Research Trainee/Brigham and Women's Hospital/Emergency Medicine
This is a research traineeship/internship for someone with an interest in emergency medicine and/or clinical research. Working with us as a research trainee is a great way to experience medicine and clinical research. You will be embedded in our clinical work, and will interact closely with patients, nurses, doctors-in-training, faculty, and other staff. You will learn about the scientific, ethical, and organizational underpinnings of clinical research and medicine in general.
You will have direct access to the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine’s Director of Research Operations who will mentor you in your career development. You will emerge from this experience with a good understanding of how clinical research and medicine works, and your work with us will be an excellent foundation for a future career in research and/or medicine after graduating college.
We would expect a commitment of 20 hours per week (minimum) during your college break, during which you would have rotating shifts with our team of research assistants.
Interested candidates who successfully completes the internship will be given preference for full-time research position after graduation, when available.
PRINCIPAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Circulate through our emergency department and review all incoming patient charts, with the aim to identify patients who might be eligible to participate in particular studies.
- Observe and practice excellent interpersonal skills that are required to develop professional relationships with the clinical staff, so that they are receptive to research that occurs when they are very busy with routine clinical care.
- Explain research studies to potentially eligible research participants. Obtain their informed consent to participate.
- Maintain meticulous records for all research-related activities.
- Respond to emails and messages (including group text messages) within an hour, always using polite, professional communication. Personal mobile devices would need to be encrypted per institutional policy.
- Review medical charts to collect data.
- Enter research data into databases.
- Seek guidance immediately whenever unsure about something.
- Be available during the emergency department’s clinical research work hours, 7 am to 10 pm, 7 days a week, depending on the assigned shifts. There will be regularly scheduled weekend work and some occasional work outside above outlined hours to complete research activities.
- All other duties, as assigned.
QUALIFICATIONS:
High School Diploma and enrollment in a Bachelor's degree program required.
New graduate with relevant course or project work.
SKILLS/ABILITIES/COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:
- Excellent interpersonal skills
- Good oral and written communication skills
- Familiarity with Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook. Ability to communicate with patients from a variety of backgrounds. Speech must be clear and professional. Speech must be easy for patients to understand, including patients who do not speak English well.
- Excellent organizational skills and ability to prioritize a variety of tasks
- Careful attention to detail
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:
None
WORKING CONDITIONS:
The work takes place in the busy clinical environment of emergency department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Also, research trainees frequently follow patients into the hospital, and may collect blood samples or data on hospital wards and intensive care units. The work also involves paper or electronic chart review and data entry.