What We Support
University of Washington School of Medicine - Pain Research Summer Internships
Innovations in Pain Research Summer Internships
Pain represents an immense clinical problem. Millions of people in the U.S. alone suffer from debilitating chronic pain. In order to advance the field to reduce this burden and offer hope to the many patients with chronic pain, we will need to better understand pain and treatment mechanisms, develop new therapies, and improve access to evidence-based pain care. In order to do this, we need to create opportunities and incentives for innovative research. The Foundation has partnered with UW Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine to create a research innovation award program that will support creative, early stage research projects with the potential to lead to breakthroughs in the treatment of pain. As part of this investment, a Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunity in Pain Research was developed to expose undergraduate students to interdisciplinary research in pain to stimulate interest in future careers in pain research.
Participating in the Scan Design undergraduate summer program was one of the most valuable experiences I have had in college. It allowed me to expand my scientific skillset, become more independent as a researcher, and learn about pain research in contexts I had not been previously exposed to. My time here this summer has nurtured my love for research as a whole and inspired me to pursue pain related research in graduate school.
Program Eligibility
- Current full-time UW undergraduate student (with potential areas of study in biological sciences, psychology, nursing, social work, and/or engineering)
- Rising juniors, rising seniors, or non-graduating seniors
- Interest in exploring either basic science or clinical research in pain treatment
- Interest in pursuing a PhD, MD or MD-PhD
Program
Placement in a participating faculty's research environment for a full-time, 10-week intensive research immersion experience. Awardees will also be required to:
- Complete a full-time intensive research experience in one of the participating faculty laboratories
- Attend weekly research seminars focused on current topics in science and workshops that provide training in research skills and ethics
- Present their research to faculty, peers, and the community at concluding poster and oral presentation sessions
- Present their research in the UW Undergraduate Research Symposium
For more information on this grant program: Scan Design Foundation Innovations In Pain Summer Research Program
My time in the Scan Design Program has been a wonderful opportunity to not only grow and strengthen technical skills such as statistical data analysis, study development, and scientific writing, but to also better recognize the complex biopsychosocial relationship between pain and patient while building connections with both research peers and professionals. I greatly appreciated the opportunity to learn the multifaceted nature of pain through weekly journal club meetings and peer presentations, in addition to better recognizing how I want to integrate research into my career. Specifically, I now better understand a more patient-centered clinical research approach and am excited to combine this perspective with my engineering studies.
Conducting research allows you to develop the way things COULD be. Being able to design protocols and improve techniques, and then witness the results, drives my passion to levels I never imagined.
University of Washington School of Medicine - Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
