The American Medical Directors Association Foundation and Pfizer have partnered to sponsor the Quality Improvement Awards, a program designed to encourage the development of innovative projects that will help to make a distinct impact on the quality of long term care.Types of Projects SupportedThe Awards will support initiatives that focus on facility staff education, quality improvement programs, research on interventions and treatment, and health literacy to directly enhance the quality of care provided to patients in Long Term Care settings.Proposals may be submitted for a general Quality Improvement project or in any one of the five therapeutic areas listed below. The therapeutic areas are: pain management, dementia, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or urinary incontinence.Education * Proposals in this category should focus on facility staff education and/or training programs. Due to a current Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality grant on assessment of Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) implementation, the Foundation will not fund projects related to implementation of AMDA CPGs.Quality Improvement Programs * Proposals should focus on training and mentoring facilities or organizations in continuous quality improvement (CQI) or specific QI projects covering areas of interest to the Foundation.Research Projects * Research projects should be approximately one year in length and conducted in a single facility. Results should be generalizable. * Examples could include an investigation into the characteristics of residents in the long term care setting whose weight loss is unavoidable, or a study looking at critical factors with hearing aid use.Health Literacy * Health literacy projects should focus on ways to enhance improving healthcare communications between long term care patients and their family/caregivers/surrogates. Devising such systems are particularly important given the diminished literacy skills, cognitive capacity and communication skills of many long term care residents, especially those with dementia. * Examples could include projects that focus on the following: innovative ways to communicate given literacy and functional limitations (e.g., cognitive impairment, hearing or vision loss); different strategies for communicating given technological advances (e.g., e-mail, video-conferencing); and, methods of communicating with patients and families surrounding functional and disease-focused issues, taking into consideration diminished literacy skills and cultural differences.AwardsAwards of $10,000-$15,000 each will be made to three winners in this competition to support their projects. Two awards will support Quality Improvement projects focusing on one of the five therapeutic areas, and the third award will support a General Quality Improvement project. Awards are intended to cover salary support, consultant fees, materials, and travel to the AMDA Annual Symposium to present project results.Application ProcedureThe application deadline is October 31, 2008. The AMDA Foundation/Pfizer QI Application must be completed and submitted online through our online application process. Note that registration is required since this online application involves submitting and uploading documents in electronic form.
AMDA Foundation.11000 Broken Land Parkway · Suite 405 · Columbia, MD 21044Phone: 410-992-3134 · Fax: 410-740-1318
American Society of Hypertension 2009 ASH Distinguished Scientist Award
One ASH Distinguished Scientist Award is given each year depending on the field to which the award recipient has made his or her contribution. The purpose of the ASH Distinguished Scientist Award is to honor a scientist or physician for outstanding achievements in the field of hypertension. The award recipient receives a framed certificate and a $10,000 honorarium. The awardee is also requested to present a 30- minute lecture during the awards session at the ASH Annual Meeting and will receive complimentary registration and reimbursement for travel expenses and hotel accommodations. Sponsors who wish to have their candidates nominated for an award must be current ASH members and provide the following information: Complete name, address, phone, and fax numbers of the nominee A signed letter of nomination from the sponsor and at least one additional supporting letter. The letters should clearly articulate the major contributions of the nominee to the field of hypertension. A current curriculum vitae of candidate. The deadline to apply for the 2009 award is December 3, 2008. A candidate may be nominated by one or more different individuals within the same year. Previous winners of the ASH Distinguished Scientist Award and members of the ASH Scientific Awards Committee are not eligble for nomination. The Awards Committee will assess the candidates’ overall scientific contributions and their impact on the field of hypertension.
For more information, please contact: Amy Mason Associate Manager, Scientific Meetings and CME American Society of Hypertension 148 Madison Avenue, Fifth Floor New York, NY 10016 Phone: 212.696.9099 Fax: 212.696.0711 E-mail: awards@ash-us.org
American Society of Hypertension Young Scholars Awards
To qualify for the award, candidates must have received an advance professional degree within the last 15 years and be currently active in research in hypertension or related cardiovascular diseases. Only applicants from North America are considered. Three awards will be given, with $3,000 as a personal award, and $3,000 toward laboratory expenses ($6,000 total for each award). The deadline to apply for the 2009 award is December 1, 2008.
