What is AlumniHub?
Finding people to do research with is hard. Not because there is no-one to work with. Colleagues in our own departments are usually as overwhelmed as we are, and the people who could help might be somewhere else. But the real obstacle to connecting with them is trust. Handing over an idea, our data, or a case series to someone we have never met means trusting it will not be taken, sat on, or handled badly. Being on the other side is no easier. We give our time and expertise to someone else's data, and trust that we will be credited for it. Most people never get past that.
AlumniHub is an online community for WEO members built to solve this problem.
“A named lead, a shared mission, and people who you can trust."
The first program is the Research Program. It connects people who need a workforce with people who want the work.
Selected Research Mentors open their own study groups and state what they work on, for example pancreaticobiliary, third space, or bariatric. Members apply to the groups that match their interest, and each Mentor selects who joins. A WEO-branded training background is not required, but it carries weight in that choice.
Groups work in two directions. A Mentor may bring data that needs a team to turn it into a publication. A member may bring their own data or research idea and use the group as the team. Both happen at the Mentor's discretion.
What makes this different from posting in an open forum is simple. Your group is led by a named senior specialist who is accountable for it. Everyone in it is a WEO member. Many share a WEO-branded training background. That is what makes people willing to put a real idea on the table.
“Ask someone who has already done it."
Another program will follow within AlumniHub: the Mentorship Program.
A mentor is someone further along the same path who will tell you what they would do. For a mentee that is what shortens years of trial and error.
Selected Mentors will open a limited number of one-to-one spots and state what they offer. That may be research and publishing, career questions such as fellowships and exams, or technical and clinical guidance. Members apply, each Mentor chooses their own mentees, and each Mentor decides how their mentorship runs.
AlumniHub is open to any active WEO member.
Kind regards,
Stefano Baraldo, MD
Endoscopy Unit
Department of Gastroenterology,
Instituto do Cancer do Estado de São Paulo (ICESP)
Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo (FMUSP)
São Paulo, Brazil
AlumniHub Founding Chair
Dario Ligresti, MD
Endoscopy Service
Department of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Services
IRCCS ISMETT - UPMC
Palermo, Italy
Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Chair, WEO Alumni Committee