JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND  –   The Henry M. Jackson Foundation (HJF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing military medicine, collaborated with the Air Force’s 59th Medical Wing Office of the Chief Scientist, Science & Technology (59MDW/ST), to provide the Clinician Scientist Investigator Opportunity Network (CSION) up to $50,000 each year in 2022, 2023 and 2024 to fund DHA requirements-driven proposals developed by the CSION fellows.
 
The program shepherds promising active-duty clinicians whose work has practical applications on the path of becoming clinician-scientists. As HJF supports research and education throughout the military medical community and 59MDW/ST focuses on assisting clinical investigators and growing their research experiences, this endeavor will assist these awardees in developing their research portfolios and becoming future military research leaders.
 
In 2024, HJF funded three CSION proposals.

The first awardee is CSION Fellow U.S. Air Force Maj. Theodore Hart, M.D., funded for the project “Localization of Noncompressible Torso Hemorrhage Using Minimally-Invasive Endovascular Techniques to Detect Battlefield Relevant Injuries in Swine (Sus scrofa): A Pilot Study.” This study aims to develop a method to initially detect and localize injuries to aortic branch vessels and solid organs in a minimally-invasive, endovascular manner. The goal is to facilitate less morbid, less resource-intensive, semi-automatic endovascular treatments in the forward hospital environment.

The second awardee is CSION Fellow U.S. Army MAJ Ryan McMahon, M.D., funded for the project “Defining the Prolonged Care Capability Gap – Quantifying the Critical Task Skill Advancement from Generalist to Surgical Physician Assistant.” This study aims to quantify the capability of a generalist physician assistant to correctly prioritize common post-operative complications and to identify the difference in ability following formal surgical training. The overall goal is to increase DoD capability and capacity to provide sustained damage control surgery and resuscitative care throughout the continuum of care.

The third awardee is CSION Fellow Army Civilian Dr. Craig Woodworth, PsyD., funded for the project “Qualitative Interviews on the Process of Processing in Written Exposure Therapy." This study aims to examine the mechanisms of change in trauma processing with written exposure therapy (WET) and identify reasons for favorable and unfavorable outcomes following completion of this intervention. The overall goal is to (1) provide support for implementation guidelines and optimize patient outcomes for healthcare providers delivering WET, (2) provide continued support for its use as a recommended trauma-focused intervention in the clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for PTSD, (3) enhance didactic training and education materials on WET for behavioral health and other military professionals to encourage broader dissemination, improve access to and quality of care, and address the health, performance, and readiness of service members.

The CSION program is unique in that it is tri-service, Corps neutral, has no service obligation, and is focused on its research mission rather than degree granting. The pipeline a CSION fellow follows is tailored to the needs of the military mission. With no service obligation, motivated members are offered a non-financial incentive to remain in a career tract specifically designed to retain research-focused medical academics in the military. The program is supported by the 59th MDW Office of the Chief Scientist, Science & Technology (ST), and all their partners with the United States Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR), San Antonio Military Health System (SAMHS), SAUSHEC, and Naval Medical Research Unit San Antonio (NAMRU-SA) to provide mentors willing to train and mentor clinician scientists in all areas of (DHP RDT&E) programmatic research.
   
HJF is proud to support these three CSION Fellows on their path to making a real-world difference in the health outcomes of military members and in furthering research on these important topics.