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What is the role of research in medical education? How important is research for residency? What are good research topics for medical students?
Our guest, Frederick Chen, MD, MPH, chief health and science officer at the American Medical Association, discusses the growing importance of research in medical education and residency. He explains how research helps medical students stand out in a competitive admissions process and provides valuable skills like scientific methods and teamwork. Dr. Chen also shares insights from his own experience in residency, and talks about the AMA Research Challenge for students and residents with a $10,000 grand prize. AMA Chief Experience Officer Todd Unger hosts.
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Speaker
- Frederick Chen, MD, MPH, chief health and science officer, American Medical Association
Transcript
Dr. Chen: And that experience of coming up with new questions, learning scientific methods, working in a laboratory, working on a team, all of those skills are really, really useful for doctors.
Unger: Hello and welcome to the AMA Update video and podcast. Today, we're talking about the importance of getting involved in research in medical school and residency. Our guest today is Dr. Frederick Chen, chief health and science officer at the AMA in Seattle. I'm Todd Unger, AMA's chief experience officer in Chicago. Dr. Chen, it's great to have you back.
Dr. Chen: Hi, Todd. Nice to see you.
Unger: Well, over the last few years, medical students have shown a growing interest in research. And students are publishing more than ever before. What do you think is driving the trend?
Dr. Chen: Well, I mean, research has always been a key component of medical education and of being a doctor, right? I mean, medicine is based on science. Science is created and produced by scientists, by researchers. That's how we make advances in medicine. That's how we provide the best possible care for our patients.
And so research has always been part of medicine and medical education enterprise. I think over the last few years, for sure, the interest in research has increased, because it's so competitive to get into medical school these days. And I think research is one of those opportunities that helps students set themselves apart from others.
Unger: And with the changes to the USMLE Step 1 comes another opportunity to distinguish yourself. How does that play a role here?
Dr. Chen: Yeah, because when you're a medical school admissions committee, and you're trying to sort out hundreds, thousands of applications, and one of the main distinguishing factors which was standardized testing gets taken away, then you're really forced, which is totally on purpose.
That's what we wanted them to do, right? Is start to dig deeper and see what else is exciting and attractive about these applicants that will make them be fantastic doctors. And so research is one of those ways that people can show that they have demonstrated interest, scientific capability, and to be honest, excellence. And so I think that's what we're seeing.
Unger: Do you think this trend is going to continue in the years ahead?
Dr. Chen: Well, I mean, like I said, research should always continue and will always continue. And I think it is always going to be an important part of medicine and medical training. For the foreseeable future, I would say for sure.
I just think it's a valuable part of a student's education and experience. I think it really gives you a valuable insight into medicine and into science and really helps. And that experience of coming up with new questions, learning scientific methods, working in a laboratory, working on a team, all of those skills are really, really useful for doctors.
Unger: Well, medical students are often pressed for time. I guess that's not unusual in this field. But what is your advice on finding time to add this whole new world of research, on top of everything they're doing, to make the most out of the research opportunities that might present themselves?
Dr. Chen: Yeah, I mean, it's been remarkable when you look at our medical students today and the college students today, how much work they put into these activities outside of the classroom, in addition to. And I think what we've seen is just a level of commitment. You have to find that time.
It might be time away from your social media, time away. But really sort of stuff that you—it's an important commitment. And as part of the admissions process I think we're seeing, not only do you need to show demonstrated interest in clinical medicine and some experience on the clinical side—that's been a big piece—but I think we're also seeing it sort of in this opportunity in science.
The good news is, because most of our students, college students are in science majors, they're around laboratories, they're around scientists. And there are opportunities for it. And so I think that's also a natural fit for folks.
Unger: So if I hear you right, you're saying get off of TikTok and Instagram, and start doing some research?
Dr. Chen: I didn't say anything about TikTok.
Unger: I'm just curious about, obviously, different levels of research out there, everything from a post-recession to a publication. In the eyes of people that are looking at your research experience, does anything matter more than another?
Dr. Chen: This is the advice I've given to medical residents, to medical students and to college students, which is you don't go into a research experience or a lab saying, 'I'm just doing this to get into medical school.' You really need to think about, what is it that I want to get out of this experience? What kinds of skills do I want to learn in this experience? What kind of exposures, what kind of people do I want to be around?
So I think that is a really important piece for students to be thinking about and to be doing. And the general advice is, try to do a project where you actually are going to have something tangible to show for it. You're not just washing beakers in the laboratory. It'd be awesome if you can get your name on a paper published in JAMA, for instance.
It would be awesome if you could present at the AMA Research Challenge your research or have a poster with your name on it. So those are the kinds of conversations you need to have, not just with yourself, but also then with your laboratory mentor and professors around what do I need to do to make an impact in this work.
