Applications Invited for Scholar-in-Residence in Child and Adolescent

Authorization: Intergovernmental Personnel Act Mobility Program
Term: 6-12 months, in residence at AHRQ, Metropolitan Washington, DC, area

Introduction

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) seeks applications for Scholar-in-Residence in Child and Adolescent Health. The scholarship provides an excellent opportunity for mid-career individuals who are interested in increasing their capacity for leadership in health services research.

Successful candidates will gain access to:

• AHRQ's databases on children's health and health care.
• AHRQ's extensive expertise in child health at the staff level.
• Decisionmaking at the Nation's lead Federal agency in health services research.

The importance of this scholarship experience is reflected in the partners who worked actively with AHRQ to develop the program and continue to work with AHRQ to identify applicants and choose the winning scholar.

These partners are:

• The Ambulatory Pediatric Association (APA).
• The American Academy of Nursing (AAN).
• The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
• The Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs (AMSPDC).
• The Society for Adolescent Medicine (SAM).
• The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The scholar will be in residence at the offices of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in Rockville, Maryland (a suburb of Washington, DC).

Purpose

The purpose of the scholarship is to give a senior child and adolescent health services researcher an opportunity to enhance or develop areas of investigation that integrate children's and adolescents' health services questions with critical issues of:

• Health outcomes.
• Quality measurement and improvement.
• Costs, financing, and organization of care.
• Access.
• Capacity building in child health services research.

The scholar's primary mission is to make a distinctive and long-lasting contribution to the efforts of AHRQ and its partners in building the field of children's and adolescents' health services research. While at AHRQ, the scholar will undertake research projects and be engaged in other AHRQ activities. This scholarship is responsive to AHRQ's recent congressional reauthorization making children one of the Agency's priority populations.

Background

• Patterns of use of health services.
• Distinctive developmental vulnerabilities and strengths.
• Dependence on others for access to care.

Significant differences among children, adolescents, and adults in health care needs mean that the dramatic changes now affecting the organization, financing, and delivery of health services may have differing effects on children and youth than on adults (Forrest, Simpson, and Clancy, 1997).

Over the past 25 years, health services researchers have made impressive strides (McCarthy and White, 2000). Although new policy developments have brought increasing attention to children's and adolescents' health, health services research about them lags behind that for adults, leaving important gaps in the knowledge base that can ultimately improve quality of care for the young.

Among the unanswered questions about children and adolescents that need additional sophisticated research are:

• How do we measure outcomes of child and adolescent health interventions in ways that fairly represent the interventions costs and benefits, potentially over children's and youths' lifetimes?
• How do we build the toolbox of health care quality measures for children and adolescents?
• How do we productively go beyond quality measures to effective quality improvement strategies for children and adolescents?
• What are the effects on children and adolescents of changes in the organization and financing of health care (e.g., the State Children's Health Insurance Program [SCHIP], Medicaid, private insurance)?

Little of the needed research is likely to occur without building capacity among child and adolescent health services researchers. The visiting scholar can contribute to building capacity in several ways by:

• Conducting research that is published and presented widely.
• Engaging in the policy development process by bringing relevant research to bear.
• Building enthusiasm and capacity among other researchers and incipient researchers at the scholar's home institution and throughout the health services research community.

AHRQ's Role in Children's Health Services Research

AHRQ is the Federal Government's focal point for research to enhance the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness of health care services and access to those services. AHRQ accomplishes these goals through a broad intramural and extramural scientific research agenda designed to build the knowledge base and translate research findings into practice. The Agency also supports infrastructure building activities such as training grants and conferences targeted at junior investigators.

Across these activities, AHRQ gives high priority to children's and adolescents' health issues, particularly those related to low-income children, minority children, and children with chronic illnesses and disabilities.

More information on AHRQ, its overall programs and priorities, and child-specific activities is available online:

• AHRQ Strategic Plan.
• Funding Opportunities, including recent grant announcements.
• Strategic Plan: Children as a Priority Population.
• AHRQ Policy on the Inclusion of Children in Health Services Research.

Information on AHRQ databases and tools that applicants may use to conduct intramural research include:

• Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP).
• Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS).
• Consumer Assessment of Health Plans (CAHPS®).

New projects on children's and adolescents' health care funded by AHRQ are available online. Printed copies may be obtained from the AHRQ Publications Clearinghouse, P.O. Box 8547, Silver Spring, MD 20907 (phone: 800-358-9295). Electronic requests may be made to: AHRQPubs@ahrq.hhs.gov.

Scholar-in-Residence Position

Duties and Opportunities

To assist the Agency in fulfilling its mandate to improve health care outcomes quality, the Scholar-in-Residence will be expected to undertake at least one research project that should result in one or more papers for publication and presentations at scientific meetings of the cosponsoring organizations. The scholar will serve as an integral member of one of AHRQ's Centers, each of which sponsors both extramural and intramural research. In addition to sharpening intramural research skills, the scholar will have opportunities to participate in a broad scope of Agency activities.

Mechanism

The Scholar-in-Residence is a 6- to 12-month full-time position under the authority of the 1970 Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA). In this IPA, the host Federal Agency—in this case, AHRQ—pays up to one-half of the scholar's salary during the course of the Scholar-in-Residence assignment. Fringe benefits (e.g., life and health insurance and retirement plans) will be maintained and costs paid by the scholar's home institution. Federal conflict-of-interest and standards of conduct laws will apply. In addition, the scholar is expected to return to his or her home institution at the end of the AHRQ residency.

