Clinical Investigator Training Program (CITP) – A practical and pragmatic approach to conveying clinical investigator competencies and training to busy clinicians

摘要

IntroductionClinical investigation is a critical component of clinical medicine. Yet, other than mentorship by an experienced senior physician, young physicians have few formal training opportunities that fit into their clinical training and convey the pre-requisite clinical investigator competencies. To address this training gap, we designed the Clinical Investigator Training Program (CITP); a practical and pragmatic curriculum weaved into the constant pressures of balancing patient care with academic pursuit required of the academic practitioner.MethodsBetween January 2016 and December 2018, we conducted four CITP courses, with each comprised of four 4-h sessions that included didactic lectures, group projects including the development of a mock clinical protocol, and expert's panel discussions. Each course enrolled 15 participants from an average of 28 applicants. We assessed the knowledge acquired following each course via a pre- and post-course test (t-test with positive scores indicating improvement in knowledge base). In addition, we also tracked which participants became first time principal investigator following completion of CITP.ResultsA total of 60 participants enrolled in the 4 CITP courses, and there was a statistically significant improvement in mean post-test scores (p?