National NIH K12 Physician Scientist
DiabDocs Program
The National NIH Physician Scientist DiabDocs-K12 Program is now open to scholars who can conduct research at any eligible US institution!
The prime objective of our multi-center National NIH K12 “Diabetes-Docs: Physician-Scientist DiabDocs-K12 Program” (DiabDocs) is to support the academic research career development of the next generation of physician-scientists with a specific focus in basic and clinical diabetes.
Our structured K12 program is designed to provide a mentored research experience together with tailored career development training. Given the historically low rates of persons under-represented in medicine entering diabetes research careers, we will prioritize intentional evidence-based effort toward supporting and funding for these individuals.
The goals of the program are:
- Create a national cohort of up-and-coming physician-scientist researchers, developing cohesion through shared programmatic training cohort experiences including an annual retreat.
- Expand the geographical and pipeline reach of current diabetes K12 programs so that diverse K12 Scholar candidates can be trained locally while maintaining the historic strengths of the past diabetes K12 programs.
- Develop an outstanding national mentor community to train diabetes physician-scientists and provide a more visible pathway to research careers for medical students/residents/fellows by active recruitment programs and inclusion in the DiabDocs retreat and educational programs.
- Ensure consistency and effectiveness of mentoring, including directed attention to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) across research centers through shared mentor training and resources.
In addition to our MPI structure, one of the distinguishing features of our program is the inclusion of all recently funded K12 Scholar program PIs and their experience as part of the DiabDocs Executive Leadership Committee (ELC) complemented by addition of two Adult Endocrinology physician-scientists with expertise in basic science, health services research, & DEI programs. In addition to these ELC investigators, we have engaged diverse physician-scientists from 15 additional institutions without K12 programs in diabetes, but with a strong interest in engaging with DiabDocs. These institutions bring a wealth of expertise including T32, K12, P30, and CTSA funding. DiabDocs will leverage these resources as well as their wide curricula of study and research experiences to provide our K12 scholars high quality training from a diverse faculty.
Scholars
Scholars to be supported by the institutional career development program must be at the career level for which the planned program is intended. Scholars are expected to devote a minimum of 9 person-months (75% of full-time professional effort) during the appointment on the K12 award.
Scholars must be citizens or noncitizen nationals of the United States or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence at the time of appointment. Additional details on citizenship requirements are available in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Additional Information Relating to Scholars
Scholars appointed to the K12 career development program must:
- Have full-time appointments at the grantee institution.
- Be physician scientists who have completed their adult or pediatric endocrinology fellowship training, or other specialty if justified for diabetes research.
- Are either board-certified or board eligible.
- Intend to continue in a dual research/clinical career, supported by an individual career-development or research award that they obtain as PD/PI.
The Scholars may spend up to three years in the K12 career development program but are strongly encouraged to apply for either an individual Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (K08) or an individual Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23) after 1-2 years of support through the K12 program. Through NIDDK, the physician scientist scholars may receive up to a total of 6 years of combined support through K12/KL2 and K08/K23 grant mechanisms. It is expected that most Scholars will receive 2 years of support on the K12.
At the time of initial K12 appointment, Scholars must have no more than six years of research or research training experience beyond their last doctoral degree. Time spent in clinical training is not considered postdoctoral research training. Scholars must have Early-Stage Investigator status through the duration of their term as Scholar. Mid-career and senior faculty are not eligible to be appointed as Scholars.
Individuals who are or were PD/PIs on NIH Small Research Grants (i.e., R03s) or Exploratory/Developmental Research Grants (i.e., R21s) are eligible for K12 support. However, individuals who are or were PDs/PIs on NIH research projects grants (R01), Project Leads of program projects (P01) or Center grants (P50) or the equivalent, are not eligible for appointment under this K12 program. Individuals who have been previously supported by NIH or non-NIH career development awards are not eligible (such as mentored career training awards identical or equivalent to the K01, K08, K23, or K99). Scholars must not concurrently hold any other PHS award that duplicates the provisions of this award.
