Research Training

Introduction

Our research training program aims to develop the next generation of leaders in Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine. During their second and third year of training, fellows are offered up to 18 months of protected research time and the opportunity to be mentored by some of the finest pulmonary, critical care and sleep researchers in the country.

Fellows are introduced to the research program starting the first week of their first year when they attend a talk on the research opportunities available within the division. A research boot camp during the fall of first year allows new fellows to meet potential mentors and discuss research interests, as well as learn more about opportunities within the institution to develop research skills, understand research concepts, and discuss career development. A second boot camp in spring of the first year gives fellows protected time to meet with possible mentors and identify a research interest. By the start of their research time, fellows will have a primary mentor identified, a study question developed, institutional review board (IRB) submissions planned or submitted, and individual research committees established.

Three broad investigative tracks are available to fellows to provide flexibility in achieving their research goals, provide them with additional graduate level education to enhance their research toolbox, and prepare them for funding applications and transition to junior faculty. The investigative tracks include:

To maximize and exploit each fellow’s research time and experience, a number of fundamental resources and educational opportunities are available on site to each fellow as listed below.

Examples of Available Research Resources

Weill Cornell Core Facilities

WCM is committed to providing cutting edge resources to the WCM research community, enabling them to make important advances in diagnosing and treating human diseases. These core facilities have dedicated personnel to run the equipment and help in experimental design. Some of these core facilities are run as fee for service facilities and others provide collaborative working relationships.

Weill Cornell Registry and Biobank of Critically Ill Patients (BOCI)

An actively enrolling biobank of critical illness houses patient plasma, immune cell fractions, and urine samples from critically ill patients admitted to NYP-WCM intensive care units including those at Weill Cornell and partner institutions (NewYork-Presbyterian/Brooklyn Methodist Hospital).

The Pulmonary and Critical Care Biorepository

A study intended to develop a biorepository for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD), Interstitial Lung Abnormalities (ILA), COVID-19, and ICU survivors with or without underlying lung disease at Weill Cornell Medicine.

Collaboration with Genetic Medicine

The division has an excellent relationship with investigators in genetic medicine who have one of the largest biobanks of COPD patient samples in the world. Drs. Crystal and Kaner have joint appointments in both departments.

Collaboration with Columbia University Transplant Group

An active collaborative relationship exists with academic thoracic surgeons who provide lung tissue samples from explanted lungs for mechanistic investigation in our pulmonary research labs.

SPIROMICS

Investigators in our division (Martinez, Kaner) serve in leadership positions in this important NHLBI sponsored cohort of smokers with and without COPD. Dr. Zhang has successfully obtained patient samples from the large SPIROMICS cohort to support fellows’ research projects.

Architecture for research computing (ARCH)

ARCH is a bioinformatics platform which allows for querying of the electronic medical record to find (de-identified) patient data for research study. ARCH has allowed for the development of a critical illness research data repository which organizes comprehensive clinical data (diagnoses, labs, therapies) on all critically ill patients admitted to NYP-WCM intensive care units over the past 7 years.

The grant review and support program (GRASP)

A workshop focused on elements of grantsmanship including understanding the review process and planning for your proposal.

Educational Opportunities

CTSC Master’s in Clinical and Translational Investigation

A two-year master’s program that combines rigorous academics and strategic, practical skills, challenging students to apply scientific theory, concepts, methods, and innovative, team-oriented management to help solve complex biomedical and health issues.

CTSC’s Advanced Certificate in Clinical Translational Investigation

This one-year program consists of a multidisciplinary core competency-based curriculum including coursework, seminars and workshops in ethical, social, and legal issues of responsible clinical research, and seminars in grant writing and interactions with industry.

CTSC’s Certificate in Clinical Research Methodology

In conjunction with institutional collaborators a one-year clinical research methodology is available for investigators with clinical research expertise seeking to obtain up-to-date knowledge in the field of clinical research.

Master of Science Program in Clinical Epidemiology & Health Services research

A two-year master’s program designed for those who wish to plan, implement and analyze quantitative and qualitative research studies using appropriate research designs.

Department of Healthcare Policy and Research

This group provides a series of formal didactic training opportunities including a health informatics track, a biostatistics and data science masters track, and a health policy and economics MS track.

Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine

Fernando J. Martinez, M.D., M.S., Chief

Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship

Meredith Turetz, M.D., Program Director
Robert Kaner, M.D., Associate Program Director
Bradley Hayward, M.D., Associate Program Director

Patrycja Golinska, M.S., Program Coordinator
Tel: (646) 962-2738
Fax: (646) 962-0286
pag2028@med.cornell.edu

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