Policy for Resident Research

I.Purpose
The purpose of a policy for resident research in the Department of Orthopaedics, New Jersey Medical School is to promote high quality research collaboration between the faculty and residents. A Resident Research Committee has been established to facilitate this commitment. The following guidelines have been established to clarify the responsibilities of the involved parties when such a commitment is undertaken.

II. Overview
The Department of Orthopaedics has established a Resident Research Committee to facilitate the development of resident research. The current members are Dr. Michael Vives, Dr. Sheldon Lin, Dr. Robert Harten, Dr. Virak Tan, Dr. Calin Moucha, and Dr. Wayne Berberian. The committee is responsible for establishing a policy for resident research, reviewing and approving resident projects, and monitoring the progress of the research project from initiation to completion. The goal of these measures is to allow every resident the opportunity to make a significant contribution to the field by completing a project and submitting it for publication.

III. Process A. Project List
The faculty in the department will submit to the committee, a one page outline of any research project they are conducting/planning which would be available for resident participation. These outlines should be submitted to the committee by April 15 of each calendar year. The committee will review the proposals to help ensure their suitability for resident involvement. On May 15 of each calendar year, a list of all projects which are available for resident participation will be posted on a shared Departmental Drive.

B. PGY-1
Throughout the PGY-1 year, the residents will be encouraged to consider ideas for possible areas of research. Since residents at this stage of their training have limited exposure to orthopaedics, having the Project List available will give options to those who are unable to formulate their own project. The resident is encouraged to contact the faculty to discuss any projects of potential interest. The resident will be required to complete the training/testing modules for RITEWEB, HIPAA, and IACUC prior to completion of their PGY-1.

C. PGY-2
By November 1 of the PGY-2, residents will be required to indicate the title of their project and their faculty supervisor. The resident must make an appointment with the responsible faculty prior to this date to discuss the project in detail. The resident/faculty team then has until February 1 to submit a two page proposal detailing the study. The protocol should include the following:
1) Title
2) Responsible Faculty
3) Introduction/Background Information (Rationale), this should include a literature search.
4) Hypothesis
5) Study Design
6) Anticipated OutcomeThe submitted proposal will be reviewed by a committee member and a faculty member with expertise related to the project. Their written comments will be reviewed by the committee. The committee may:
1) Approve the protocol
2) Return to applicant with suggestions and recommend re-submission
3) Reject the protocolTimeliness in submitting the proposal is critical to effective use of the research rotation. Having a properly formatted proposal submitted by February 1 will permit time to modify the proposal based on the reviewers’ suggestions. A dedicated effort must then be made throughout the remainder of the PGY2 to move the project along. Funding issues, learning specific techniques, acquisition of cadavers, etc. should be addressed at this time. A brief presentation to the committee will be required during the fourth quarter of the PGY-2 to present the study protocol.

D. PGY-3
Each resident will have a two-month block of protected time during the PGY3, to concentrate on their project. In order to be eligible for this protected time, the resident must have received approval of their project by the Resident Research Committee by July 1 of their PGY3. If the resident has not received approval of their protocol by this time, the research rotation will be forfeited and the resident will staff the daily clinics. After the research rotation is completed, the resident is required to submit a progress report of their project to the Resident Research Committee and give an oral presentation during CORE. The report and presentation should include preliminary data, analysis of data, and problems associated with the project. The oral presentation should last fifteen to twenty minutes and will be followed be a question/answer brainstorming session. The resident is encouraged to have made enough progress on their project to submit an abstract for presentation to an approved national meeting. Abstracts submitted during PGY-3 are typically presented (if accepted) during PGY-4, so this timetable is essential to have tangible proof of a successful research endeavor by the time of fellowship application.

E. PGY-4
A written progress report in the format described above should be submitted to the Resident Research Committee by October 1 of the PGY-4. An oral presentation as previously described will be given during the second quarter. Significant progress is expected by this point since a manuscript must be submitted to a peer reviewed journal by the end of the year. A copy of the manuscript should also be submitted to the Resident Research Committee to be kept on file. Failure to comply with this requirement will disqualify the resident from eligibility to be named Chief Administrative Resident.

F. PGY-5
All residents are required to produce a manuscript suitable for publication by the beginning of the PGY-5. Successful completion of the Residency Program is contingent upon compliance with these requirements.

G.IMPLEMENTATION
All residents that are currently involved in a project will be required to submit the above mentioned research proposal form to the Resident Research Committee by April 15. In addition to the categories described above, ongoing projects should have an appendix including a summary of the preliminary findings and conclusions. This will enable the committee to determine the “baseline” status for all resident research projects as of July 1. This will permit monitoring the progress of the project, as outlined above, going forward into the next academic year.The transition from the research rotation being part of the PGY2 to PGY3 will take place starting July 1, 2004. Residents that are PGY2 during the 2003-2004 academic year will therefore be scheduled an additional two months of research during the 2004-2005 academic year (their PGY3). Those residents that have already completed the majority of their project (based on the form submitted April 15) will be eligible to perform clinical/operative duties during this block.