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Bridging Care and Curiosity: Mentoring the Physician-Scientists of Tomorrow

Bridging Care and Curiosity: Mentoring the Physician-Scientists of Tomorrow 1024 316 Alaina Doklovic

The resident Research Pathway at Nationwide Children’s uniquely prepares trainees for medical research.

Physician-scientists play a key role in bridging scientific discoveries and clinical care. That’s why Nationwide Children’s Hospital is committed to leading the path for the healers and innovators of tomorrow. The Research Pathway at Nationwide Children’s allows residents to pursue scientific and clinical training to promote their development as pediatric physician-scientists.

The Research Pathway is co-directed by Brian Becknell, MD, PhD, a pediatric nephrologist and research director of the Kidney and Urinary Tract Center at Nationwide Children’s, and Jessie Yester, MD, PhD, pediatric cardiologist in The Heart Center at Nationwide Children’s and principal investigator in the Center for Cardiovascular Research in the Abigail Wexner Research Institute (AWRI). The Research Pathway supports both the Integrated Research Pathway (IRP) and the Accelerated Research Pathway (ARP). Both are non-standard pathways approved by the American Board of Pediatrics designed to provide flexibility to accommodate individual career goals for residents who plan to pursue a career in academic medicine.

“As a physician-scientist, I have been, and continue to be, shaped by institutions and mentors who understand the unique environment required to train and cultivate a physician-scientist. That support is more vital now than ever,” says Dr. Yester. “I am honored to co-direct the pediatric residency Research Pathway, where we support a culture of patient-centered investigation. I firmly believe our trainees will lead discoveries that redefine the future of pediatric medicine, and I am proud to walk alongside them in that journey.”

There are currently three residents in the Research Pathway and 14 alumni. Among the 17 total current and former participants, 14 of them have both a medical degree and a doctorate.

Samantha Coss, MD, PhD, second year fellow in the Division of Rheumatology at Nationwide Children’s, completed medical school and her doctorate at The Ohio State University and a residency in Pediatrics through the Research Pathway, while she is also training to become a pediatric rheumatologist.

“At Nationwide Children’s, everyone wants you to succeed,” says Dr. Coss. “Here, you can learn to do anything you want — from procedural skills to evidence-based outpatient management to advanced techniques at the lab bench. But most importantly, my clinical training was never sacrificed for the research experience. It truly is the best of both worlds.”

Mentorship and Support

In 2024, Hannah Kluger, MD, PhD, joined the Nationwide Children’s Research Pathway. As a PGY-1, her clinical interests include Neonatology and Genetics. Her current research studies DNA repair pathways, CRISPR biology, genetic engineering and lineage- tracing techniques.

“Over the past year, I have had an incredible experience in the Research Pathway,” says Dr. Kluger. “Drs. Becknell and Yester have been incredible mentors and continue to go to bat for my research and fellowship goals. I truly feel like this program is enabling an easy transition into my ideal career path. Nationwide Children’s also offers a broad array of research opportunities, making it very easy to find my fellowship research laboratory.”

Mentorship is the central feature of success in the Research Pathway program. A customized mentoring committee of seasoned investigators in the AWRI is assembled for each resident. A research mentor is then identified based on the applicant’s research and career interests.

“Even now after I’ve graduated from the residency program, I still reach out to program leadership. Their advice is invaluable, and I count them highly among my mentors,” says Dr. Coss.

“Residents, fellows and graduate students are crucial to the success of our research. They are the caretakers of tomorrow’s patients and discoverers of tomorrow’s innovations. They add incredible value to a laboratory,” says Ryan Roberts, MD, PhD, physician for the Division of Hematology and Oncology at Nationwide Children’s, principal investigator in the Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases at AWRI and alumnus of the Research Pathway. “I have an obligation to mentor tomorrow’s doctors and scientists with as much care, interest and passion as was shown to me by my own mentors.”

Infographic showing the research pathway program with 3 current residents and 14 alumni, totaling 17 participants, of which 14 hold both a medical degree and a doctorate.Leaning on the Future

“The Research Pathway at Nationwide Children’s provides opportunities for residents with significant research experience to integrate their clinical training with mentored research opportunities and successfully launch careers as pediatric physician-scientists,” says Dr. Becknell.

Training tomorrow’s pediatric physician-scientists requires bridging clinical care with discovery. A tremendous number of research opportunities exist, and with a little encouragement and education, these physician-scientists are primed to move their fi elds forward.

“Trainees are often unencumbered by prior knowledge, which gives them some freedom to consider crazy ideas that old codgers like me would deem — well, crazy,” says Dr. Roberts. “But sometimes they work. Trainees read a lot and work hard and are motivated — and have more energy than I do. We need them around. And, hopefully, it works both ways.”

 

This article appeared in the 2025 Fall/Winter print issue. Download the issue here.

 

About the author

Alaina Doklovic is a Marketing Specialist for Research Communications at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. She received her BS in medical anthropology and English from The Ohio State University. Her passions for science and health, combined with her desire to help others, motivated her to pursue a career in which she could actively help improve patient outcomes and scientific research through writing.

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