Career Development: 'It's Not One Size Fits All'

What does it take to build a successful career in translational science and grow into an effective leader? John Pandolfino, MD, Chief of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in the Department of Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, shares his journey from curious young physician to internationally recognized scientist and division leader. In this episode of Science in Translation, Dr. Pandolfino discusses the mentors, collaborations, and clinical research training that shaped his career, including Northwestern University's Master of Science in Clinical Investigation program. He explores how his research is advancing patient care through artificial intelligence, digital twins, and a deeper understanding of the gut-brain connection. He also shares lessons on leadership, building trust, developing meaningful collaborations, and why mastering your craft should come before pursuing leadership roles.  

Bridging the gap between rehabilitation research and patient care is part of what Michael Ellis, PT, DPT, does as Northwestern Medicine's inaugural director of translational rehabilitation research. In this episode of "Science in Translation," Ellis discusses the future of rehabilitation research, shares lessons from a groundbreaking stroke recovery clinical trial he is conducting, and explains how collaboration and implementation science can accelerate better outcomes for rehabilitation patients.

This episode explores the promise of translational science through cross-campus, cross-school collaboration between NUCATS and a professor of communication at Northwestern, that could help the 48 million Americans with hearing loss. Along with his groundbreaking research into the physiology and the mechanics of the ear, Sumit Dhar, PhD, is turning his attention to hearing healthcare delivery and understanding why so few people seek hearing healthcare. With the help of NUCATS, he is exploring the idea of creating a clinical trial network for affordable hearing healthcare as well as other living documents and guidelines that will offer experts in his field a roadmap to making hearing healthcare more accessible and utilized.

Some of the most successful biomedical innovations from the lab of John A. Rogers, PhD, are the result of an email or phone call he received from a clinician, with a real-world problem impacting patients. In this episode, Rogers, a Northwestern University biomedical engineer, whose work involves novel material science, talks about his collaboration with the medical community and why his often-untraditional approach to academic research is helping to accelerate translational science.

This season on Science in Translation, we will explore how Northwestern University's interdisciplinary culture drives discovery and impact, harnessing diverse expertise to address society's most challenging problems. In this episode, Eric J. Perreault, PhD, Vice President for Research at Northwestern University, discusses the power of collaboration and how Northwestern's deeply interdisciplinary culture across multiple schools and units drives research and real world impact.

Priya Kumthekar, MD, didn't have industry connections or commercialization training when she started working with small companies to help bring scientific advancements to her patients with brain tumors. She learned along the way the many steps it takes to bring new scientific breakthroughs to the marketplace specifically through clinical trials. In this episode, Kumthekar explains how she is now helping to streamline this commercialization process with The Chicago Biomedical Consortium Hub for Innovative Technology and Entrepreneurship in the Sciences (CBC-HITES) where she serves as a clinical trial translation guide and how NUCATS members and investigators from across Chicagoland universities and colleges can benefit from funding and training offered by the program.

Through implementation science, NUCATS is dedicated to accelerating and moving new interventions into impact that improves health for all. In this episode of Science in Translation, Amy Van Pelt, PhD, discusses her work in implementation science and its impact on global health, particularly in resource-limited settings. She shares the importance of bridging gaps between research and practice, linguistic barriers, and the cultural adaptation of health interventions through implementation science. She also shares new educational opportunities for investigators to learn more about implementation science.

In this episode of Science in Translation, Laura Rasmussen-Torvik, PhD, explains some of the innovative strategies and programs driving career development in clinical and translational science at NUCATS. She talks about her new role as co-director of the Center for Education and Career Development (CECD) at NUCATS, her journey in research and mentorship, and the intersection of career development, research excellence, and fostering a collaborative research ecosystem.

From being a pastor to becoming an assistant professor and team scientist at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Cory Bradley, PhD, is focused on integrating health equity and social justice into translational science, developing diverse communities and workforces, and creating public health interventions that benefit marginalized communities. In this episode he talks about his career path and current projects within NUCATS that align with its aims to include, innovate, and implement.

As part of $55 million recently awarded to NUCATS by the NIH's Clinical and Translational Science Awards Program, NUCATS will provide critical resources and services that empower clinical and translational research across Northwestern and its affiliates. Leah Welty, PhD and Anju Peters, MD are co-leading an effort to streamline research processes, enhance inclusivity, and foster innovation through collaborative efforts. In this episode they talk about what NUCATS members can expect as these efforts launch in the months ahead.