Nachwuchsakademie – Herzchirurgie II Vom Einzelantrag zur Vernetzung

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Torsten Doenst
• Subject Area: Cardiac and Vascular Surgery
• Term: from 2020 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 437304820

Last year we hosted the first DFG Nachwuchsakademie Herzchirurgie (NWA). Funding was based on the perception that requirements on research have changed, which includes the field of cardiac surgery. These requirements were less met in cardiac surgery compared to other disciplines during the last 15-20 years. The response was enormous (34 applicants, 21 attendees, 20 submitted DFG-Individual Research Grant proposals, 9 approved grants). The first NWA showed that basic scientific expertise of trainees in German heart surgery has still developmental potential. In addition, it showed that the intellectual competencies and the interest to learn the necessary basics are there and that there is still a need of more support for the young. Another effect of the NWA is the ongoing formation of a cooperation with the largest surgical scientific network of North America (CTSN) which may and shall lead to the creation of important international networks. Networking becomes more and more important in the academic field. Present top publications of basic and clinical science are increasingly based on (international) connected projects. We showed that the level of cooperation in heart surgery currently lags behind. Therefore, we apply for the 2. Nachwuchsakademie Herzchirurgie with the aim to spread basic scientific knowledge amongst trainees of German heart surgery and to increase the extent of scientific networking (national, international, clinical and basic science).

• DFG Programme: Workshops for Early Career Investigators
• Cooperation Partners: Professor Dr. Christian Matthias Hagl; Professor Dr. Artur Lichtenberg