Approved 9/1/05
Department of Surgery
DEPARTMENTAL STATEMENT:
CLINICAL SCHOLAR TRACK CRITERIA
Mission Statement
The mission of the Medical School is to conduct high quality programs of research, education, and service through which the college contributes significantly to the provision of excellent health care for the people of Minnesota.
The mission of the Department of Surgery is teaching, research, and provision of excellent clinical service. The primary academic mission is to teach medical students, residents, and fellows, and advanced degree candidates with the focus of developing academic surgeons and advancing knowledge in surgical specialties through scientific and clinical research endeavors.
II. Standards for Clinical Scholar Track Faculty
Clinical Scholar Track faculty in the Department of Surgery are expected to participate in teaching, scholarship, applied medical science, and service with the following standards specific to the department.
Teaching
Teaching activities may occur in a variety of educational settings and formats, including: didactic presentations, lectures, seminars, conferences, tutorials, laboratories, advising of students, case discussions, grand rounds, hospital and clinic rounds, patient care, surgical and other procedures, and continuing medical education.
The following are educational activities in which competence and accomplishment in teaching can be demonstrated:
Regularly commits effort in teaching of organized educational programs of the department such as lecture series, weekly conferences and seminars, and continuing medical education courses.
Active participation in the teaching and advising of medical students, residents, fellows, and postgraduate students.
Service and distinction as a faculty and/or graduate advisor to post M.D. residents, fellows, graduate and/or postgraduate students.
Service as a faculty mentor to students in any of the above categories and junior faculty who engage in research activities in the department.
Research/ Scholarship
Faculty are expected to spend significant time in:
Development and implementation of high quality new professional curriculum offerings or continuing medical education programs for professional societies at the local, state, national or international level.
Publication in peer-reviewed journals of clinical studies, results of clinical trials or comprehensive case series.
Peer reviewed journals that are recognized as outstanding and appropriate to the discipline include, but are not necessarily limited to:
American Journal of Surgery
American Journal of Transplantation
Annals of Surgery
Annals of Thoracic Surgery
Archives of Surgery
Chest
Circulation
Clinical Transplantation
Diseases of the Colon and Rectum
Gastroenterology
Journal of the American College of Surgeons
Journal of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery
Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation
Journal of Pediatric Surgery
Journal of the Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons
Journal of Surgical Research
Shock
Surgery
Surgical Infections
Transplantation
Transplant International
World Journal of Surgery
3. Publication of chapters, textbooks, syllabi, educational web-based programs, and videotapes
4. Participation in translational research through interdisciplinary programs.
Development of technology and patented discoveries
Recognition by students and professional peers as excellent communicator and lecturer as evidenced by invited participation in discipline-related symposia, meetings, conferences, and seminars.
Demonstrated ability to secure intramural or extramural research funding as demonstrated by being the recipient of a grant(s) or contract(s) as principal investigator, a major collaborator or similar title. Potential sources of funding include, but are necessarily limited to:
Biomedical Industry
Pharmaceutical companies
Foundations
National or regional granting agencies such as:
National Institutes of Health
Public Health Service
National Science Foundation
American Heart Association (unit or affiliate)
American Diabetes Association (unit or affiliate)
Juvenile Diabetes Association (unit or affiliate)
National Kidney Foundation (unit or affiliate)
Bureau of Veterans Affairs
Applied Medical Science
Clinical scholar track faculty are expected to spend significant time in clinical care. Participation and competence can be demonstrated by, but not necessarily limited to:
Recognition by peers and students as a health care professional committed to quality patient care or related patient service.
Excellent reputation as an authority in a clinical specialty at the local, regional, and/or national level.
Regular effort to clinical care activities (> 20%)
Distinction in clinical sciences manifested by election to distinguished societies, recognition locally and nationally as an expert
Participation in projects to monitor clinical outcomes
Participation in quality improvement program development
Service
Service, although not a primary criterion for promotion, will be taken into consideration in making decisions on promotion. Recognition that leadership roles may signify excellence in reputation in teaching, research and scholarship, and applied medical science will be considered. Performance or service, however exemplary, may not substitute for the primary criteria of teaching and scholarship.
