# Digestive Diseases Training Program

> **NIH NIH T32** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2020 · $324,709

## Abstract

A new and effective approach to training physicians and scientists for future success in executing patient-
centered solutions for digestive disease requires an innovative training program within a supportive
environment. New opportunities and prevailing health care trends inspired the leadership of the University of
Pittsburgh's Digestive Diseases Training Program to create a forward-thinking program to attract and retain
top-quality trainees and equip a new generation of physicians and scientists by integrating the tools of Big Data
and Personalized Medicine into clinical and translational research and teaching team science, structured on a
backbone of successful U01 programs. The new program is designed to: (a) Provide rigorous individualized
training that encompasses core competencies in translational research methodologies and interdisciplinary
professional skills; (b) Assemble multidisciplinary mentoring to provide expertise in the conduct of translational
research projects from conceptualization to completion that include Big Data and Personalized Medicine;
and (c) Support fellows' future career goals by career coaching and disseminating scholarly activities. The
Program Plan includes an experienced program director and four co-directors who are leaders in clinical-
translational research, basic sciences, biomedical informatics, and computational biology. The trainees will
receive intense classroom and practical training through the University of Pittsburgh's Institute for Clinical
Research Education (ICRE), followed by core classes and electives in basic, translational, or clinical sciences.
Each trainee will work with the program directors to develop an Individual Development Plan to ensure that the
trainee completes all of the department requirements for a graduate degree (Masters or PhD); cultivates
individualized projects of importance to patients with digestive diseases; receives program and career
mentoring; and begins their appropriate career development pathway. Systematic and specific milestones are
built into the program to safeguard for core competencies, timely and critically reviewed research proposals,
and completion of required coursework, scholarly achievements, and career development activities, such as
submission of F32s, Ks, or other competitive awards. Each trainee will have a mentoring team of a physician,
scientist, and a domain expert in Big Data. Big Data electives are built into the Individual Development Plan,
including Foundations of Translational Bioinformatics, Symbolic Methods in Artificial Intelligence, Probabilistic
Methods for Computer-Based Decision Support, Machine Learning, Computational Genomics, and Laboratory
Methods for Computational Biologists. Additional experience is gained through participation in existing U01s,
multicenter clinical/translational studies, and internships. There is no precedent for this program—despite a
clear need. However, our ongoing training success demonstrates the feasibili...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9969392
- **Project number:** 5T32DK063922-18
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** DAVID Clement WHITCOMB
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $324,709
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2003-07-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9969392

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9969392, Digestive Diseases Training Program (5T32DK063922-18). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9969392. Licensed CC0.

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