The DiabDocs program is now soliciting a third cycle of letters of intent for applications (due Friday, December 1, 2023, at 5pm ET) for a mentored career development program from a diverse group of early career physician scientists engaged in research relevant to diabetes including basic, translational, clinical, epidemiology, biostatistical, informatics, health services or health policy projects. Most funded scholars will focus on type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, and limited slots will be available for persons working in type 2 diabetes (T2D). Awards will provide promising investigators the opportunity to be mentored in research-intensive settings at their home institutions to create the research foundation to compete successfully for NIH K08/23 or similar Career Development Awards.
Successful applicants will be early career faculty with experience and training in relevant areas who have demonstrated skills and potential in research and articulate a strong commitment to an academic research career. The full application (due Wednesday, January 31, 2024, at 5pm ET) must outline a clear research project, well-formulated career development plan including mentorship from an experienced scientific mentor, and strong departmental support to protect time for research.
Persons invited to submit full applications will also be invited to an in-person program retreat in Denver, CO, between March 13-15, 2024, that will include interviews . Full applications will then be reviewed by the DiabDocs Scientific Review Committee in a study section for funding. Funded Scholars will be anticipated to start on July 1, 2024.
At the time of submission of the full applications, persons will be required to provide a formal letter of support, from their Department Chair at current institution, which must include a statement of assurance of 75% protected time for K12 activity + a statement of how the other 25% FTE is allocated. The letter must also describe the department's commitment to the long-term career development of the candidate to become an independent research scientist + provide a statement with the institution's guarantee of a minimum of 50% protected time for 18 months of research after the end of the 3 years of K12 funding, sufficient for the scholar to submit an initial application for a K08 or K23 award and, if needed, to revise and resubmit.
Applicants must be US Citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents within the first five years of a faculty appointment as an Instructor or Assistant Professor (or equivalent) at the time of award and able to commit a minimum of 75 percent of full-time professional effort to conducting research and training activities associated with the program (Note: those in surgical specialties must commit 50 percent).
Letters of Intent (LOI) must include:
- One-page statement of intent to apply
- One-page page preliminary specific aims for the proposed research project
- - NIH-format Bio sketches from the candidate and proposed mentor(s)
- - Proof of US citizenship or lawful permanent resident status (copy of passport/green card)
Interested candidates should apply by submitting the above materials in PDF format and send in any questions/inquires to:
DiabDocs Program
diabdocsk12@stanford.edu
Resubmission Guidelines:
- For applicants resubmitting their proposal, a LOI must be received by the recruitment cycle deadline to show interest in the program.
- LOI must include: 1) the original AIMS/Research Plan pages from the original full application and 2) a revised AIMS/Research Plan page demonstrating how the applicant intends to improve the proposal.
- In addition, if invited to submit a full application, applicants must submit a 1-page response to the comments/feedback received from the study section in the previous recruitment cycle. The 1-page response would be required at the full application stage and not the LOI stage.
Current DiabDocs Program Scholars
DiabDiversity Pathway
The National NIH K12 Physician Scientist DiabDocs Program implements best practices to facilitate identification of underrepresented in medicine and science (UiMS) physician trainees via the DiabDiversity program. We are committed to reducing bias in our interview and selection processes, and to enhancing mentor-mentee relationships to support success of UiMS individuals and all Scholars.
Sherita Golden, MD, MHS, serves as the Director of our DiabDocs Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programming. She is the Hugh P. McCormick Family Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism and Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM), where she leads the JHM Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Health Equity and oversees biomedical workforce diversity and health equity operational initiatives that include the School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins Health System.
The DiabDocs program emphasizes recruitment of UiMS early career trainees to improve diversity among the diabetes research community. This is facilitated through outreach to groups including the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), Helmsley Charitable Trust, and the Endocrine Society, and outreach to professional organizations (National Medical Association, National Hispanic Medical Association, and Association of American Indian Physicians) and programs (ENDO Flare and ENDO Excel) that support UiMS trainees and faculty.
