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Special Program Training Requirements for the Clinician Investigator Program (CIP)

2015

VERSION 1.0

These training requirements apply to those who begin training on or after July 1^st, 2015.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Royal College certification or enrolment in a Royal College accredited residency program (see requirements for these qualifications). All candidates must be Royal College certified in their primary specialty in order to be eligible to receive the Attestation of Completion of the Clinician Investigator Program.

MINIMUM TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

Enrolment in a graduate degree program to complete a thesis or equivalent (graduate stream), or, if the trainee already has a graduate degree, enrolment in a postdoctoral fellowship (postdoctoral stream).

One of three research pathways, as follows:

CONTINUOUS TRAINING PATHWAY (CT)

1. A minimum of 24 months of continuous, intensive research training which can be undertaken at different points in residency

FRACTIONATED TRAINING PATHWAY (FT)

1. A minimum 24 months of research distributed throughout training as follows:
   1. Twelve (12) months of training completed in periods of 3 months or longer blocks
   2. Twelve (12) months of continuous research training

DISTRIBUTIVE CURRICULUM TRAINING (DCT)

1. A minimum of 27 months of research training completed concurrently with Royal College specialty training program with three sequential years organized as follows:
   1. Three (3) months of clinical training
   2. Nine (9) months of research

NOTES:

Completion of a graduate degree is a mandatory requirement for residents unless they already hold a graduate degree. For residents pursuing graduate studies, the individual is registered for an advanced degree in the university graduate school, and must meet all its requirements. In such cases, the CIP program director will act as the liaison with the graduate school and must approve and monitor the individual program outlined.

For the postdoctoral stream, a program of individualized research training is to be undertaken, with appropriate rigor for a resident who already holds a graduate degree. The postdoctoral training plans require the approval of the faculty CIP committee.

The Continuous Training (CT) pathway, involves continuous, intensive research training which can be undertaken at different points in residency. The planning for the CIP entry in the CT pathway should begin as soon as possible after an interest in the CIP is identified, particularly if all residency training is undertaken at one centre.

The Fractionated Training (FT) pathway is for individuals who wish to pursue research that requires several years to plan a research project, obtain research ethics board approval, and complete the project, which may involve patient recruitment to a study. This pathway is particularly suitable for clinical epidemiology research, where intensive research activities will be separated by long waiting periods.

The Distributive Curriculum Training (DCT) pathway is intended for outstanding residents who have research experience prior to entering a residency program. In the DCT pathway, there is coordinated entry into the PGY1 year for both CIP and the specialty program. One year of post graduate clinical training in the DCT pathway is distributed over the three years, each with three months of clinical training and nine months of research. It is preferred that the research block be sequential. Exceptions must be approved prospectively by the faculty CIP committee and the Royal College must be informed.

Residents must register in the CIP and begin their CIP research before or immediately upon completion of the Royal College accredited clinical program. Residents moving to a different institution to pursue clinician investigator training upon completion of their Royal College accredited clinical program, must register in the CIP within 6 months of starting this research to be eligible. CIP registration for individuals who completed their Royal College accredited training more than six months before starting clinician investigator research training will only be considered under exceptional circumstances, and requires approval by the CIP Advisory Committee of the Royal College.

Up to one of the research years may also be credited to fulfil the individual’s Royal College accredited clinical program requirements, in keeping with the requirements of the discipline involved, with joint approval of the faculty CIP director and the program director in the Royal College accredited clinical discipline.

Retroactive recognition of research credits obtained prior to acceptance into a CIP will not be allowed.

For newly accredited CIP programs, credit may be given to residents who complete up to one year of the research experience immediately prior to the initial accreditation of a CIP as long as at least one year is spent in the program after it has been accredited, and on condition that the resident’s experience prior to accreditation fulfils the CIP requirements.

Royal College attestation for the Clinician Investigator Program requires all of the following:

1. Royal College certification in a primary specialty;
2. Successful completion of a Royal College accredited Clinical Investigator Program;
3. Successful completion of a graduate degree or a post-doctoral fellowship; and
4. Successful completion of the research component of the CIP.

The CIP outlined above is to be regarded as the minimum training requirement. Additional research training in all CIP pathways can be extended to allow completion of a PhD or other research experiences. Individuals who complete the program will have a solid grounding in research but may still require additional research training to embark on a career as an independent researcher.

• REVISED – Specialty Standards Review Committee – February 2015

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