TECaN Quality Improvement and Research

VON is a global, nonprofit, quality collaborative comprised of healthcare professionals who aim to improve the quality, safety, and value of care for neonates and their families.

Anyone! You! Currently, there are more than 1200 hospitals involved in VON representing healthcare professionals around the world!

VON QI Grand Rounds are open to all to attend at no cost. The general format is a video presentation followed by Q&A with faculty. These online learning and discussion opportunities are supported by the work of dedicated VON teams and faculty, and are intended to advance evidence into practice through sound quality improvement methods.

https://public.vtoxford.org/qi-grand-rounds/

VON Database: If your center is a VON member, the VON database

VON Multicenter Collaboratives: VON has ongoing, longitudinal, multicenter collaboratives that are highlighted on the website

Global Health: learn about VON’s involvement in resource-limited communities, the global neonatal database, VON global health initiatives, the Helping Babies Breathe annual trainer course, and more!

VON Annual Quality Congress: the annual conference in Chicago is an excellent place to meet the titans of quality improvement, network with other healthcare providers interested in quality, and learn how we can work together to transform neonatal care around the globe!

Jump Starting Quality: a half day, interactive workshop at the Annual Quality Congress aimed at teaching QI methodology in a flipped classroom model. Both Foundational and Advanced Tracks are currently offered!

Cochrane Neonatal: access systematic reviews of the evidence in all topics of neonatal care

NICU by the Numbers: learn about areas for improvement based on VON network data analysis

And much more!

Link: https://public.vtoxford.org/

Every year, there is an application cycle for the AAP/VON Scholar Awards, awarded to five fellows and early career neonatologists. Recipients of this award attend the Annual Quality Congress and Jump Starting Quality programming that year with the hopes of fostering mentorship and networking in the QI field. Applications for the AAP/VON Scholar Awards are usually solicited in April with applications due in June and announcement of the recipients in July.

TECaN has adapted the IHI Open School curriculum and is now offering virtual office hours sessions with content experts including Dr. Mike Posencheg, Dr. Kaplan Meyer, Dr. Jeff Meyers, Dr. Laurel Moyer, Dr. Rebecca Vartanian, and Dr. Dmitry Dukhovny!

Each class is comprised of 20-30 participants. Participants review the IHI Open School modules on their own time as per the recommended schedule. Once a month, a group conference call is held, led by a content expert.  In a flipped classroom structure, the materials from the IHI modules are reviewed, and additional support/advice is given by the content expert. Participants may also ask the group or the content expert for input on their current projects at their home institutions!

Email our TECaN VON Liaison, Dr. Colby Day Colby.lauren@gmail.com for more information

Using a database of existing projects is a great way to find inspiration for your own research topic of interest. See the following links for abstract databases and project databases:

• Clinical Trials
• National Science Foundation (NSF)
• AAP NCE Abstract Archive
• Choosing between clinical vs translational vs basic science research

A successful research project depends heavily on the quality of mentorship and the environment in which you work.  It is also imperative that a fellow or early career neonatologist define one’s role in research early on as to avoid authorship conflicts. Use the following resources to help you identify the right mentor, lab, and/or research setting:

• Self-reflection
• Questions for Mentors
• Evaluating Mentors
• CITI Program
• Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)

Finding funding for fellowship projects can be challenging especially for those with a limited research background. See the following funding resources that are available specifically to trainees and early career neonatologists who are in the early phases of their research career.

• Finding an already-funded lab
• T32 Grant
• Marshall Klaus Award
• Thrasher Grant
• March of Dimes
• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
• Gerber

Share the results of your hard work with the rest of the neonatology community!  Whether it is in the form of poster presentations, platform/oral presentations, or published manuscripts, sharing your contributions to science and medicine help to advance the field of neonatology.

• AAP National Conference and Exhibition (NCE)
• Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS)
• AAP regional conferences
• Writing abstracts
• How to write manuscripts
• How to develop posters

As you finish fellowship and decide that you wish to continue research, it is now time to apply for grants.  You can either continue under mentorship with training grants (ie. K series) or pursue independent research (ie. R series). See below for resources:

• About K grants
• Training grants
• NIH Podcast series
• NIH Grant Due Dates
• Physician-Scientist Route
• NIH Early Career Tip Sheet