Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students

Objectives: Clinical research is often time-consuming and difficult to conduct in busy academic institutions. Previous studies have proposed methods to integrate undergraduate students as a means to increase research productivity. The authors aimed to describe the possibility to enhance emergency de...

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Main Authors: Wirachin Hoonpongsimanont, Preet K Sahota, Nathan N Ng, Maryam J Farooqui, Bharath Chakravarthy, Bhakti Patel, Shahram Lotfipour
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2017-09-01
Series:SAGE Open Medicine
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312117730245
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author Wirachin Hoonpongsimanont
Preet K Sahota
Nathan N Ng
Maryam J Farooqui
Bharath Chakravarthy
Bhakti Patel
Shahram Lotfipour
author_facet Wirachin Hoonpongsimanont
Preet K Sahota
Nathan N Ng
Maryam J Farooqui
Bharath Chakravarthy
Bhakti Patel
Shahram Lotfipour
author_sort Wirachin Hoonpongsimanont
collection DOAJ
description Objectives: Clinical research is often time-consuming and difficult to conduct in busy academic institutions. Previous studies have proposed methods to integrate undergraduate students as a means to increase research productivity. The authors aimed to describe the possibility to enhance emergency department research productivity at an academic emergency department in the United States, using undergraduate students in an Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program. Methods: The authors described the Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program curriculum and its implementation. We also conducted a retrospective study at a university-based emergency department from January 2005 to December 2014 to demonstrate the benefit of having an established Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program. The primary outcomes were number of Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–related studies, number of enrolled patients, extramural/intramural funding, abstract presentations, and peer-reviewed publications. The authors analyzed the data using descriptive statistics. Results: Over the 10-year period, 110 Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–assisted research studies were conducted, with research associates enrolling 46,219 patients. These studies yielded a total of 31 peer-reviewed publications and 77 abstract presentations (13 international, 27 national, 37 state/regional). The Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–related studies were used as pilot studies to obtain US$1,751,036 in extramural grant funding and US$31,047 in intramural grant funding. Conclusion: The implementation of Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program can enhance emergency department clinical research productivity, and the inclusion of supplemental academic programs enhanced the undergraduate students’ research experience.
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spelling doaj.art-83016204ae7b4cb484a7fca6b9b4a1d62022-12-22T00:21:53ZengSAGE PublishingSAGE Open Medicine2050-31212017-09-01510.1177/2050312117730245Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate studentsWirachin Hoonpongsimanont0Preet K Sahota1Nathan N Ng2Maryam J Farooqui3Bharath Chakravarthy4Bhakti Patel5Shahram Lotfipour6Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USADepartment of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USASchool of Biological Sciences, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USADepartment of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USADepartment of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USAKaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center, Oakland, CA, USADepartment of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USAObjectives: Clinical research is often time-consuming and difficult to conduct in busy academic institutions. Previous studies have proposed methods to integrate undergraduate students as a means to increase research productivity. The authors aimed to describe the possibility to enhance emergency department research productivity at an academic emergency department in the United States, using undergraduate students in an Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program. Methods: The authors described the Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program curriculum and its implementation. We also conducted a retrospective study at a university-based emergency department from January 2005 to December 2014 to demonstrate the benefit of having an established Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program. The primary outcomes were number of Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–related studies, number of enrolled patients, extramural/intramural funding, abstract presentations, and peer-reviewed publications. The authors analyzed the data using descriptive statistics. Results: Over the 10-year period, 110 Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–assisted research studies were conducted, with research associates enrolling 46,219 patients. These studies yielded a total of 31 peer-reviewed publications and 77 abstract presentations (13 international, 27 national, 37 state/regional). The Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program–related studies were used as pilot studies to obtain US$1,751,036 in extramural grant funding and US$31,047 in intramural grant funding. Conclusion: The implementation of Emergency Medicine Research Associates Program can enhance emergency department clinical research productivity, and the inclusion of supplemental academic programs enhanced the undergraduate students’ research experience.https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312117730245
spellingShingle Wirachin Hoonpongsimanont
Preet K Sahota
Nathan N Ng
Maryam J Farooqui
Bharath Chakravarthy
Bhakti Patel
Shahram Lotfipour
Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
SAGE Open Medicine
title Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
title_full Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
title_fullStr Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
title_full_unstemmed Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
title_short Research Associates Program: Expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
title_sort research associates program expanding clinical research productivity with undergraduate students
url https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312117730245
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