联系合适的人

Pat Kitzman’s ability to build a high-functioning team of diverse members is perhaps his biggest advantage in his new role as Associate Dean of Research for the 健康科学学院. He learned his team-building skills not through formal training, but through feet-to-the-fire experience building a net工作 to serve the community.

Kitzman is a co-founder of the Kentucky Appalachian Rural Rehabilitation Net工作 (KARRN), which was established in 2008 and is a thriving collaborative team dedicated to improving outcomes and quality of life for those affected by neurological conditions, 比如脊髓损伤, 中风, 以及创伤性脑损伤.   

“如果你发现了问题，你有两个选择，”基茨曼说. “你要么做点什么，要么不做. 如果你什么都不做，你就成了问题的一部分.”

The idea for KARRN began as a question posed by Kitzman and KARRN co-director, Dr. 贝丝亨特, who was at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Center at the time and is now an Assistant Professor in Gerontology at the UK College of Public Health. Patients are treated for a neurological injury and recover to the point of being sent home, 许多人去了肯塔基州的农村社区. 那么? How do those with life-changing neurological conditions fare once home?

“We looked at the same problem from different perspectives,基茨曼说. “As a patient, caregiver, health care provider, what are the barriers they face?”

Getting all stakeholders together in a room is a feat in itself, 但必要的, Kitzman说, KARRN就是这样诞生的. 一群社区成员, 那些有神经系统疾病的人, 卫生保健提供者, 和护理人员在5月21日聚集在一起, 并讨论了障碍, 服务差距, 以及可用的资源. What they discovered was a tremendous amount of resources across the Commonwealth, but those resources were not connected and not easily accessed.

“I think the reason we were so successful is that we never set out to create this,基茨曼谈到KARRN时说. “我们的努力始终是真诚的. 当我们寻求帮助时，我们从来没有被拒绝过.”

In addition to sincerity and the best of intentions to help the community, Kitzman说 a key to KARRN’s success is connecting with the right people.

“我们一直在寻找能够完成工作的人. 这些都是你可以联系的人，”基茨曼说.

事实上, it is rare that it takes longer than 15 minutes for someone in the KARRN net工作 to offer assistance or a solution when a call for help is sent via email.

“I don’t even think we know the extent of our capabilities yet,基茨曼说. “KARRN shows that a concerted effort makes the biggest impact. 我们不能单独成功.”

问正确的问题

Beyond knowing how to connect the right people to develop solutions for the community, Kitzman has a vital skill in demystifying research and helping others see creative ways to use their expertise in research.

“我们有教授新疗法的教员, 然后作为临床医生，他们治疗病人,基茨曼说. “然后他们就有了结果. 治疗是否有效? 研究本质上是提出一个问题.”

帮助学院教师在研究方面找到合适的人选, 基于他们最擅长的, 基茨曼最期待的新角色是什么. Kitzman, 谁教了16年书还在继续讲课, is a strong believer in what he calls the teaching-research-community partnership continuum – it all ties together.

“How do we teach students who learn in a different style than previous generations?基茨曼问道. “How do we prepare them as competent 卫生保健提供者 in a constantly changing landscape? You can tell when something clicks for students, and when they aren’t getting it. 作为一名教师，你需要调整. 这就像一种干预，你会有结果的.”

健康科学学院有一个主要优势. 有九大学科, and many faculty who are also active clinicians and researchers, 它可以在很多层面上发挥作用, 据基茨曼说.

“Research informs teaching; students become better 卫生保健提供者; patients receive better treatment; health care is improved,基茨曼说.

创造正确的文化

In addition to embracing team工作 and creativity in research, Kitzman will lead the Office of Research on two fundamental tenants: respect and common courtesy.

“Respect and common courtesy built an entire net工作,基茨曼说, referring to KARRN.

他说研究办公室会, 当然, 实行门户开放政策, 但他想要更进一步, 营造思想氛围, 协作, 大学和社区参与.

“如果社区不认同，研究就不会奏效. We want to go to people, instead of always asking people to come to us. 这是对他们和他们的时间的尊重。. “研究办公室为学院提供服务. We have an amazing team in place to facilitate our faculty’s research efforts.” 

He also hopes to further diversify the College’s research portfolio, by seeking funding from foundations and other less-tapped sources.

“Funding from traditional sources such as NIH funding is diminishing,基茨曼说. “这是一个小池塘. When you open up to creative sources for research and grant funding, 你增加了成功的机会.”       

基茨曼对研究的看法, 工作, and life is perhaps best summed up by a quote on his office wall from The Last Lecture author Randy Pausch: “The brick walls are there for a reason. 砖墙的存在并不是为了阻止我们. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. 他们是来阻止其他人的.”

Kitzman’s enthusiasm and positivity are infectious, but tempered with realism. He expects barriers in his new role, yet sees them as a normal part of life. 作为三个领养孩子的父亲, 其中两个是基茨曼和他的妻子抚养的, he knows that life is overflowing with barriers – if that is how one chooses to view it.

“We would not have considered quitting, when things were tough,基茨曼说. “I can’t even imagine what would have happened if we had quit. 这根本不可能.”