Dear Colleague, Happy New Year! As we have been reminding you, 2007 brings with it a new electronic application process for R01s. The recent NIH training session that reviewed the new application procedures is available in videocast format at http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/training.htm. Downloadable materials are also provided on the site. Do you know what it takes to establish and maintain an environment of mentoring excellence? Our two newest presentations look at different aspects of these goals. In Developing a Mentoring Program at Your Institution, Christopher Martin, PhD, reviews the steps and planning involved in implementing a mentoring program at an academic research institution. Excellence in Mentoring: Skills, Obstacles, and Facilitators, presented by Yeates Conwell, MD, discusses the two types of mentorship seen in academic settings -- content and process -- and how excellence can be attained in each type on an individual, dyadic, and institutional level. Sincerely, Stephen J. Bartels, MD, MS; Martha L. Bruce, PhD, MPH; Maureen Halpain, MS; Barry D. Lebowitz, PhD; Charles F. Reynolds III, MD; Gwenn Smith, PhD; Joel E. Streim, MD; Jürgen Unützer, MD, MPH, MA

MedicalUpdates
A simple e-mail mechanism to enhance reflection, independence, and communication in young researchers.
Campbell AM, Lom B.
CBE Life Sci Educ. 2006 Winter;5(4):318-22.
The authors describe their experience with an approach to help faculty who mentor young scientists in the research lab. Each week, students answer 5 questions by e-mail that improve lab communication and help students develop into mature scientists.

The Medical College of Wisconsin Senior Mentor Program: experience of a lifetime.
Bates T, Cohan M, Bragg DS, Bedinghaus J.
Gerontol Geriatr Educ. 2006;27(2):93-103
The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) Senior Mentor Program (SMP) has been offered to a small group of first and second year medical students as a course alternative to the traditional physician mentor program.

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MostViewedPresentations
General
Mentoring Trainees' First Paper for Publication
Dilip V. Jeste, MD
Publishing the first scientific paper is an important milestone for young investigators. Dr. Jeste, editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, discusses how mentors can best help their mentees to accomplish this goal.

Geriatric
Culture and Gender in Mental Healthcare Research
Maureen Halpain, MS
In this brief presentation, Ms. Halpain highlights the existence of culture and gender disparities in the mental health system.


MostReadArticles  
General
Women chairs in psychiatry: a collective reflection.
Atre Vaidya N.
Acad Psychiatry. 2006 Jul-Aug;30(4):315-8
This article describes the experiences of women chairs in psychiatry. The author found that women in chair positions come from smaller schools and departments, have clinical and educational backgrounds, have fewer grants than their male counterparts, and are more likely to be recruited from within.

Geriatric
Ethnogeriatric Education: A Collaborative Project of Geriatric Education Centers.
Severance JS, Yeo G.
Gerontol Geriatr Educ. 2006;26(4):87-99.
A Core Curriculum on Ethnogeriatrics and Ethnic Specific Modules has been developed that provides detailed information and teaching resources about important historical and cultural influences on the health care experience of U.S. elders.


InTheNews
NIH Names New Postdoc Award Winners
ScienceCareers.org, December 15, 2006
"I literally feel like I'm growing up in this very short year of writing and winning this proposal," says Toni Jones, one of 58 biomedical investigators chosen to receive the new Pathways to Independence award from the NIH.

Compact Between Postdoctoral Appointees and Their Mentors
AAMC.org
The American Association of Medical Colleges has approved a new "Compact Between Postdoctoral Appointees and their Mentors," a document intended to initiate discussions at the local and national levels about the postdoctoral appointee-mentor relationship.

Applications Due Soon for NIA Summer Institute on Aging Research 2007
National Institute on Aging
The Summer Institute features lectures, seminars, and small group discussions in research design relative to aging, including issues relevant to aging of ethnic and racial minorities. Applications are due March 2, 2007.

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