According to the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, translational science is the process of turning laboratory and clinical findings into community interventions that improve public and individual health and generate scientific and operational innovations. The Association for Clinical and Translational Science was founded in 2009 to facilitate translational science research activities and support the Clinical and Translational Science Awards Program. The awards are given to medical institutions that possess translational science expertise and provide effective education, support research, offer mentorship, and participate in translational science advocacy, in addition to demonstrating a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In 2011, the National Institutes of Health created the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences to turn institutional research discoveries into health solutions through translational science application on community, state, and national levels. The center provides support for the creation of innovative methods and technologies; speeds the development, testing, and implementation of disease diagnostics and therapeutics; acts as the governing body of the Association for Clinical and Translational Science; and advances translational science for clinical and translational science institutes.
Translational science is the field that generates innovations that overcome longstanding challenges along the translational research pipeline. These include scientific, operational, financial, and administrative innovations that transform the way research is done, making it faster, more efficient, and more impactful. The following eight translational science principles address scientific and operational approaches to advance translation:
- Prioritize Initiatives That Address Unmet Needs
- Produce Generalizable Solutions for Common and Persistent Challenges
- Emphasize Creativity and Innovation
- Leverage Cross-Disciplinary Team Science
- Enhance the Efficiency and Speed of Translational Research
- Utilize Boundary-Crossing Partnerships
- Use Bold and Rigorous Research Approaches
- Prioritize Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
To address each principle, the Association for Clinical and Translational Science created special interest groups comprised of clinical and translational science institutes members dedicated to advancing education and training through the application of that specific translational science principle. For example, to prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in translational science, the association created the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Special Interest Group in 2022.
The special interest group serves as a community for Association for Clinical and Translational Science members interested in advancing JEDI in both clinical and translational science. Its mission is to recognize, respect, and celebrate differences in culture, background, experience—embracing the importance of diversity and inclusion to advance clinical and translational science efforts—and accept moral and ethical responsibility for contributing to an inclusive culture. The aims of the group are the following:
- Conduct working groups to advance member-defined JEDI issues
- Provide training sessions open to Association for Clinical and Translational Science members
- Provide direct peer mentoring to diverse members of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences workforce
- Facilitate safe spaces through the creation of affinity discussion groups among JEDI members
JEDI is a mission-oriented, action-based special interest group that honors diversity, advances equity and inclusion, and fosters a sense of belonging and trust among its members. Members define “diverse populations” as those belonging to vulnerable or under-represented groups, including racial or ethnic groups; sex and gender minorities (LGBTQIA+); women; people living with physical challenges, neurodiversity, or emotional or mental health concerns; people with a background including financial disparity or a primary language other than English; having immigrant status; or people from an under-represented culture.
Since its inception, the group has created working groups dedicated to facilitating each of the current JEDI pillars of work: Workforce Diversity; Health Equity Engineering; and Affinity Groups. The Workforce Diversity and Health Equity Engineering working groups have produced papers currently under review by multiple journals. Members also presented their activities at the Association for Clinical and Translational Science Annual Conference in April. Research from the special interest group and its membership was also presented.
The JEDI special interest group created affinity groups that operate as informal safe spaces for members to foster collaboration and share stories about their experiences in medicine and academia. Each affinity group is tailored to the needs of the cultural backgrounds across several diverse populations, including the following:
- Disability and/or neurodiversity
- First generation to college and/or background of financial disparity
- First generation to US and/or immigrants or children of immigrants
- Sexual and/or gender minorities
- Brown and/or Black and/or Native allies
The special interest group welcomes both experts within the diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility field and ASA members who share the JEDI mission. Email the leadership team to join the group and/or any of the affinity groups. The group meets the second Wednesday of every month from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. ET.
JEDI Special Interest Group Leadership
Chair Emeritus: Felicity Enders, Mayo Clinic
Co-Chair Elect: VJ Periyakoil, Stanford University
Co-Chair Elect: Leigh Johnson, New York University Langone Health and New York University Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Director of Internal Communication: Terri Menser, Mayo Clinic Florida
Director of External Communication: Minerva Orellana, University of Washington
Secretary: Rachel Wurth, Mayo Clinic
Leigh Johnson
Johnson is the assistant research scientist at New York University’s Langone’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute.
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