The DiabDocs program is providing sponsorships for UiMS trainees interested in careers as physician-scientists engaged in diabetes research to attend our annual program retreat and sessions at the American Diabetes Association (ADA) meeting. Retreat and ADA meeting participants will benefit from exposure to the Executive Leadership Committee of the DiabDocs program and engaging with other early career physician scientists. Trainees, applicants, mentors, and other potentially interested parties, can email diabdocsk12@stanford.edu for any inquiries on travel awards.
For further information on NIH Diversity Efforts, please visit this website
Sherita Golden, MD, MHS
Director, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)
National NIH K12 Physician Scientist DiabDocs Program
Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer
Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Program Events
Program Annual Retreat:
Held each year, the DiabDocs-K12 Annual Retreat gathers all program scholars and mentors to present research and network. Participation is expected.
The 2024 DiabDocs-K12 Annual Retreat:
March 13-15, 2024, Location: Denver, CO (exact venue TBA)
Webinars:
We will have two informational webinars on October 6 and October 30, 2023, to discuss the program, application process and eligibility criteria. The webinars will be on Zoom and will be recorded.
Register for October 6, 2023, Webinar Here!
10AM (PT)/11am (MT)/12pm (CT)/1pm (ET)
Register for October 30, 2023, Webinar Here!
8:30AM (PT)/9:30am (MT)/10:30am (CT)/11:30am (ET)
Program Announcements
September 18, 2023
National Physician-Scientist “DiabDocs” Program receives $999,750 Helmsley Charitable Trust Grant to Help Address the Critical Shortage of Trained Physician-Scientists Focused on Type 1 Diabetes (T1D)
The National Physician-Scientist “Diabetes-Docs” Program (DiabDocs) has received a $999,750 grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to support academic research career development of the next generation of physician-scientists with a specific focus on type 1 diabetes (T1D). The funding, structured as a grant to Stanford University, is in addition to a supplemental award recently granted by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support limited slots available for the career development of physician-scientists with a research focus on type 2 diabetes (T2D).
May 11, 2023
We are excited to announce the first and second cohort of DiabDocs Program Scholars for 2023:
Cohort 1:
Dr. Schafer Boeder (UCSD)
Dr. Charlotte Chen (Albert Einstein College of Medicine)
Dr. Jamie Felton (Indiana University)
Dr. Zoe Qaundt (UCSF)
Cohort 2:
Dr. Samantha Adamson (WUSTL)
Dr. Svetlana Azova (Boston Children's Hospital)
Dr. Kathryn Fantasia (Boston University)
Dr. Timothy Foster (University of Florida)
Dr. Jacob Kohlenberg (University of Minnesota)
Dr. Meghan Pauley (University of Colorado Anschutz)
Dr. Daniel Tilden (University of Kansas Medical Center)
Congratulations and Welcome to our
Program Scholars!
January 24, 2023
Erin Digitale, Senior Science Writer in the Office of Communications at Stanford Medicine, recently published an article regarding the National NIH K12 Physician Scientist DiabDocs Program. The article focuses on the efforts established by the program at a national level for Type-1 Diabates.
January 1, 2023
Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) announces Jamie Felton, MD, their KL2 Scholar, receiving the National NIH K12 DiabDocs Career Development Award starting in 2023. The news focuses on Dr. Felton's experiences with the Indiana CTSI KL2 Scholar Award Program, her future efforts with the DiabDocs grant award and her long-term goals in the field of diabetes research.
Program Administrator, Komal Dasani
FAQs
For a list of DiabDocs Program Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), please click here
2023 DiabDocs Career Development Session Resources:
March 15, 2023:
- "Getting your Great Ideas Funded: Tips from an NIDDK Program Official"
Lisa Spain, Ph.D., NIH Program Director
Slides available here
April 19, 2023:
- "How to start and run a laboratory?"
