2010 AACPDM Clinical and Research Travel (CART) Fellowships

2010 AACPDM Clinical and Research Travel (CART) Fellowships in spasticity and movement disorders

Introduction

The American Academy for Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine (AACPDM) is proud to offer the Clinical and Research Travel (CART) fellowships in spasticity and movement disorders. Through the continued support of Allergan with an unrestricted grant, three (3) travel fellowships ($8,000 each) will be awarded in 2010 in the following endeavors – clinical, research, and other (including, but not limited to, education, advocacy, and knowledge translation). The CART fellowships for 2010 are open only to US physician members of the AACPDM

Purpose

The awards are intended to expand the knowledge and experiential base of clinicians and scientists involved in the treatment of pediatric neuromuscular movement disorders, including but not limited to, spasticity and dystonia. The facilities selected by the CART Fellowship recipient are expected to offer exceptional educational and hands-on experience in treatment and/or research of spasticity and movement disorders.

Nomination and Selection Deadlines

1. All applications and supporting documentation must be submitted electronically to fellowship@aacpdm.org by 5 p.m. (CST) Friday, March 26, 2010.
2. The AACPDM Research Committee will review and select three (3) top candidates that will be awarded a CART Fellowship.
3. Successful candidates will be notified by April 9, 2010.
4. All travel should be completed by September 10, 2010, in order to allow sufficient time for presentations at the 2010 AACPDM Annual Meeting.

Eligibilty

1. Applicants must be working in the field of treating spasticity and movement disorders, and need to hold a MD level degree.
2. Applicants must be an AACPDM member in good standing.
3. All travel for the fellowship must be conducted in the United States.
4. The CART Fellowship recipient must be a practicing physician in the United States.

Submission Requirements

1. Schedules and touring arrangements will be the responsibility of the applicants. Fellows may return to their home centers between tours.
2. Applicants are expected to propose their own “itineraries” that cover their areas of interest, and must request letters of support from the host centers. The specified purpose of the travelling fellowship must include one or a combination of clinical (practice related), research, educational themes, which could also include advocacy, knowledge translation. For instance, an applicant may be interested in the broad scope of practice for spasticity management and may want to visit one center for medication treatment (oral/injection/pump), another for surgical procedures, and another for physical/occupational therapy. Another applicant may have a basic or clinical research focused agenda for their visit to different centers.
3. Interested applicants should complete the attached form and include all supporting documentation. The entire submission should be one file in (pdf) format.
4. Each CART Fellowship recipient will be expected to share their experiences with the broader membership of the AACPDM through an educational poster at the 2010 AACPDM Annual Meeting (September 22-25 in Washington, DC), and a report for the AACPDM newsletter. At the discretion of the Program Committee, the recipients might be invited to present a combined breakfast session at the 2010 AACPDM Annual Meeting.
5. Upon completion of their tours, each CART Fellowship recipient will submit a 1-page written summary of their experiences and how they achieved their objectives for the fellowship to the AACPDM office by emailing fellowship@aacpdm.org. This summary will be reviewed by the Research Committee and forwarded to Allergan.

Award

Three (3) CART Fellowships ($8,000 each) will be awarded, each consisting of $7,000 for travel, and $1,000 upon receipt of final summary submitted to the AACPDM Research Committee.