The Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, the Duke University Health System and the Duke University Schools of Medicine and Nursing have been selected as one of just 12 sites nationally to participate in a VA health care quality improvement fellows program.
The VA Quality Scholars Program uses a unique interdisciplinary approach that applies advanced quality improvement, clinical and research approaches to improve health care delivery systems and patient outcomes. The program’s intent is to develop the next generation of leaders who will improve patient safety and healthcare delivery through innovation and quality improvement.
“This is such a special opportunity for PhD and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) students who want to expand the focus of their work from either an advanced clinical, or advanced research perspective, and take a much broader view of the future of health care and its impact on patients,” said Eleanor S. McConnell, PhD, RN, associate professor, Duke University School of Nursing; Senior Fellow, Duke Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development Core Investigator, Durham VA Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center.
Karen Goldstein, MD, assistant professor, Duke University School of Medicine, and Core Investigator, Durham VA ADAPT Center agrees, “We are able to build on the resources of the Durham VA and Duke University Health Care Systems to help prepare exceptional clinicians who want to reimagine the future of health care and patient safety.”
The Durham VA Quality Scholars program is built around three main areas of focus: Quality Improvement & Patient Safety, Mentored Scholarship and Interprofessional Education & Collaboration with a particular emphasis on dissemination and implementation science. Funded by the Office of Academic Affairs in the Veterans Health Administration, the two-year Fellowship will provide a full-time stipend along with a variety of advanced clinical, educational and research opportunities within the VA, Duke and the Durham community. It is open to doctorally trained physicians, nurses, physical therapists and psychologists who will have completed their clinical training by entry into the program and be eligible for independent practice.
“We want to attract post-doctoral students who are interested in assuming leadership roles in health care delivery, research and education,” said Patrick Calhoun, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and core investigator with the Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center.
Durham VA Quality Scholars will be housed in Durham’s well-established and respected Durham Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation (ADAPT) which has an extensive record of trainees who go on to successful and productive careers in research, leadership and clinical administration.
“We are delighted to bring a broad range of clinical disciplines into this rich, interdisciplinary environment,” said Adam Goode, DPT, PhD, associate professor of orthopedic surgery. “The Durham program builds on the unique strengths of the Durham VA and Duke to offer special expertise in developing systems to improve chronic illness prevention, women’s health, geriatrics and long-term care, physical activity, musculoskeletal disease management, behavioral health, and population health.”
To learn more about applying for this fellowship opportunity, please contact Elizabeth.strawbridge@va.gov or Neerali.patel18@va.gov.