Qualifications

All candidates should be experienced investigators with at least a doctoral degree and demonstrated previous research achievements, with a strong record of publications or comparable productivity. Applicants should also clearly exhibit a history of very strong leadership in child health research or exceptional potential for leadership in child health services research and/or policy formulation and development. Experience in health policy at the local, State, or national level is highly desirable. Candidates must be employed in a career position by their home institution for a minimum of 90 days prior to application. Candidates should be prepared to return to an enhanced research career and to facilitate the development of child health research skills, knowledge, and capacity in others.

Home institutions of scholars must be eligible for the IPA program or, if not yet eligible, must apply for certification through Division of Human Resources Management (DHRM), AHRQ. To obtain information on certification procedures, please contact Kathy Boswell at KBoswell@psc.gov.

Most institutions of higher education and local and State government authorities have IPA status. Other organizations eligible for participation include organizations representing member State or local governments; associations of State or local public officials; and nonprofit organizations offering, as one of their principal functions, professional advisory, research, educational, or development services or related services to governments or universities concerned with public management.

Non-U.S. citizens are not eligible unless they are sponsored by a U.S. institution.

Application Requirements

Applicants must submit the following:

• Letter clearly indicating support from the applicant's home institution.
• Current curriculum vitae.
• Letter from the applicant stating his or her proposed research and other activities during the period of residence.

Details of the research project and other duties will be negotiated with AHRQ once the applicant is accepted.

Only application packets including a current curriculum vitae, a letter of application from the individual applicant, and a letter of intended support from his or her sponsoring institution will be considered.

Letters from individual applicants should explain:

• The individual's interest in advancing the field of child health services research.
• His or her previous successes in the field.
• Proposed projects to be undertaken while in residence at AHRQ.
• His or her plans to provide leadership to the field of child health services research after completion of the residency.

Letters of support from the applicant's home institution should address the individual's availability and evaluate his or her capabilities for the Scholar-in-Residence position. In addition, support letters must clearly state the institution's willingness and ability to:

• Sponsor the applicant under the IPA—that is, to pay half or more the applicant's salary and all of the applicant's fringe benefits—should the applicant be awarded the scholarship.
• Accept the applicant's return to the home institution after the residency period.

Members of the cosponsoring private organizations are encouraged to apply, but the scholar need not be a member of any particular organization.

Applications should be sent to:

Denise Dougherty, Ph.D.
Senior Advisor, Child Health
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
540 Gaither Road, Suite 2000
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone: (301) 427-1868
Fax: (301) 427-1561
E-mail: DDougher@ahrq.gov

Selection Procedures

Representatives of the sponsoring organizations will review and discuss all applications so that the most highly qualified applicant is selected.

For More Information

For more information on the Scholar-in-Residence in Child and Adolescent Health, contact one of the sponsoring organizations:

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Denise Dougherty, Ph.D.
Senior Advisor, Child Health
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
540 Gaither Road, Suite 2000
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone: (301) 427-1868
Fax: (301) 427-1561
E-mail: DDougher@ahrq.gov

Ambulatory Pediatric Association
Ellen F. Crain, M.D., Ph.D.
President, APA
1W20 Jacobi Hospital
Pelham Parkway & Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10461
Phone: (718) 918-5817
Fax: (718) 918-7062
E-mail: ellencrain@worldnet.att.net

Marie C. McCormick, M.D., Sc.D.
Chair, APA Research Committee
Department of Maternal and Child Health
Harvard School of Public Health
677 Huntington Avenue, Kresge Room 619
Boston, MA 02115
Phone: (617) 432-1080
Fax: (617) 432-3755
E-mail: mmccormi@hsph.harvard.edu

American Academy of Nursing
Terri Gaffney, M.P.A, R.N., Executive Director
600 Maryland Avenue, SW, Suite 100 West
Washington, DC 20024-2571
Phone: (202) 651-7238
Fax: (202) 554-2641
E-mail: tgaffney@ana.org

American Academy of Pediatrics
Beth K. Yudkowsky, M.P.H.
Director, Division of Health Policy Research, AAP
141 Northwest Point Boulevard
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098
Phone: (847) 981-7946
Fax: (847) 228-5097
E-mail: byudkowsky@aap.org

Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs
Elizabeth McAnarney, M.D.
President, AMSPDC
University of Rochester
School of Medicine and Dentistry
601 Elmwood Avenue
P.O. Box 777
Rochester, NY 14642
Phone: (716) 275-4673
Fax: (716) 273-1079
E-mail: elizabeth_mcanarney@urmc.rochester.edu

Society for Adolescent Medicine
Edie Moore
Administrative Director, SAM
1916 Northwest Copper Oaks Circle
Blue Springs, MO 64015
Phone: (816) 224-8010
Fax: (816) 224-8009
E-mail: edie@adolescenthealth.org

References

Forrest CB, Simpson L, Clancy C. Child health services research: Challenges and opportunities. JAMA 1997; 277(22):1787-93.

McCarthy T, White KL. Origins of health services research. Health Serv Res 2000;35(2):375-87.

Current as of October 2001

Internet Citation:

Applications Invited for Scholar-in-Residence in Child and Adolescent Health. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/child/scholar.htm