The Emory Academic Internal Medicine Center (AIM) is pleased to announce the first two recipients of our newly funded Rollins Career Development awards: Saria Hassan, MD, MPH and Sara Turbow, MD. MPH. This support program for Emory Division of General Internal Medicine (GIM) faculty will provide essential resources for nationally recognized, early career clinician scientists for a limited but important time period, helping them sustain their work at the critical time of moving from junior mentored faculty to mid-career and senior independent faculty. The Rollins Career Development awards will then become available for other GIM research faculty. Funding for Emory AIM programs has been provided by the Gary W. Rollins Foundation.
Saria Hassan, MD, MPH, currently an assistant professor, is an internationally recognized researcher focused on health equity issues including climate change. When asked about the impact that this award will have on her career path, Dr. Hassan said, “This Rollins Career Development support is coming at a critical time in my career, and I am truly grateful to the AIM Center leadership, staff, and the Gary W. Rollins Foundation. The transition from a National Institutes of Health (NIH) K23 career development award to an independent investigator R01-level award is never an easy one. It is particularly challenging today, given the changing environment of research funding." The federal funding for one of Dr. Hassan's US-based projects on climate change and how its differential impact is a justice issue was recently terminated ("the award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities") unrelated to the human need or scientific quality of the work. "The Rollins Early Career Development support provides me with flexibility in funding and time, allowing me to explore related research topics that align with the priority areas of the current US administration, while also exploring alternative funding opportunities to continue the vital climate justice work we know is critical to the health of climate-vulnerable communities." Dr. Hassan offered that she is "excited and energized to take on this challenge" with the support and backing of the AIM Center and the Rollins funding.
Dr. Sara Turbow, an associate professor, studies the effect of care fragmentation, specifically when a patient is readmitted to a different hospital than the one from which they were previously discharged. These “fragmented” readmissions are associated with a nearly two-fold increased risk of mortality and happen more often in persons living with dementia. Dr. Turbow also spoke about the hazards related to the transition period from early career support (NIH K-funding) to status as an independent investigator (NIH R-funding) as the perfect time for additional support. She said, “I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity, and it could not have come at a more critical time in my research career. Making the “K-to-R transition” has always been a challenge, and the current uncertainty in the federal funding landscape has increased. This award will provide me with critical support that will allow me to continue my research, compete for grants, and expand collaborations and mentorship over the coming years.”