Joel Ernst, MD discusses investigation with research fellow, Giraldina Trevejo, MD.
Dr. Joel D. Ernst, Director of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, has been named by the National Institutes of Health to serve as chairperson of the Host Interactions with Bacterial Pathogens Study Section of the Center for Scientific Review. His term begins July 1, 2009 and ends June 30, 2011.
The director of the Center for Scientific Review, the NIH unit in which Dr. Ernst will serve, is Antonio Scarpa, MD, PhD. In letters to Dr. Martin Blaser, Chair of the Department of Medicine, and Dr. Robert Grossman, Dean of the School of Medicine, Dr. Scarpa wrote, “I want to take this opportunity to emphasize the importance of Dr. Ernst's participation in assuring the quality of the NIH peer review process.”
Dr. Scarpa continued, stating that Dr. Ernst had been selected on the basis of “demonstrated competence and achievement” in his scientific discipline “as evidenced by the quality of research accomplishments, publications in scientific journals, and other significant scientific activities, achievements and honors. Service on a study section also requires mature judgment and objectivity as well as the ability to work effectively in a group.”
The Center for Scientific Review (CSR) is the portal for NIH grant applications and their review for scientific merit. The CSR, “organize[s] the peer review groups or study sections that evaluate the majority (70%) of the research grant applications sent to NIH,” according to the CSR website. “Since 1946,” our mission has remained clear and timely: to see that NIH grant applications receive fair, independent, expert, and timely reviews -- free from inappropriate influences -- so NIH can fund the most promising research.”
Dr. Scarpa’s letter concludes with an appreciation for the Department of Medicine in its cooperation and support and praising “Dr. Ernst’s scientific stature and contributions.”
