Opportunities Abound for Early Career Professionals

A variety of events at the International Conference, such as the Residents Boot Camp, are designed to assist early career professionals.

The ATS is committed to helping early career professionals—graduate and medical students, medical residents, clinical and postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty—pursue successful careers in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. Several sessions, networking opportunities, and resources have been developed to make the experience at the ATS 2017 International Conference more rewarding and educational for all early career professionals. 

The Networking Exchange for Early Career Professionals
The Networking Exchange follows the Opening Ceremony, Saturday, May 20. Plan to mingle with colleagues, mentors, and peers from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Marriott Marquis Hotel.

Center for Career Development
The Center for Career Development is a professional networking and career development forum for early career professionals. The CCD will have information about the Early Career Researchers Group, Career Development Workshops, and Faculty Development Workshops.

During the conference, the CCD will feature informal workshops aimed at enhancing the professional development of early career professionals. The sessions in the CCD area are an opportunity to interact with experts and ask questions about career development.

Education sessions scheduled in the CCD area include:

Sunday, May 21

  • ATS 101
  • How to Write a Paper
  • BEAR CAGE (Building Education to Advance Research competition)
  • How to Create a Podcast and Web-Based Videos for Medical Education

Monday, May 22

  • How to Get Involved in Government and Advocacy
  • Early Career Group: How to Be a Successful and Effective Peer Reviewer
  • How to Write a Specific Aims Page
  • Best Practices in Billing and Coding for Senior PCCM Fellows

Tuesday, May 23

  • How to Teach Effectively at the Bedside
  • Global Health Session—LMIC Practice and Opportunities
  • How to Access ATS Grants
  • How to Develop an Effective Training Plan

Also on Tuesday is “Career Development Workshop: How to Start Your Independent Research Laboratory” (WS6).

The CCD also offers networking opportunities, including the Trainee Educators ATS Camaraderie Hour Medical Education Fellow Mixer, on Sunday. A complimentary daily breakfast will be served at 7 a.m. Each afternoon, a Professional Networking Hour will take place from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Fellows Case Conference
Gain a unique insight into disease pathogenesis, diagnosis, and/or treatment at the “Fellows Case Conference,” (A3) from 9:15 to 11:15 a.m. Sunday, May 21.

The conference features a panel of clinical experts who will discuss cases and provide commentary about disease pathogenesis, diagnosis, and/or treatment. Selected cases will include clear clinical teaching points with review of associated pathology and radiology as appropriate. The discussion will highlight medical decision-making important for both physicians in training and seasoned clinicians.

Great Cases Conference
Learners will have the opportunity to observe master clinicians approach challenging clinical problems by working through seven cases selected from the abstract pool during “Great Cases: Clinical, Radiologic, and Pathologic Correlations by Master Physicians” (A83). The session will be presented from 2:15 to 4:15 p.m. Sunday, May 21.

Collaboration with a master radiologist reviewing films and a master pathologist reviewing pathology slides will demonstrate a multidisciplinary approach to difficult cases. Attendees will participate though interactive questions that are tallied electronically. Additional discussion by presenters and master panelists will enhance the educational experience.

BEAR Cage
Hear innovative clinical or translational research proposals from early career investigators at the third annual Building Education to Advance Research (BEAR) Cage competition, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, May 21.

Open to all ATS members who are early career investigators, the top three finalists will pitch their research proposals to a panel of translational science experts representing academia, industry, and governmental sectors in front of a live audience.

At ATS 2017, the three finalists and their proposals are:

“Communicating with Mechanically Ventilated Patients”
Prema R. Menon, MD, PhD
Assistant professor of medicine, Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine
University of Vermont Medical Center

“Unmasking Resistance: Impact of Low-frequency Drug-Resistance on Molecular Diagnosis of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis”
Sanghyuk Shin, PhD
Assistant professor-in-residence, Department of Epidemiology
UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

“Chest CT at Chest X-ray Radiation Dose”
Marcus Y. Chen, MD
Assistant clinical investigator, Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Branch, National Institutes of Health
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

The panel, with audience participation, will vet the proposals with each presenter and award a grand prize of $5,000. The developers of the two runner-up proposals will each receive $2,500.

The goal of this unique event is to promote productive discussion of research ideas in a fun, competitive setting. It promotes opportunities for collaboration, mentorship, and improvement of the research proposal. To build on this concept, a Drug/Device Discovery and Development committee-sponsored “project advisory team” will provide feedback and distance mentorship to the awardees over the ensuing year.

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