CID Clinical Research Fellowship Program for Surgeons
Aim
This fellowship program has been established for surgeons to gain training and experience in all phases of clinical research (study planning, monitoring, data analysis and publication).
Sponsor
AOTrauma, AOSpine and AOCMF each may support annually one candidate to participate to this unique and challenging experience. Currently a maximum of two fellows can be enrolled at CID each year.
The selected fellow spends 3 months full time at the AO Clinical Investigation and Documentation (AOCID) branch office in Dübendorf near Zürich, Switzerland.
Requirements
- Medical Doctor (MD) with minimum surgical training (completed the AO Principles Course)
- Published at least one clinical investigation
- Willing and able to dedicate at least 10%–20% of time in clinical research
- Communication skills and ability to work in a team
- Proficient in English language (spoken and written)
- Supported by an AOTrauma, AOSpine, AOCMF member at the home clinic
Offerings
- The fellow is guided by an AOTrauma, AOSpine, AOCMF medical mentor at his/her own clinic.
- The fellow is guided by a methodological mentor at AOCID. On-site tutoring and support is provided by CID collaborators.
- Training in Good Clinical Practice guidelines.
- Before the end of the fellowship, the fellow will complete an online course: Protecting Human Research Participants , by the National Institute of Health Office of Extramural Research, USA. (Complementary online courses on Good Clinical Practice Guidelines are currently being evaluated and will be considered to be added to the training package.)
- Reading material: a copy of the AOTrauma handbook Statistics and Data Management, a practical guide for orthopedic surgeons (eds. Stengel D, Bhandari M, Hanson B) is provided.
- Unless the fellow can demonstrate prior knowledge and experience in the use of a statistical software package, he or she is expected to follow an online introductory course on the analytical software Stata prior to starting the fellowship. This course is provided together with a free personal one-year software license.
Tasks
Analysis and publication of own database.
This is one main objective of the fellowship. The fellow should be able to provide a completed database from his/her own clinic with the task to perform analyzes and publish the results by the end of the 3-month period. Preliminary work may be necessary before coming to AOCID depending on the complexity and progress of the identified study.
Planning own clinical study
As the second main objective, a small study protocol should be prepared defining the rational, objective, design and general methodology of the study. The study should be relevant to the home clinic and receive support from the local AOTrauma, AOSpine, AOCMF clinical mentor, so that it can realistically be implemented after the fellowship.
Support in various AOCID services
The fellow is also involved in various CID activities such as providing clinical expertise, answering external requests, or performing ad-hoc literature reviews.
Final presentation
The fellow is expected to give an internal presentation on both main projects before receiving his/her CID Fellowship certificate.
Certified CID fellows are further guided after the 3-month period in Switzerland, so that the submitted manuscript can be successfully published and/or the planned study implemented as much as it is possible.
Logistical issues
AOTrauma, AOSpine, AOCMF sponsors the following elements which are administered by AOCID:
- Travel to and from Switzerland
- Accommodation for 3 months
The fellow is expected to bring his/her own laptop with Stata software installed.