Scholarship Testimonials

"I am indebted to the AAST Research and Education Foundation for the support provided via the AAST research scholarships during my early academic career. These awards are ideal for junior faculty and provided me the experience with grant writing and management that has contributed to my success in achieving independent RO1 funding from the NIH. Research in trauma and acute care has been notoriously under funded at the federal level as is highlighted in the recent Institute of Medicine report on the status of Emergency care. The AAST is in a critical position to remind policymakers of the importance of this work and to foster the careers of young surgical investigators such that they will be competitive for future funding."

Eileen M. Bulger, MD

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"The AAST scholarships play an invaluable role in a young faculty members research. Early in my research career, I was at the end of my start-up funding, and had not yet completed enough work to be competitive for NIH grants. The AAST grant allowed me to continue my work, enhance it, and position myself to be competitive for larger grants."

Jeffrey S. Young, MD, FACS

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"The John Davis Faculty Research Scholarship from the AAST was a critical funding mechanism supporting my transition from a fellow to funded faculty member (Assistant Professor) while starting my career in trauma surgery and research at the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. It was through the encouragement and support of key surgical and basic science mentors at UT Southwestern, Dr. James Carrico, Dr. Charles Baxter, Dr. Erwin Thal, and Jureta Horton, Ph.D., that I was able to successfully (I believe) transition to an independent investigator.

The funds supported the eventual submission of successful NIH grants at the R29, T32, and P50 level of which I was a Principal investigator or co-PI. In a period where laboratory investigation is more difficult for practicing surgeons, and NIH funding levels are tighter, the Foundation's continued commitment to funding younger investigators I feel is essential.

I am truly honored by the selection to receive this award by the AAST. The research complements my clinical practice. I hope the Foundation feels its support has been used wisely in this program."

Paul Bankey, MD, PhD

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"I was privileged to receive two scholarships from the AAST: The Davis & Geck (1995-6) and the John B. Davis Research Scholarship (1997-8). These were both to support research on trauma in the developing world. These scholarships came along at a critical junction in my own career and allowed me to work on a very neglected topic, at a time when there was almost no funding for such work.

This start allowed me to make injury control and trauma care in the setting of developing countries a major portion of my professional career. I am currently Director of the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, a position that these scholarships helped me on the road towards. Likewise, the results of the studies funded by the scholarships led to over 15 peer reviewed publications.

The results have also influenced governmental policy and trauma care practice. For example, the results of the random, roadside breathalyzer study in Ghana in 1997 led to the adoption of a per se drunk driving law by Ghana's Parliament in 1998, establishing a blood alcohol concentration of 80 mg/dl as the legal limit, the first time a blood alcohol concentration had been specified in Ghana's laws. The trauma CME course that the grant established has become self-sustaining with totally local funding for the past 8 years and has served as a model for other African countries.

The information about trauma care utilization patterns and trauma care capabilities has been utilized by several groups, such as the World Health Organization and the International Society of Surgery, in efforts to strengthen trauma care globally and to promote the idea of assuring minimum, effective trauma care services for all injured persons in the world."

"The AAST Research Award (1996) was an invaluable resource and terrific honor. As a direct result of that research grant and the science that it funded, we obtained an NIH R01 award and subsequently the American College of Surgeons' George H. A. Clowes, Jr. Memorial Research Career Development Award. The AAST provided the foundation upon which my research career was built and, equally important, the interactions with friends and colleagues that make our specialty so rewarding."

J. Perren Cobb, M.D.

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The AAST Davis and Geck Research Award which I received in 1991 was instrumental in helping me begin a successful research career. The seed monies which this opportunity provided me allowed me to partner with established investigators and successfully compete for later NIH funding. These grants are essential for young surgical investigators who will lead future research efforts."

Scott A. Dulchavsky, M.D.