Trauma

Co-Directors: 

Charles Cox, MD 

Lillian Kao, MD 

Charles Wade, PhD 

Program Coordinator:  Heidi Draehn  (heidi.draehn@uth.tmc.edu)  

 Maximum Number of Students per Year: 4-6 

Overview 

Traumatic injuries are the leading cause of death in the ages of one to forty-five, and the leading cause of loss of life expectancy. Trauma also represents a major economic burden with an estimated cost of $670 billion per year in health care and lost productivity. The care of the patients with traumatic injuries encompasses all aspects of medicine. 

Purpose/Goals 

The Trauma Scholarly Concentration Program’s overall goal is to enrich the experience of medical students through learning, and scholarly activities, specific to the interdisciplinary health-related topic of trauma during years 1-4. 

  • Complement and enhance the student’s required curriculum 
  • Provide role models, mentorship, and guidance for students’ academic and personal development 
  • Increase interdisciplinary interactions 
  • Provide a longitudinal educational experience through structured and experiential learning activities 
  • Support student leadership 

Program activities encourage the student’s acquisition of expertise in an interdisciplinary, health-related area, the development of critical thinking and analytical skills, the improvement of oral and written communication skills, the enrichment of self-directed learning skills, and the production of scholarly products. 

Application Guidelines for the Trauma Scholarly Concentration 

Students interested in the concentration are required to complete the Medical School’s Summer Research Program (SRP) the summer after MS1. (As described below, in exceptional cases, equivalent research experiences can be acceptable with approval of the program directors.) The SRP is separate from the scholarly concentration program and has its own application, but the SRP project provides the basis for the activities in the trauma concentration. Visit the Summer Research Program website for current information and its application deadline.   

In some unusual cases, students may apply and be accepted into the trauma concentration on the basis of a research project that they organize (with a mentor) and conduct separately from the SRP. Please contact the program coordinator of the trauma concentration if you are unable to participate in the SRP and are thinking of an independent research project. If you are interested in the trauma concentration, you will need to discuss your research plan or interests with one of the concentration co-directors before you apply. They may offer helpful suggestions. 

Application Deadline  

The deadline for the trauma concentration application is February 28. Trauma Concentration Application

Overview of the Application 

Be sure to answer all sections, or the application will be returned to you for completion. You will need to describe your background, experiences, and interest in trauma. You will also be asked to explain how your participation in the concentration fits in with your goals for medical school and the future.   

Student Selection Process 

The trauma concentration co-directors will review applications, following an initial screening by the Office of Educational Programs. Applicants will receive a notice of the decision through the online system, within the first half of March. This committee will be responsible for assisting the student identify a mentor (if needed), monitoring the student’s progress, and designing an individual core curriculum for the student. Only students in good academic standing will be admitted. 

Trauma Concentration Requirements (Didactic and Experiential) 

 Year 1 

  • Identify a mentor in your area of interest and plan summer research project 
  • Perform summer research project with mentor between Year 1 and 2 
  • During the summer, attend Surgery Grand Rounds, M&M, and Trauma Injury Meeting  
  • Attend lab meetings & seminars as required by your mentor and area of focus 
  • Optional – “Shadow” your mentor or other clinicians

Year 2 

  • Continue research with your mentor 
  • Formulate a curriculum of study for MS3 and MS4 electives 
  • Attend lab meetings, seminars, etc. as required by your mentor and area of focus 
  • Join a scientific society (as a student) in your area of interest 
  • Attend and/or present research at a regional or national meeting 
  • Present research at McGovern Surgery Research Day 

Year 3 

  • Continue research with your mentor 
  • Continue the individual curriculum of study – electives 
  • Attend lab meetings, seminars, etc. as required by your mentor and area of focus 
  • Present research at a national meeting    
  • Clinical rotations – identify where trauma occurs within that specialty and how you proceed 
  • Elective should be in an area that has a trauma focus

Year 4 

  • Electives should be in areas that have a trauma focus 
  • Attend lab meetings, seminars, etc. as required by your mentor and area of focus 
  • Present final research project orally during an Injury Meeting 
  • Submit publication to a peer reviewed journal 

Suggested Didactic Courses 

The interests of the student and the advice of the individual’s mentor and advisory committee will determine the specific courses for each student. 

GS211161 – Critical Thinking in Science: Mattox, William 

  • One semester hour 
  • Summer annually

These classes and several others are offered by the Center for Clinical Research & Evidence-Based Medicine at the Medical School under the direction of Dr. J. Tyson. 

Additional classes of interest are available through the Center for Surgical Trials and Evidence-Based Practice (C-STEP) program. 

https://med.uth.edu/pediatricsurgery/research/research-centers-and-programs/cstep/ 

Scholarly Concentration Faculty Mentors 

Charles S. Cox, MD  Co-Director, Project Mentor  Pediatric Surgery 
Lillian S. Kao, MD  Co-Director, Project Mentor  Acute Care Surgery 
Charles E. Wade, PhD  Co-Director  Acute Care Surgery 
Bryan A. Cotton, MD  Project Mentor  Acute Care Surgery 
John A. Harvin, MD  Project Mentor  Acute Care Surgery 
David E. Meyer, MD  Project Mentor  Acute Care Surgery 
Michael W. Wandling, MD  Project Mentor  Acute Care Surgery 
Christopher T. Stephens, MD  Project Mentor  Anesthesiology 
Bentley J. Bobrow, MD  Project Mentor  Emergency Medicine 
Huimahn A. Choi, MD  Project Mentor  Neurosurgery 
Ryan S. Kitagawa, MD  Project Mentor  Neurosurgery 
Georgene W. Hergenroeder, PhD  Project Mentor  Neurosurgery 
Catherine G. Ambrose, PhD  Project Mentor  Orthopedic Surgery 
Jonathan Eastman, MD  Project Mentor  Orthopedic Surgery 
Stephen J. Warner, MD, PhD  Project Mentor  Orthopedic Surgery 
Mary E. Aitken, MD, MPH  Project Mentor  Pediatrics 
Gerard E. Francisco, MD  Project Mentor  Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation 
Joy M. Schmitz, PhD  Project Mentor  Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences 
Jin H. Yoon, PhD  Project Mentor  Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences