Please provide the following:
Application form (PDF)
Letter of Interest
NIH format Biosketch with personal statement (CV or resume accepted)
3 Letters of recommendation
3-page Goals Statement
3-page Project Description
Please refer to the T32 Flyer for more information.
Send or email your materials to:
Agata Hardin
General Internal Medicine
Department of Medicine
Academic Office 1, room 8411
12631 E 17th Ave, Mail Stop B180
Aurora, CO 80045
Phone: (303) 724-2261
Fax: (303) 724-2270
agata.hardin@cuanschutz.edu
Dr. Jean Kutner directs this T32-supported research training program. Dr. Kutner is a Professor of Medicine in the Divisions of GIM, Geriatrics, and Health Care Policy and Research (HCPR) in the DOM and was, until July 1, 2014, Head of the Division of GIM. She has been developing aging research at the University of Colorado since her research and geriatric fellowship training (1994-1997), joining the UCSOM faculty in 1997. Her career trajectory demonstrates a commitment to: 1) enhancing the evidence base to improve care for older adults with serious illness; 2) mentoring others interested in aging and palliative care research; and 3) developing research, clinical and educational programs and infrastructure aimed at improving care for older persons with serious illness. Dr. Kutner has established a highly successful aging-focused research program addressing fundamental issues in the care of persons with advanced illness, increasing capacity for aging-related research locally and nationally.
Dr. Stacy Fischer Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of GIM, DOM, UCSOM. Dr. Fischer has been conducting palliative care research for over 15 years with a focus on underserved populations. Dr. Fischer has devoted her academic career to exploring the relationship between poverty and ethnicity and preferences and outcomes in the setting of serious advanced illness. She developed and tested a culturally tailored patient navigator intervention designed to improve palliative care outcomes for Latinos with cancer, conducting a multi-site study across the state of Colorado, representing urban, rural, and mountain communities. Currently, she is testing the intervention in patients with advanced non-cancer medical illness. She has received funding from the National Institute of Aging Research (NIA), American Cancer Society (ACS), and National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR). She received pilot grant funding from the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC). She is serving as the site PI for a PCRC multi-site NINR-funded study (PI: Porter) of a cancer pain management intervention. She serves on the PCRC Investigator Meeting Task Force, has served as a reviewer for PCRC pilot grants and has been working on enhancing PCRC study site recruitment for the past year. Dr. Fischer is also a successful mentor, having mentored a Harold Amos Career Development Awardee. She is mentoring current T32 awardee Dr. Siler and Affiliated Faculty Drs. Kessler and Singh. As a co-director and program faculty, Dr. Fischer mentors T32 trainees interested in palliative care in underserved populations.
Dr. David Bekelman, Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of GIM, DOM, UCSOM. Dr. Bekelman’s research aims to improve quality of life in adults with chronic and advanced illnesses. He is a practicing palliative care physician who is a board-certified internist and psychiatrist. His current research tests ways to integrate palliative and psychosocial care into the ongoing care of people with heart failure and lung diseases. He has experience with behavioral/health services intervention trials, outcomes research, and qualitative and mixed methods. He has also investigated spirituality and informal caregiving in chronic illness. He is currently PI on a VA Merit Review award (IIR 14-346) to conduct a multisite clinical trial of early, primary palliative care in COPD and heart failure. He recently completed a R01-funded multisite trial of collaborative care in heart failure (R01-NR014322). Dr. Bekelman is primary mentor for one junior faculty cardiologist, one post-doctoral pulmonologist on the UCSOM pulmonary T32, and is a secondary mentor for T32 awardees Drs. Bickel, Portz, and Siler. He is highly regarded as a mentor, as evidenced by receipt of the UCSOM Dean’s Master’s Mentoring Award in 2017. As a co-director and program faculty, Dr. Bekelman mentors T32 trainees interested in testing palliative care interventions.
Program Faculty:
Name | Degree(s) | Academic Affiliation | Research Expertise | T32 Faculty Collaborators | T32 awardees supporting |
F. Amos Bailey https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/8154365 | MD | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Palliative care health services research | Candrian Fink | Bickel Portz Reed |
Elizabeth Bayliss https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/226825 | MD, MSPH | Kaiser Institute for Health Research | Studying and improving the delivery of patient-centered care for persons with multiple medical conditions | Candrian Fairclough | Portz |
David Bekelman https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/227008 | MD, MPH | GIM, DOM, UCSOM & VA | Improving quality of life in adults with chronic and advanced illnesses | Fairclough Fischer Kutner Kluger Lum Matlock Meek | Bickel Portz Siler |
Rebecca Boxer https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/4077771 | MD, MS | Geriatrics, DOM, UCSOM Kaiser | Palliation of those with advanced cardiovascular disease | Bull Fairclough Lum Meek | Portz Plys |
Sheana Bull https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224434 | PhD, MPH | CSPH, UC-AMC | Testing and determining the efficacy of interventions for health promotion using mobile and social media technologies | Boxer | Portz |
Eric Campbell https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/19514733 | PhD | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Survey research methodology; ethical frameworks in research | ||
Myles Cockburn https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/12650030 | PhD | CSPH, UC-AMC | Epidemiology, cancer-related research | ||
Diane Fairclough https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224164 | DrPH | CSPH, UC-AMC | Advanced statistical methods | Allen Bayliss Bekelman Boxer Colborn Kessler Kluger Kutner Laudenslager Matlock Meek | |
Stacy Fischer https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224790 | MD | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Palliative care in underserved populations | Bekelman Fink Kessler Kutner Lefkowits Matlock Singh | Siler |
R. Mark Gritz https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/3353663 | PhD | HCPR, DOM, UCSOM | Economic analyses; Implementation costs and return on investment of interventions | Kluger Kutner Schilling | |
Benzi Kluger https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224721 | MD | Dept of Neurology, UCSOM | Neuropalliative care | Bekelman Fairclough Kutner Lum | |
Jean Kutner https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224405 | MD, MSPH | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Palliative care clinical studies, caregivers, medication deprescribing | Allen Bekelman Candrian Colborn Fairclough Fink Fischer Gritz Kessler Kluger Laudenslager Levy Lum Matlock O’Bryant Schilling Wynia | Amoyal Pensak Bickel Plys Portz Reed Sannes Siler |
Mark Laudenslager https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/230526 | PhD | Dept of Psychiatry | Psychosocial interventions for distressed caregivers | Fairclough Kutner Sannes | Amoyal Pensak |
Cari Levy https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224675 | MD, PhD | Geriatrics, DOM, UCSOM & VA | Quality of life at the end of life in nursing homes; quality of care in non-institutional care settings | Albright Kutner Lum | Bickel |
Kevin Masters https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/230471 | PhD | Dept of Health Psychology, UCD | Religiousness, spirituality, behavioral medicine | Allen Bekelman Matlock | |
Dan Matlock https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224504 | MD, MPH | Geriatrics, DOM, UCSOM | Communication and decision making; implementation science | Allen Bekelman Candrian Fairclough Fischer Kutner Lum McIlvennan | Sannes |
Wells Messersmith https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/225824 | MD | Oncology, DOM, UCSOM | Palliative care for older adults with gastrointestinal malignancies | Kessler O’Bryant | |
Lisa Schilling https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/224574 | MD, MPH | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Health services research, clinical and research informatics that support improvements in health outcomes and health care value | Fairclough Gritz Kutner Wynia | Reed |
Matthew Wynia https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/5516545 | MD, MPH | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Patient and physician engagement, stakeholder-driven research, and medical ethics | Glover Kutner Schilling |
Affiliated Faculty:
Name | Degree(s) | Academic Affiliation | Research Expertise | T32 Faculty Collaborators | T32 awardees supporting |
Larry Allen https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/226050 | MD, MHS | Cardiology, DOM, UCSOM | Aging, palliative care and cardiovascular disease | Bekelman Colborn Fairclough Kutner Lum Matlock Masters McIlvennan | |
Joanna Arch https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/226493 | PhD | Department of Psychology, UC-Boulder | Anxiety and depression among patients with metastatic cancer | Kutner | Plys |
Ben Brewer https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/226749 | PsyD | Hematology & Hematologic Malignancies, DOM, UCSOM | Palliative interventions in stem cell transplant patients and their caregivers | Kolva Sannes | Amoyal Pensak |
Carey Candrian https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/231383 | PhD | GIM, DOM, UCSOM | Communication and decision making in the context of hospice and palliative care | Kutner Lum Matlock | |
Heather Coats https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/14824293 | PhD, MS | CON, UC-AMC | Patient-centered communication interventions to optimize quality of life for minority patients with life limiting illness | ||
Kathryn Colborn https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/11763981 | PhD | CSPH, UC-AMC | Advanced statistical methods | Allen Fairclough Kutner Lum | Reed |
Regina Fink https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/227649 | PhD, MS | CON and GIM, DOM, UCSOM, UC-AMC | Interventions to improve palliative care for underserved patients with serious illness | Bailey Fischer Kutner | |
Elizabeth Kessler https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/2769063 | MD | Oncology, DOM, UCSOM | Impact of cancer treatment on function & how to best assess and intervene to support patients and caregivers | Fairclough Fischer Kutner Laudenslager Messersmith O’Bryant | |
Elissa Kolva https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/11660606 | PhD | Hematology & Hematologic Malignancies, DOM, UCSOM | Improving assessment and treatment of psychological distress in patients with serious illness | Brewer | |
Carolyn Lefkowits https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/11764061 | MD, MS | Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UCSOM | Intersection between surgical oncology and palliative care | Fischer | |
Hillary Lum https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/229860 | MD, PhD | Geriatrics, DOM, UCSOM & VA | Developing and implementing novel advance care planning interventions for older adults into healthcare system and community-based settings | Allen Bekelman Boxer Candrian Colborn Kutner Levy Matlock | |
Colleen McIlvennan https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/226349 | PhD, DNP, MS | Cardiology, DOM, UCSOM | Patients with end-stage heart failure who are considering a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) | Allen Matlock | |
Paula Meek https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/230260 | PhD, MS | CON, UC-AMC | Symptom monitoring, appraisal, treatment, and management | Bekelman Boxer Fairclough | |
Jenny Portz https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/12707707 | PhD | GIM, DOM, UC-SOM | Heart failure, m-health, symptoms | Boxer Bekelman | |
Cindy O’Bryant https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/227521 | PharmD | School of Pharmacy, UC-AMC | Geriatric oncology | Kessler Kutner Messersmith | |
Tim Sannes https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/4077826 | PhD | Hematology & Hematologic Malignancies, DOM, UCSOM | Strategies to better support patients and their caregivers facing serious illness | Brewer Laudenslager Matlock | |
Sarguni Singh https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/11589600 | MD | Hospital Medicine, DOM, UCSOM | Identifying cancer patients at highest risk for poor outcomes after discharge from the acute care setting to a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) | Fischer |
Advisors:
Name | Degree(s) | Academic Affiliation | Research Expertise | T32 Faculty Collaborators | T32 awardees supporting |
Jackie Glover https://profiles.ucdenver.edu/display/225204 | PhD | Department of Pediatrics, UCSOM | Responsible conduct of research | Wynia |
CCTSI | Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute |
CON | College of Nursing |
CSPH | Colorado School of Public Health |
DOM | Department of Medicine |
GIM | General Internal Medicine |
PCRC | Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group |
UC-AMC | University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus |
UCSOM | University of Colorado School of Medicine |
VA | Veterans Affairs Medical Center |
T32 postdoctoral fellows:
Shauna Siler, PhD (2018-2020); The focus of Dr. Siler’s research is on integrating spiritual care into palliative care and implementation of community-based palliative care interventions for minority populations.
Evan Plys, PhD (2018-2020); The focus of Dr. Plys’ research is on quality of life of older adults with physical and/or cognitive limitations due to serious illness in residential care settings.
Kathleen Bickel, MD, MPhil, MS, (2017-2019); Dr. Bickel is examining the hypothesis that patients with a diagnosis of PTSD are more likely to have increased acute health care utilization at the end-of-life, using a retrospective cohort study of chronically ill Veterans receiving VA health care benefits dying between 2010-2015. Using multivariate regression, Dr. Bickel will determine if PTSD is associated with increased end-of-life health care utilization. Dr. Bickel also hypothesizes that the effect of PTSD on end-of-life will vary depending on the primary chronic illness, it will be important to accurately characterize a veteran’s primary chronic illness at time of death. These findings will provide baseline information about the scope of this problem so that appropriate interventions can be developed.
Sean M. Reed, PhD, APN, ACNS-BC, ACHPN, (2017-2019); The focus of Dr. Reed’s research is on the design and testing of economic and predictive models aimed to improve the delivery of care for the seriously ill.
Jennifer Dickman Portz, PhD, MSW, (2016-2018); Dr. Portz’s mission is to advance social work research in geriatric palliative care by developing digital health interventions that can be used by older adults with advanced illnesses, their caregivers, and family to effectively improve patient-family centered outcomes. To achieve this goal, her current research is focused in three related areas: 1) identification of outcomes and needs important to patients with chronic disease and advanced illness 2) creation, study, and dissemination of digital health for older adult users, and 3) chronic disease self-management.
Nicole Amoyal Pensak, PhD (2015- 2016); Dr. Amoyal Pensak’s research focuses on improving distress management in patients and caregivers of adults with serious illnesses.
Tim Sannes, PhD (2015- 2017); Dr. Sannes’ research aims to develop new and improved support mechanisms for patients and their family members facing serious illness. Specifically, he seeks to determine if stress marker data can be translated into meaningful strategies for patients and their caregivers and investigate if emerging biomarker data influences decision-making and behavior.
Coursework: As a T32 trainee, you will be required to take the following courses or equivalent (or demonstrate equivalent prior training):
Course Name (all courses are semester long) | Course number | Credits (total 15) |
---|---|---|
Applied Biostatistics I and II | BIOS 6601 and 6602 | 3 credits each |
Design of Clinical Trials and Experiments | CLSC 6648 | 3 credits |
Introduction to Health Information Technology | CLSC 6800 | 3 credits |
Scientific Writing (grants & manuscripts) | CLSC 7101 and 7102 | 1 credit each |
Critical Appraisal Seminars in Clinical Science | CLSC 6270 | 1 credit |
As required by the NIH, you must complete 8 hours of training in the responsible conduct of research. This requirement may be fulfilled by taking the CLSC courses 7150 (Ethics) and 7151 (Responsible Conduct of Human Research), the PHCL course 7605 (Ethics in Research) or the BIOS course 7605 (Ethics: Computational Bioscience Research) or via the seminar series offered by University of Colorado Clinical research Support Center https://research.cuanschutz.edu/regulatory-compliance/home/research-integrity/responsible-conduct-of-research-training . This requirement must be completed in Year 1 of the award.