239 - A Three-Pronged Approach to Promote Pediatric Physician-Scientist Career Development Through the Midwest Society for Pediatric Research

Poster Number: 239
Publication Number: 239.418

Katherine M. Satrom, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States; Marie Hickey, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States; Bree Andrews, University of Chicago Division of the Biological Sciences The Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States; Patrick Myers, Northwestern University The Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States; Mary E. Robbins, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States; Sarah Haskell, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, United States; Neal B. Blatt, Beaumont Children's Hospital, Royal Oak, MI, United States; David McCulley, University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, San Diego, CA, United States

Background: Programs that support career development for trainees and early physician-scientist faculty are essential to maintain the integrity of clinical, translational, and basic science research that advances care for pediatric patients. Providing early mentorship and networking opportunities is crucial but challenging, especially outside of one’s home institution. Regional pediatric research societies may be able to address this unmet need.

Objective: To provide focused and longitudinal career development and mentorship programs that attract and maintain pediatric trainees in academic careers and foster early career success.

Design/Methods: The Midwest Society for Pediatric Research (MSPR) and national SPR collaborated on three programs to promote academic career development. The first was an interactive Early Career Development Session held during the MSPR meeting to facilitate transitions from fellow to faculty. Topics included time management, manuscript writing, networking and creating an elevator pitch. The second was a Mentor/Mentee program that paired experienced investigators with junior faculty and trainees across Midwest institutions based on shared scientific interests. The third program was a topic-specific Research Cohort Network Series where groups focused on either growth/nutrition or lung biology met monthly for six months in 2021. Trainees and early faculty presented their work and formed a network with similar interests. The impact of these programs was evaluated by participant surveys.

Results: The Early Career Development session was held in-person in 2019 and virtually during the 2020 and 2021 MSPR meetings with 20-50 in attendance each year. Qualitative feedback revealed the ongoing need for strategy and skill building sessions focused on early career challenges and methods to develop momentum. The Mentor/Mentee program included 14 participants. Survey results demonstrated that the partnerships focused primarily on manuscript writing (57%) and research methods (43%). The majority of respondents would recommend this program to colleagues. Surveys from the Research Cohort Network Series showed that the program was worthwhile (100%); however, its sustainability long-term was a common question.Conclusion(s): Regional SPR societies can foster career development through inter-institutional mentorship and career development programs. We demonstrated the feasibility of three pilot programs despite the inability to meet in-person during the COVID-19 pandemic. Next steps will include a focus on administrative and senior leadership oversight to maximize efficiency and ensure meaningful connections.