Service is demonstrated by:
Active participation and/or leadership on committees at the departmental, hospital, medical school, AHC, or University level.
Active participation and/or leadership in local, regional, national, and international professional organizations.
Participation and administrative leadership in division and sections, including programmatic management.
Outreach programs such as local and rural community service related to teaching and applied medical science as appropriate.
Service as an editor or member of an editorial board of a reputable journal or monograph in the related discipline.
III. PROMOTION
The Department of Surgery accepts and subscribes to the statement on Criteria and Standards for Promotion of Faculty at the University of Minnesota Medical School, with the following standards specific to the department.
To Assistant Professor
The criteria and standards for appointment or promotion to the rank of Assistant Professor in the clinical scholar track are those defined by the University of Minnesota Medical School. This rank requires board eligibility/certification or equivalent in appropriate specialty and evidence of scholarship, teaching, and applied medical science as demonstrated by the above-listed standards.
To Associate Professor
The standards and criteria for appointment or promotion to the rank of Associate Professor in the clinical scholar track are those stated by the University of Minnesota Medical School. Faculty are expected to support and foster all aspects of the academic mission of the Department of Surgery including teaching, research and scholarship, applied medical science, and service with a significant portion of their time spent in clinical practice as described in above-listed departmental standards. Specific criteria for consideration at the Associate Professor rank may include, but are not limited to:
Teaches medical students, residents, and fellows and strives for excellence in teaching including meeting the initiatives put forth by the Surgical Education Council and the directors of the various residency and fellowship training programs.
Consistently receives excellent evaluations for teaching by medical students, residents, and fellows.
Regularly attends and participates in teaching activities, including but not limited to formal conferences, ward rounds, small group teaching sessions, medical student lectures, research conferences, and symposia hosted by the department.
Acts as advisor or mentor to medical students, residents, and fellows.
Regularly spends time involved with clinical research. Evidence of first or senior authored scholarly contributions as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications in high quality professional journals and/or contributions to chapters or books for the specialty.
Evidence of attraction of extramural grant, industry, or foundation support as principal investigator or major collaborator to support clinical research activities.
Demonstrates national reputation by presentations at regional and national conferences, including selection by peer-reviewed seminars and conferences, and invited guest lectureships.
Maintains an excellent reputation inside and outside the Twin Cities area for clinical patient care, including being known as an authority in the clinical specialty.
Demonstrate distinction by service to local, regional, or national professional societies.
Letters from nationally recognized academicians evaluating individual's contributions to the field.
To Professor
The standards and criteria for appointment or promotion to the rank of Professor in the clinical scholar track are those stated by the University of Minnesota Medical School. Faculty are expected to support and foster all aspects of the academic mission of the Department of Surgery including teaching, research and scholarship, applied medical science, and service with a significant portion of their time spent in clinical practice as described in above-listed departmental standards. Specific criteria for consideration at the Professor rank may include, but are not limited to:
Continued, sustained scholarly contributions as demonstrated by first or senior authored publications in high quality professional peer-reviewed journals. Individuals at this level are expected to have a substantial quantity of publications, with the expectation that there will be a larger contribution as senior author since appointment or promotion to the rank of Associate Professor.
Continued excellence in teaching as demonstrated by above listed standards.
Evidence of national and/or international reputation including leadership roles in national and/or international professional societies.
Continued substantial contributions to patient care including national and/or international reputation for advancement of the specialty.
IV. PROCEDURES
In considering proposals for tenure and/or promotion in rank, the Medical School and its departments comply with the procedures described in the document "Procedures for Reviewing Performance of Probationary Faculty," distributed annually by the Vice President for Academic Affairs. These procedures are provided for by Sections 16.3, 7.4 and 7.61 of the Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure.
The Medical School issues annually to each department, for distribution and information to faculty members, a set of instructions, memoranda, and other documents, giving detailed information on the procedures to be followed in the preparation and consideration of each proposal for tenure and/or promotion in rank. The pertinent documents are identified as exhibits enclosed with a cover memorandum from the Dean.
Designated non-tenured faculty members holding appropriate appointment and rank at affiliated hospitals are eligible to vote on proposals for promotion in rank of candidates, in accordance with approval for this procedure granted by the University Tenure Committee and the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Revised December 12, 2003
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