Sarnoff Fellowship Program — Research Training for Medical Students
EligibilityThe Sarnoff Fellowship Program offers medical students enrolled in accredited U.S. medical schools the opportunity to spend a year conducting intensive work in a biomedical research laboratory in the United States, other than the medical school in which they are enrolled.Fellows are selected on the basis of a national competition. Sarnoff seeks individuals with demonstrated intellectual and academic achievement, as well as leadership ability. The Sarnoff Foundation funds up to 20 Fellows per year.Fellows generally have completed their second or third year of medical school. Although applicants may have prior research experience, applications are also encouraged from students without extensive prior research experience. Applicants enrolled in an MD/PhD program will not be eligible for a Sarnoff Fellowship.There are no citizenship requirements for application, but those who are not U.S. citizens must have and maintain an appropriate visa. The Foundation will not handle visa matters for applicants.Stipend and BenefitsFellowship awardees receive these benefits: * $27,500 stipend for the 2008-09 Fellowship year * Allowance up to $7,000 for travel to select a Preceptor and Fellowship laboratory, moving expenses, health insurance and computer equipment * Financial support to attend the Sarnoff Annual Scientific meetings, American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, and NIH Clinical Investigator Student Trainee Forum * Funds for travel to present a paper, based on Fellowship research, at two national conferences Application Schedule and InformationCompetitions are held annually. The application deadline for the 2009-10 Sarnoff Fellowship Program is January 7, 2009. Applications for the 2009-10 Sarnoff Fellowship Program will be available online in September 2008.Each applicant must submit the following: * One-page personal statement describing scholarly interests and career plans * Three-page essay on the applicant's cardiovascular topic of interest * Completed application form and signed statement of confidentiality * Official medical school transcript * Curriculum vitae * Recommendation from the applicant's Sponsor * Two additional recommendations * Any other material that the applicant determines is appropriate to support the application For more information contact: Dana Boyd, Executive Director Sarnoff Cardiovascular Research Foundation 731 Walker Road, Suite G-2 Great Falls, VA 22066 Phone: 703-759-7600 E-mail: dboyd@SarnoffFoundation.orgFellowship LocationWe strongly encourage students to spend the Fellowship year at an institution in the United States other than their medical school, but recognize that, for some, leaving their home institution could present a significant hardship. Requests for exceptions to this policy will be considered based on personal reasons and availability of suitable laboratories.Selection of PreceptorThe Preceptor provides an appropriate research project and oversees the Fellow's research training. It is not necessary for the applicant to have developed a research project or to have identified potential Preceptors at the time of application.The Fellow is assigned an Advisor from the Sarnoff Scientific Committee. The Advisor assists the Fellow in selecting a Preceptor who can direct a project in the area of the Fellow's interest, which must be broadly within the cardiovascular or cerebrovascular sciences.Fellows are encouraged to visit several laboratories and to meet with several prospective Preceptors prior to selecting the Preceptor. The Scientific Committee Advisor approves the Fellow's choice of laboratory and takes an active role in monitoring the Fellow's progress during the research year. This includes a site visit to meet with the Fellow and the Preceptor once the research is underway.Fellow Evaluation and SelectionThe Sarnoff Foundation seeks individuals with demonstrated intellectual and academic achievement, as well as leadership potential. The Scientific Committee places major emphasis on: * The applicant's interest in a career in research, as documented by a personal statement; * The quality of the applicant's essay and the ability to discuss the research topic; and * Likelihood of providing the applicant with an intensive, rewarding research experience. Key Elements of Sarnoff FellowshipThe cornerstone of the Sarnoff Fellowship is the special interaction between the medical student and the laboratory Preceptor with scientific and mentoring expertise. This close relationship, developed during the course of the Fellowship, and continuing throughout the Fellow's career, is enhanced by additional interactions with the Sarnoff Scientific Committee and Sarnoff Alumni. These experiences cultivate a life-long appreciation and enthusiasm for cardiovascular investigation, leading many to choose a career in cardiovascular research. The Foundation's investment in the Sarnoff Fellow is life-long.Expectations of AwardeesDuring the year in the laboratory, the Sarnoff Fellow will undertake his/her own research project and assume responsibility for it from inception to completion. The Fellow is expected, with guidance, to develop the hypothesis and specific aims of the project, to participate in the experimental design, to carry out appropriate experiments, to interpret the data with the help of his/her Preceptor, and to prepare an original manuscript for submission to an appropriate peer-reviewed journal. Each Fellow presents his/her results at the Sarnoff Foundation's Annual Scientific Meeting, as well as at appropriate national meetings.Examples of Cardiovascular ResearchThe Sarnoff Cardiovascular Research Foundation, like the American Heart Association, takes a broad view of cardiovascular research. Examples include: * Molecular and cellular investigations related to cardiovascular physiology and pathophysiology, neural control of cardiovascular function, cell transport and metabolism, cellular electrophysiology and ion channels, and excitationcontraction coupling * Molecular and cellular biology of cardiac, skeletal, and smooth muscle * Regulation of cell growth, growth factors, cell cycle genes, programmed cell death, cell surface and nuclear receptors, gene transcription, and molecular signaling Vascular biology, lipoproteins and lipid metabolism, endothelial and smooth muscle cell biology, inflammation, cytokines, cell adhesion, regulation of extracellular matrix, and regulation of thrombosis and platelet function * Angiogenesis * Clinical investigations related to atherosclerosis and arterial injury, arrhythmias and conduction abnormalities, cardiac failure and myocardial preservation, hypertension, peripheral vascular disease, stroke, and thrombosis * Animal models of cardiovascular disease * Cardiovascular imaging * Molecular and human genetics * Transplant biology * Cardiovascular surgery * Biomedical engineering
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