Unger: Now, we've talked a lot about the benefits for medical students to participate in research, including a lot of the skills that you just covered right there, plus that ability to stand out in a crowd as you apply for residency positions.
Now, let's talk about residents, another arena where people don't have a lot of time, but certainly a lot of opportunities for research there. Are we seeing similar trends play out with residents?
Dr. Chen: Well, many specialties actually have required research years. So many of the surgical specialties, for instance, many of the sub-specialties have required research time built into their residency—so sometimes a whole year, sometimes two years.
And so that's a recognition of how important science and research is to that field, in particular. And it's also a recognition of how important those skills are to be a successful physician in that specialty. And so I think those residents in those fields, it's a requirement. It's a done deal. And so that's part of their training experience.
I was in family medicine. We actually, unfortunately, do not have a research requirement in our residency. But I will say that my experience was such that showing some interest in research, having a background in public health and having done some research, really not just helped set me apart, but really helped open up a bunch of different doors in academia, and in research, and in scholarship for me during my residency.
And it was a great opportunity, because you're right. Residents are really busy. And it's really easy to just focus on your clinical requirements. But if you have extra time and interest in doing something, there were so many opportunities—from scholarships, to competitions, to presentations, and then ultimately to publications and career mentorship, because I was interested in research.
And so I think that that was a really great experience and great, good lesson. It's why I'm here now as the chief health and science officer at the AMA.
Unger: That's right. And for the last two years, while you've been here at AMA, you've been one of three judges in the AMA Research Challenge, which is a national platform where medical students and residents present their research and compete for a $10,000 grand prize.
In fact, it's the largest research competition of its kind for students and residents. And so in this role, you've gotten a pretty broad view of what students and residents are working on across the country. Any common themes that you're seeing out there?
Dr. Chen: The scope and the scale of research is so impressive amongst the students and the entrants in the competition. And I think that's true about medical research overall. I think one of the common themes is that research is really a—it's a team sport, right? It's not one mad scientist in their lab by themselves fighting against the academy.
No, it's definitely a team sport. You're part of large teams at most university medical centers, at most university hospitals who are doing research. The challenge there, of course, is making a name for yourself or making a meaningful contribution. What did you do in that work? How did you help lead this?
And so I think that's one of the pieces that we're seeing is not just the amount of technology and the kind of stuff that we're seeing applied from AI, to CRISPR, and new genetic techniques, but also the teamwork involved in research these days.
The other thing I want to just add, Todd, is how exciting the research process is, no matter what stage you're at or what stage the project is at. I mean, if you're able to be there from the very beginning, and you're sitting around with other scientists thinking up a research question, that is awesome. That is really, really cool.
How are you going to answer? What question is important? Why is it important? How are you going to answer it? What are the tools available to you, whether they're data sets, or animal models, or clinical trials? How are you going to do that? And then actually doing the research and, ultimately, finding the answer to your question and then getting the word out there.
That's the research process. It's super exciting at any of those stages. And I think it's really important to know what stage you're at, what stage you can contribute to and how that helps your development as a physician.
Unger: Those are all great stages of development that you outlined there. And when we debut the Research Challenge finals, you'll be able to see our five finalists presenting all of that work. That's going to take place on February 20. What are you most looking forward to?
Dr. Chen: Super excited, super excited to see the excellent presentation of those awards. The finalists are amazing. Hearing them talk about really complex scientific ideas, complex projects in a way that you can explain to your grandma is a real skill in and of itself.
And I think seeing the scope and breadth of scientific discovery medical research today, I think those are super exciting things. And to really celebrate the fact that you can do this as a college student, as a medical student, as a resident and in all stages of your training is really exciting.
Unger: The Research Challenge itself is a real success story. We used to have just poster sessions down in—I think it was kind of in a basement. At some of our live meetings, we'd get a couple hundred people to come and present their work. The pandemic happened. We couldn't do that anymore.
And so we did switch to a virtual platform, where there's this whole idea of a show with judges like you, a competition, a huge grand prize from our partners, Laurel Road, and then the announcement of this winner. And last year's winner was a real rock star when we brought him to our Interim Meeting.
So it's really exciting to see how it's grown. We had over 1,500 entries this year. You're going to have a chance to see the top five and see how our judges, including Dr. Chen, evaluated their work. Well, be sure to tune in on February 20 at 2:00 P.M. Central time to watch the five finalists compete for that $10,000 grand prize provided by Laurel Road.
Visit ama-assn.org/researchchallenge to register. And while you're there, you can also submit your own research for the next research challenge. The deadlines for students and residents to submit their abstracts is July 16. That's coming up, so you better get busy.
That wraps up today's episode. We'll be back soon with another AMA Update. Dr. Chen, thanks so much for being here today. Be sure to subscribe for new episodes. And find all our videos and podcasts at ama-assn.org/podcasts. Thanks for joining us. Please take care.
Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed in this video are those of the participants and/or do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the AMA.
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