Clinical Scientist Awards in Translational Research

Basic research into the mechanisms of disease has accelerated in recent years, but the knowledge gained has been slow to reach the clinic and patient care. Both the translation of basic research knowledge into improved patient care and the translation of clinical insights into hypotheses that can be validated in the laboratory are threatened by changes in medical research and health care financing. The rapid growth of managed care, for example, has limited the financial resources available to many academic medical centers, which historically have been at the forefront of both basic and clinical research. Consequently, many physician-scientists, who play a critical role in identifying clinical questions and implementing advances in the basic sciences, have fewer financial resources, less time, and smaller patient populations available for clinical studies.

Recognizing this problem, the Clinical Scientist Awards in Translational Research program supports established independent physician-scientists who are dedicated to translational research—the two-way transfer between work at the laboratory bench and patient care. The program is intended to help protect award recipients’ time to pursue the vital link between basic and clinical research. Importantly, the program aims to identify and reward proven mentors and to increase their capacity to train the next generation of investigators skilled in translational research. In this way, BWF hopes to increase the ranks of experienced physician-scientists critically positioned to bridge the gap between bench and bedside.