# Developmental Research Program for Medical Students (DRPMS)

> **NIH NIH T35** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA · 2021 · $36,508

## Abstract

Project Summary
Providing medical students with meaningful research experiences during their training is an important
piece in generating physicians who incorporate research into their careers. There is a strong need for
research aware clinicians in rural areas in the Upper Midwest. Having a cadre that focuses its efforts
in the area of pediatric medicine will also be important in addressing the health disparities seen in
rural and American Indian populations. The ultimate goal of the DRPMS is to help meet the future
needs of health-related research by contributing to the development of physicians who will be well-
prepared to use evidence-based medicine in practice and contribute to translational research. The
Northern Plains have a large number of health disparities among the children and adolescents. Thus
there is a compelling need to support and promote the training of the physicians in training in
developmental research. Faculty members at the Sanford School of Medicine are strong in research
focused on development: prenatal development, postnatal development, diseases and issues of
children and adolescents. The Developmental Research Program for Medical Students (DRPMS)
proposed here will help provide medical students with exposure to research areas of development in
order to kindle their interest in pursuing this as part of their careers. The Sanford School of Medicine
has recently integrated its curriculum. As an extension of this, the school is in the process of
developing a strategy to integrate research into the educational experience of all medical students as
a required educational activity. While the school of medicine has always had ad hoc programs for
medical students to participate in research, the program proposed in this application will provide a
structured program that involves research but includes an additional seminars series on career
development, including how to incorporate scholarship, as well as responsible conduct of research.
The Program Directors will be assisted in the management of the program by an Executive
Committee and an Internal Advisory Committee.
Six students per year will be accepted into the DRPMS. There will be specific strategies employed to
increase the number of trainees from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds. Selection of the
trainees will be done by the Executive Committee. The research progress will be followed by the
mentor(s) and the PDs. After completion of the program trainees will be invited back to become peer
mentors or to continue on with research outside of the program. Intermediate and longitudinal follow-
up of the trainees will be performed as part of the program's evaluation.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10240693
- **Project number:** 5T35HD088383-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA
- **Principal Investigator:** WILLIAM G MAYHAN
- **Activity code:** T35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $36,508
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-08-17 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10240693

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10240693, Developmental Research Program for Medical Students (DRPMS) (5T35HD088383-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10240693. Licensed CC0.

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