the RWJF Clinical Scholars program for
physician leaders who want to change America's health care system." -Comilla Sasson, M.D., M.S., Director of Program Development, and
Innovation, American Heart Association & Adjunct Clinical
Faculty, University of Colorado School of Medicine
“Community-based work had a formative effect on my development. It’s
something I’ve always been committed to, and it’s actually one of the
reasons I chose to apply for the [Clinical Scholars] program.” –
Nathan Irvin, M.D., instructor in emergency medicine at Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine
“For anyone who wants to be a catalyst for change in the health and health
care of our country, the Clinical Scholars program is an excellent opportunity
to do so.” Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A., president and CEO of the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (Penn CSP 1983-1986)
Examples of Alumni Publications
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Anita Vashi (Yale CSP 11-13, VA Scholar) Justin Fox (Yale CSP 10-12),
Joseph Ross (Yale CSP 04-06), and Cary Gross (Hopkins CSP 97-99).
– “Use of Hospital-based Acute Care among Patients Recently Discharged
from the Hospital. JAMA, 23; 309(4):364-71, 2013
Z Song, D Safran, M Chernew, A Mark Fendrick (Penn CSP 1991-93).
– The Impact of Bundled Payment on Emergency Department Utilization:
Alternative Quality Contract Effects After Year One. In press: Academic
Emergency Medicine Journal.
Lenard I. Lesser (UCLA CSP 09-12), Kayekjian, K., Velasquez, P., Tseng, C.H., Brook, R. H., Cohen, D. A.
– “Adolescent Purchasing Behavior at McDonald’s and Subway.” Journal of
Adolescent Health, 2012; 1-5.
Examples of Alumni Awards and Achievements
• Margaret Gourlay (UNC CSP 02-04) won the Top 10 Clinical Research
Achievement Award from the Clinical Research Forum for her study on
bone density screening for older women.
• Eric Coleman (Washington CSP 95-97, VA Scholar) received a
MacArthur “Genius” Award/Foundation fellowship for his leadership in
geriatric and chronic disease care.
• Raina Merchant (Penn CSP 07-10), honored for leadership in health care
with the first ever RWJF Young Leader’s Award to commemorate the
foundation’s 40 year anniversary.
How to Apply
• Physicians who meet the eligibility requirements may may
apply online through the website site: http://rwjcsp.unc.edu
• Next application cycle opens November 2013 and closes
February 29, 2014 for cohort to start July 1, 2015
Contact Us
E-mail:
Phone:
Website:
rwjcsp_admin@med.unc.edu
919-843-1351
http://rwjcsp.unc.edu