Viewpoint: Physician as a Clinician, Researcher, and Academician

@#The daily work life of physicians who function as clinicians, researchers, and academicians is focused on improving public health and patient outcomes in three usually compartmentalized settings: clinics, classrooms, and centers for research. In these settings, physicians are addressing patients’ medical concerns based on evidence, and at the same time, considering if new information could lead to research and discovery for better patient outcomes. The physician then proceeds to mentor, teach, and train medical students in quality evidence-based clinical practice and the conduct of scientific research. The importance of operationally blending these three disciplines with research as a common thread is not only a big challenge for these physicians but also an opportunity to innovate for better public health.

¿Es tiempo de modificar la vinculación pregrado postgrado en la educación médica chilena? Reflexiones sobre una vía de doble titulación Médico cirujano/Doctor en ciencias médicas / Time to change the graduate-postgraduate liaison in Chilean medical education? Reflections about a double certification as Physician and Doctor in medical sciences

In the last 150 years, scientific research has produced extraordinary discoveries in Medicine and there is no doubt that research will continue contributing substantially in the future but there is no the same conviction regarding how to provision such capacities in medical graduates. In Chile, the Faculties of Medicine created several doctorate programs in Medical Sciences (Ph.D.) to strengthen medical research. However, the low number of physicians who apply to these programs is a caveat. These programs provide the advanced third-cycle competencies expected by students aspiring for an excellence research certification and their incorporation into academia. Universities stand out in their capacity to adapt themselves to educational needs, developing programs designed to fill specific gaps. Ph.D. programs intercalated to the medical career show that this is the correct approach. The development of specific doctorate programs for the small number of physicians interested in research and for medical students with a strong interest in research could be an innovative solution to motivate and encourage them to develop a career in clinical investigation. Using this approach, Medical Schools and Doctorate in Medical Sciences programs would jointly stimulate the training of medical scientists.

Three essential conditions to cultivate physician scientists / 医学教育

1) We conducted a workshop to discuss the definition of the term "physician scientist", what thought processes and competencies are expected, and how to better help physician scientists develop through medical schools.2) The definition of a physician-scientist is a physician who both provides patient care and approaches unsolved questions in understanding the mechanisms of diseases and developing new treatments.3) Essential conditions for a medical school to cultivate physician scientists include providing good role models for physician scientists, making efforts to stimulate students' motivation, and supporting collaboration among physicians and scientists on the faculty.

Establishing MD-PhD Programs in the Graduate School of Medicine in Korea

An MD-PhD is a physician-scientist with dual degrees integrating both medical and postgraduate training. In the 21st century, MD-PhDs will represent the main power and leadership of biomedical research and biotechnology, which can lead to national wealth in the very near future. Their education is supported primarily by the special grant from MSTP (medical scientist training program) owned by NIH-NIGMS (NIH-National Institute of General Medical Sciences) and partly by a non-MSTP grant prepared by each school. Since 2004, AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) approved MD-PhD section in the GREAT Group (Group on Graduate Research, Education, and Training) to promote the development, growth, and nurturing of physician-scientist training programs by representing the interest of MD-PhD programs. For successful launching of the combined MD-PhD program in the graduate schools of medicine in Korea, the following issues must be resolved as soon as possible: full scholarship support during the 7-year program, exemption from mandatory military service following graduation, official approval of PhD degree in the professional medical school, and introduction of the MD-PhD combined degree program to laypersons. Therefore, I strongly urge Korean government to take time and determine the budget for nurturing MD-PhD students to develop as biomedical leaders to bring national prosperity as well as world-class scientists in the 21st century.