Which one is more useful for PharmD route? Clinical VS basic research.

[RNtoPharmD]

I have to decide whether I should take clinical or basic research for an elective tomorrow.

I think the advantage of learning basic science research is the opportunity to learn laboratory techniques which I have never been exposed to before due to my limited science background.

However, due to my patient care experience, I can relate more to clinical research but I won't be learning anything new about lab techniques.

My question is whether the laboratory techniques (cell cultures, electrophoresis, PCR, cloning DNA) will be useful for residency ,fellowship, any other type of PharmD research.

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[njac]

I would say clinical. However, I do know some people who bench-type research in their residencies- they were all ID focused.

 

[p-rog]

If I had to choose, I would say clinical (the pharm.D. is a clinical degree after all), but honestly it really depends on your long term career goals. Do you want basic (lab) research to be a significant part of your job? If not, why bother?

As far as usefulness of learning lab techniques for residency and fellowships, it all depends on the program. Once again, you have to figure out which programs interest you based on your career goals. I think most fellowships are clinical research based but there are plenty that have a more "translational research" focus, with a much heavier emphasis on basic/lab science research.

 

[RNtoPharmD]

If I had to choose, I would say clinical (the pharm.D. is a clinical degree after all), but honestly it really depends on your long term career goals. Do you want basic (lab) research to be a significant part of your job? If not, why bother?

As far as usefulness of learning lab techniques for residency and fellowships, it all depends on the program. Once again, you have to figure out which programs interest you based on your career goals. I think most fellowships are clinical research based but there are plenty that have a more "translational research" focus, with a much heavier emphasis on basic/lab science research.

Thanks for the opinion.
I think personally, I prefer clinical research. But with the complete lack of laboratory skill in nursing degree, it may be a good idea to learn some.

I googled and found that there're fellowship in transitional research.

 

[avuong]

Dont worry about "laboratory skill". If you can read a recipe book and aim a pipette tip into a tube and squirt, Youll be fine.

Dont worry about it!

 

[RNtoPharmD]

Dont worry about "laboratory skill". If you can read a recipe book and aim a pipette tip into a tube and squirt, Youll be fine.

Dont worry about it!

Similarly, with retrospective data collection, anybody can read the patient chart and collect data. There're some clinical judgment about which data or which population should be included and design the approach. But I am afraid that what I will be doing most of times is collecting data.

 

[FarscapeGirl]

As someone who is almost finished with a PhD in molecular and cellular biology (as soon as I finish printing out my thesis today and turn it in!!), I'd say you might want to check out basic research. Especially if you can be in a pharmacology lab.

You'll find out in person how drugs are tested in the early stages. And it's neat getting to know how that process works and how some of the techniques work.

Your rotation project probably won't work. But you'd learn a lot about how basic science works.

One caveat to my advice is I don't have much experience or knowledge of clinical research, besides the papers I've read while doing my research project.

 

[RNtoPharmD]

Decided. Basic research. At least, I will know whether I will like it. After all, it's just an elective.

 

[mike36]

Decided. Basic research. At least, I will know whether I will like it. After all, it's just an elective.

Do you know what kind of a project you will be working on yet?

 

[Hels2007]

Decided. Basic research. At least, I will know whether I will like it. After all, it's just an elective.

That's the right way to look at it. I have done two bench-science and two clinical research projects while in school, just to learn whether I like it (and, well, because one of my professors had grant money to spend and needed help, and I needed more money ). I learned that I am ill-suited to either kind of research and to research in general, but I wouldn't have known it unless I tried.

 

[tackett26]

I would say clinical. However, I do know some people who bench-type research in their residencies- they were all ID focused.

Where were those residencies? Just curious?

 

[bigpharmD]

Where were those residencies? Just curious?

These would be more "fellowships"

Look at Northwestern.

 

[p-rog]

Where were those residencies? Just curious?

Like bigpharmD said, those would be more fellowships, but there are some combined residency +fellowship programs (i.e. Northwestern, Deaconess Medical Center, Nebraska MC, etc)

http://www.sidp.org/index.php?module=pagesetter&tid=4

 

[tackett26]

Like bigpharmD said, those would be more fellowships, but there are some combined residency +fellowship programs (i.e. Northwestern, Deaconess Medical Center, Nebraska MC, etc)

http://www.sidp.org/index.php?module=pagesetter&tid=4

Ok Thank you p-rog and bigpharmd