Third Cohort Graduates from University Hospitals Certificate in Foundations of Health Services Research Program

University Hospitals Health Services Research Center graduated its third cohort this summer from the Certificate in Foundations of Health Services Research, the center’s flagship educational program. Designed for early-career clinicians, the program equips participants with foundational knowledge and skills to pursue innovative, transdisciplinary research in a mentored environment.

The class of 2025 included participants from Ohio, Indiana, Washington, D.C. and Turkey. They completed an intensive 85-hour, in-person curriculum over three weeks.

“The program is integral to our center, advancing our education mission and commitment to nurturing well-trained, methodologically rigorous clinician-scientists,” says Samudragupta Bora, PhD, Program Director and Founding Director of UH Health Services Research Center. “We aim to empower participants to build careers as extramurally funded clinician-scientists who thrive in a healthcare environment that integrates research, innovation and exceptional care delivery.”

What sets the program apart from comparable programs across the country is its unique and comprehensive curriculum, meticulously designed and unmatched in breadth and depth. It offers a truly rewarding learning opportunity for early-career clinicians, says Dr. Bora.

To optimize learning, the curriculum follows a modular format that provides a solid foundation in biostatistics and epidemiology. This foundation supports learning across three specialist areas of research: dissemination and implementation, health disparities and inequities and healthcare quality and safety. Seven methodology workshops build on these modules and cover administrative data analysis, community-based participatory research, economic evaluation, mixed methods, qualitative methods, spatial analysis and systematic review and meta-analysis. Participants apply the knowledge they gain by presenting a research proposal at the end of the program. In addition to the structured curriculum, the program features weekly career development seminars led by nationally recognized faculty who serve as role models for building successful extramurally funded research programs.

Generating Interest and Unlocking Potential in a Rapidly Expanding Field

Health services research continues to grow rapidly as a scientific field focused on accelerating the translation of clinical discoveries into practice, ensuring patients and communities benefit from the most advanced medical care, optimal clinical outcomes and improved quality of life. To better meet the growing demands of this burgeoning field, the Foundations of Health Services Research program was launched three years ago to equip early-career clinicians with foundational knowledge and skills for conducting impactful health services research. The program is open to early-career clinicians affiliated with clinical academic departments who demonstrate strong potential and a clear commitment to advancing the field.

Cultivating the Next Generation of Health Services Researchers

The UH Health Services Research Center program draws strength from its faculty, all of whom maintain active extramural funding. Many are recognized as national leaders in their respective fields. Faculty members represent institutions across the country, including Emory University, Harvard University, Houston Methodist, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine, New York University, University of Colorado and UH.

The class of 2025 represented a diverse range of specialties, including dermatology, emergency medicine, internal medicine, neurology, nursing, obstetrics and gynecology, pathology, pediatrics and radiology. All participants were competitively selected and received full fee-waiver scholarships to attend the program.

“We feel proud of this year’s graduating class,” said Daniel I. Simon, MD, President, Academic & External Affairs and Chief Scientific Officer, Ernie and Patti Novak Distinguished Chair of Health Care Leadership at UH. “We are growing the next generation of health implementation science and health outcomes researchers with this outstanding educational opportunity that will benefit our patients and community and shape the future of medicine.”

About the UH Health Services Research Center

The translation of cutting-edge research into interventions that enhance the health and healthcare of Northeast Ohio, and the nation, is integral to the mission of UH, which is “To Teach, To Heal, To Discover.” The UH Health Services Research Center is dedicated to moving the needle in healthcare forward to ensure patients receive the most accessible, state-of-the-art care, promoting promising research discoveries to maximize their clinical application and impact throughout UH and beyond.

Established in January 2024, the UH HSRC specializes in healthcare delivery science, with research programs focusing on health disparities, health outcomes, health promotion and health technology. The vision is to catalyze excellence and national leadership in the development, evaluation and translation of evidence and policies to enhance the efficacy, efficiency and equity of healthcare delivery to improve health and well-being outcomes at the individual and population levels.

Guided by a five-year strategic plan, the center links to all clinical academic departments within UH and comprises more than $100 million extramurally funded portfolio in healthcare delivery science. This innovative, one-of-a-kind center is focused on key growth areas. They include accelerating innovation in health services research by investing in state-of-the-art infrastructure and strategically prioritizing local, national and international partnerships; building a cohort of outstanding extramural-funded faculty investigators specializing in health services research; create a range of education, mentoring and continuing professional development opportunities for training the next generation of health services researchers and faculty career advancement; and developing a structure to maximize the population and community impact of health research.

The Certificate in Foundations of Health Services Research, the center’s flagship educational program, is one of several initiatives currently underway at UH Health Services Research Center. Other key programs include the Summer Scholar Research Program, which provides high school, college and medical students an unparalleled opportunity to explore health-related career paths through mentored individual and team-based research projects over a six-week summer period, and the Career Development Award Grant Writing Workshop Series, which supports faculty preparing to submit career development award proposals focused on health services research.

Through the breadth and depth of these programs, UH Health Services Research Center exemplifies a dynamic and growing field that integrates rigorous science and medicine with a bench-to-bedside approach aimed at improving patient outcomes and enhancing quality of life in today’s rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.