VA Training
The Veterans Administration National Quality Scholars Fellowship Program (VAQS) welcomes physicians from all medical specialties, including pathology, OB/GYN, surgery, and dermatology. This year, the program will begin recruiting nurses.
The program is offered at six academic-affiliated VA medical centers: Iowa City, Iowa; Nashville, Tenn.; Birmingham, Ala.; Cleveland; San Francisco; and White River Junction, Vt. The Iowa City and Nashville programs have a track designed specifically for hospitalists. These tracks focus on clinical research and quality improvement work in the inpatient setting, and provide fellows with training for advancement in academic and private-sector hospitalist careers, says Dr. Kaboli, the Iowa City VAQS Fellowship director.
To qualify, fellowship applicants must have completed an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education residency or fellowship (see “A Pregnant Pause: The necessary evolution of residency training,” January 2007, p. 35), be board-eligible or board-certified, and have an active, unrestricted U.S. license to practice. International graduates must meet visa and Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates requirements.
The two-year VAQS focuses on quality improvement in healthcare, Dr. Kaboli says. The program offers master’s-level training in epidemiology and biostatistics, and trains fellows to design and conduct research and improvement projects. Fellows publish the results of their research in peer-reviewed journals. They also learn how to write grants to gain funding for future projects.
Mentoring is an important element of the VAQS program, Dr. Kaboli says, adding that the value a trainee receives from any fellowship depends on the level of mentoring available through the program. Fellows work with senior faculty members who provide guidance on all aspects of research, Dr. Kaboli says. This includes study design, research methodology, data collection and analyses, and writing.
New experiences and the opportunity to take part in research are among the benefits of completing the VAQS program, Dr. Kaboli says. Some physicians also find a great deal of career satisfaction through research.
“I love seeing patients,” Dr. Kaboli says, “but I also like the challenge of doing research to find new ways to improve patient care.” TH
Gina Gotsill is a freelance medical writer based in California.
Reference
1. Ranji SR, Rosenman DJ, Amin AN, Kripalani S. Hospital medicine fellowship: works in progress. Am J Med. 2006;119;72.e1-72.e7.