Center for Quality of Care and Utilization Studies Trains Post-Doctoral Candidates for Research Careers

For a career in health services research, you'll need a great environment to train and established researchers who can help guide your success, according to Makoto Hanita, Ph.D., a post-doctoral trainee at the Center for Quality of Care and Utilization Studies in Houston, one of 11 Veterans Administration Health Services Research and Development field programs.

At the Houston Center, talented doctoral candidates receive a unique opportunity to work with established health science researchers, health economists, and biostatisticians, who conduct research on quality of care and the determinants of health services utilization.

Carol M. Ashton, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Center, says the goal of the program is to create an environment in which post-doctoral fellows can mature into independent health services researchers. "Established researchers must play a role in ensuring that knowledge is advanced, not merely exchanged," says Dr. Ashton. "We train young researchers who are capable of and interested in pursuing research that will contribute to the health care goals of the Department of Veterans Affairs."

Dr. Hanita says that the faculty of the Houston Center give young scholars a chance to succeed. "They will assist you in the process and give you enough time to develop your own agenda," he says. "But in the second year, you're treated more like an investigator, and you need to be productive."

According to Terri Menke, Ph.D., a health economist and director of the training program, new applications are now being accepted.

Center investigators use the entire range of research designs and methods, both quantitative and qualitative. Current work in progress, which fellows can join, includes quality improvement and quality assessment research, cost-effectiveness studies, clinical outcomes studies, and incorporating patient preference into clinical decisions, to name a few.

"The selected fellows are expected to develop and conduct a research project under the direction of a preceptor, a Center investigator selected as the best match for the fellow's needs and goals," says Dr. Menke.

Qualified candidates must be U.S. citizens, and have received a doctoral degree in one of the following disciplines: economics, psychology, epidemiology, sociology, health policy, statistics, or a related field. The fellowship term is one year, but a second year is possible. Fellows will have academic appointments at Baylor College of Medicine. The Center supplies office space, access to personal and mainframe computers, and administrative and computer support.

Dr. Hanita, who specializes in the application of theories and methodologies of social cognition for health services research, says he's accomplished several goals during his two-year traineeship. "I've sent a few first author papers for publication as well as several others as co-author and learned not only the academic side, but the business-side of research, such as writing grants," says Dr. Hanita.

Dr. Hanita, a graduate of Indiana University, says post-doctoral opportunities like the one at Houston Center are rare. "It was one of the few places promoting an opportunity in this post-doctoral field," he says. "After graduate school you must find out how to apply the knowledge that you gained. I am very excited about how theories of social cognition can be applied to health services research."

To apply for the HSR&D trainee program, contact Joyce McDaniels, Administrative Officer, Houston Center for Quality of Care and Utilization Studies, 2002 Holcombe, Blvd. Houston, TX 77030 or phone 713-794-7615.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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