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Recruitment workshop report
Recruitment workshop report* Tom Smith and Jim Wedner, moderators
Recruitment is an important activity for training programs in allergy and immunology. To attract quality trainees to our subspecialty, we must emphasize the needs of the general and medical communities for highly qualified physicians trained in allergy and immunology, and we must demonstrate to perspective trainees the excellent opportunities that are available. We must emphasize that allergy and immunology is an important subspecialty that has the responsibility for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases that affect 15% to 20% of the U.S. population. To serve this large patient population, we should encourage the maintenance of quality allergy and immunology practice within the community. More and better qualified individuals dedicated to academic allergy and immunology also are needed. These physicians will serve as clinical scholars, research and teaching specialists, and basic laboratory researchers. Fulfilling the needs of the medical and academic communities will require a continual flow of welltrained physicians. Because these needs exist, there are, and will continue to be, excellent opportunities for graduates in allergy and immunology. The fundamental method available to advance allergy and immunology as a subspecialty is to improve our image. The means available include 1. We must let the general medical and lay communities know that we are clinical scientists. This awareness is best accomplished by a willingness to interact with the medical and lay communities and to present the scientific basis for the practice of allergy and immunology to these groups. 2. For the purposes of recruitment of future allergists and clinical immunologists, as well as education of the general medical community, we believe that, ideally, every medical school should have a division of allergy and clinical immunology or full time, board-certified faculty members to teach allergy and immunology as a discipline. For those medical schools with no faculty in allergy and immunology, visiting professorships, such as those established by the Allergy Section of the American Academy of Pediatrics, are important. Similar pro*Participants: SteveMcGeady,Elliott Middleton, Ray Slavin, and William Solomon. 1/1/24979
fessorships are also sponsored by the American College of Allergy and Immunology. In addition, written materials on the general subject of allergy and immunology, prepared by the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology and by the American College of Allergy and Immunology, and on the opportunities available to those trained in allergy and immunology, prepared by the Training Program Directors Committee, should be available. The Primer of Allergic and lmmunologic Diseases, prepared by the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, should be widely distributed. . We must interact with medical students as early as possible in their training. This includes teaching in preclinical courses, making available summer fellowships, such as fellowships funded by the National Institutes of Health, and other formal and informal activities. Toward this end, members of the faculty of divisions of allergy and immunology should actively participate in medical student teaching through dual appointments in basic science departments. . We should be highly visible to house officers and should offer quality teaching on the medical and pediatric wards and excellent electives in allergy and immunology. We must encourage interactions between house officers and faculty members and fellows-in-training. We should participate in grand rounds and ward rounds and should encourage bedside teaching of house officers by our fellows. . We should emphasize and publicize our area of expertise. This should include the diagnosis and management of immunologically mediated diseases including allergic and related diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract, allergic and immunologic diseases of the skin, drug allergies, anaphylaxis, and diseases related to these and immunodeficiency disorders. A more complete list of subspecialty interests can be found in the Core Curriculum Workshop Report (J ALLERGY CLIN IMMUNOL 1990;86:41 1-4). We recognize that new information will lead to better forms of diagnosis and management, including immunomodulation, which will strengthen the practice of allergy and immunology.
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Recruitment is an important activity for training programs in allergy and immunology. To attract quality trainees to our subspecialty, we must emphasize the needs of the general and medical communities for highly qualified physicians trained in allergy and immunology, and we must demonstrate to perspective trainees the excellent opportunities that are available. We must emphasize that allergy and immunology is an important subspecialty that has the responsibility for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases that affect 15% to 20% of the U.S. population. To serve this large patient population, we should encourage the maintenance of quality allergy and immunology practice within the community. More and better qualified individuals dedicated to academic allergy and immunology also are needed. These physicians will serve as clinical scholars, research and teaching specialists, and basic laboratory researchers. Fulfilling the needs of the medical and academic communities will require a continual flow of welltrained physicians. Because these needs exist, there are, and will continue to be, excellent opportunities for graduates in allergy and immunology. The fundamental method available to advance allergy and immunology as a subspecialty is to improve our image. The means available include 1. We must let the general medical and lay communities know that we are clinical scientists. This awareness is best accomplished by a willingness to interact with the medical and lay communities and to present the scientific basis for the practice of allergy and immunology to these groups. 2. For the purposes of recruitment of future allergists and clinical immunologists, as well as education of the general medical community, we believe that, ideally, every medical school should have a division of allergy and clinical immunology or full time, board-certified faculty members to teach allergy and immunology as a discipline. For those medical schools with no faculty in allergy and immunology, visiting professorships, such as those established by the Allergy Section of the American Academy of Pediatrics, are important. Similar pro*Participants: SteveMcGeady,Elliott Middleton, Ray Slavin, and William Solomon. 1/1/24979
fessorships are also sponsored by the American College of Allergy and Immunology. In addition, written materials on the general subject of allergy and immunology, prepared by the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology and by the American College of Allergy and Immunology, and on the opportunities available to those trained in allergy and immunology, prepared by the Training Program Directors Committee, should be available. The Primer of Allergic and lmmunologic Diseases, prepared by the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, should be widely distributed. . We must interact with medical students as early as possible in their training. This includes teaching in preclinical courses, making available summer fellowships, such as fellowships funded by the National Institutes of Health, and other formal and informal activities. Toward this end, members of the faculty of divisions of allergy and immunology should actively participate in medical student teaching through dual appointments in basic science departments. . We should be highly visible to house officers and should offer quality teaching on the medical and pediatric wards and excellent electives in allergy and immunology. We must encourage interactions between house officers and faculty members and fellows-in-training. We should participate in grand rounds and ward rounds and should encourage bedside teaching of house officers by our fellows. . We should emphasize and publicize our area of expertise. This should include the diagnosis and management of immunologically mediated diseases including allergic and related diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract, allergic and immunologic diseases of the skin, drug allergies, anaphylaxis, and diseases related to these and immunodeficiency disorders. A more complete list of subspecialty interests can be found in the Core Curriculum Workshop Report (J ALLERGY CLIN IMMUNOL 1990;86:41 1-4). We recognize that new information will lead to better forms of diagnosis and management, including immunomodulation, which will strengthen the practice of allergy and immunology.
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