Decio L. Eizirik, M.D., Ph.D. Professor, Universite Libre de Bruxells (ULB), Belgium
Slides available here
Recording available here
Article shared during session: Making the Right Moves: A Practical Guide to Scientific Management for Postdocs and New Faculty, Second Edition
Mentoring resources from Indiana University School of Medicine website
May 17, 2023:
- "Understanding the broken US drug pricing system"
George Huntley, Chief Executive Officer, Diabetes Leadership Council
Slides available here
"Pay to Live" song written and performed by Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) and Diabetes Leadership Council (DLC) CEO and DLC co-founder George Huntley - "Do your little bit of good: a busy clinician's guide to everyday diabetes advocacy"
Brittany Bruggeman, MD, Assistant Professor, Pediatric Endocrinology, UF Health Shands Children's Hospital
Slides available here
Session recording available here
Example of thank you email to legislators for pediatric research advocacy
September 20, 2023:
- "Strategies to Optimize Work-Life Integration"
Julie Welch, MD, Professor of Emergency Medicine, Vice Chair of Faculty Development, and Director of Mentoring Training for the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (ICTSI), Indiana University School of Medicine and Linda DiMeglio, MD, MPH, Professor of Pediatrics, Division Chief, Pediatric Endocrinology, Indiana University
Slides available here
Recording available here
Worksheet shared during session: What does “Work-Life” mean to you?
2022 DiabDocs Retreat Resources:
Slides from Retreat:
- "Getting Your Great Ideas Funded:" Message from Lisa Spain, Ph.D., NIH Program Director
Slides available here - Message from William Cefalu, M.D., Director of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases (DEM), NIH
Slides available here - “Recognizing & Mitigating Bias in Academics" Workshop: Sherita Golden, M.D., M.H.S., Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, Johns Hopkins Medicine, and William “Bill” Thomas, M.A., Program Manager,
- Diversity, Inclusion & Health Equity, Johns Hopkins Medicine
Slides available here - Children with Diabetes® (CWD): A brief overview from our program supporters at the Children with Diabetes®
Slides available here
For more information, please visit the CWD® Website
Articles from Retreat:
- Effective Communication Styles Inventory
- Building a Relationship with a Mentee
- Advancing Health Equity: A Guide to Language, Narrative and Concepts
- JAMA Editorial: Updated Guidance on the Reporting of Race and Ethnicity in Medical and Science Journals
- National Clinical Care Commission (NCCC) Report to Congress 2021:
Leveraging Federal Programs to Prevent and Control Diabetes and Its Complications - Groupthink (Irving Janis)
Photos from 2022 October DiabDocs Program Retreat
Inaugural DiabDocs Program Retreat in
October 2022 at Sheraton Suites Chicago O'Hare!
DiabDocs 2022 October Virtual Program Retreat Participants
DiabDocs 2022 October In-Person Program Retreat Participants
William Cefalu, MD, Director of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolic Disease, NIDDK Connecting to the DiabDocs Retreat Remotely!
David Maahs, MD, PhD, Program Director and
Mark Clements, MD, PhD, Scientific Review Committee (SRC) Member for DiabDocs at the Program Retreat
Sherita Golden, MD, MHS, Co-Director,
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) for DiabDocs at the Program Retreat
Sherita Golden, MD, MHS, Presenting
DEI Workshop Training to DiabDocs
Program Retreat Participants
Inaugural Cohort of 2022
DiabDocs Program Applicants!
Keynote Address from Sherita Golden, MD, MHS, on “A Physician-Scientist’s Journey to Address
Health Equity,” at the DiabDocs Program Retreat
Basic Science Presentation from
Raghu Mirmira, MD, PhD at the
DiabDocs Program Retreat
David Maahs, MD, PhD, Program Director Presenting his Closing Remarks at the
DiabDocs Program Retreat
Linda DiMeglio, MD, MPH, Co-Program Director Presenting her Closing Remarks at the
DiabDocs Program Retreat
Academic Centers Represented Currently in DiabDocs Program
Program Leadership
David Maahs, MD, PhD
Multi-Center Program Director
Professor and Chief, Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes, (by courtesy) of Epidemiology and Population Health at The Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital and at The Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, California
Linda DiMeglio, MD, MPH
Multi-Center Program Director
Professor and Chief, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology in the Department of Pediatrics at Riley Hospital for Children, Indianapolis, Indiana