Obstetric Anesthesia Fellowship

Overview

The core mission of the Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine (DACCPM) at Massachusetts General Hospital is to provide world-class care to our patients by integrating education, evidence-based medicine and research. The Obstetric Anesthesia Fellowship is offered to candidates who have successfully completed an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited residency program in anesthesiology. The fellowship recruits, mentors and trains future leaders who:

• Demonstrate intellectual curiosity and a capacity for teaching
• Direct and manage complex clinical issues related to care of pregnant patients
• Further the advancement of obstetric anesthesia and obstetric medicine by investigating novel research questions and producing scholarly work

Fellows are trained in advanced and high-risk obstetric anesthesia and have the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues at the Center for Medical Simulation, Harvard Medical School, Harvard Business School, Harvard School of Public Health and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management. Graduates from the Obstetric Anesthesia Fellowship will gain clinical, leadership, teaching and fundamental research skills to apply to their future faculty positions.

Requirements

The DACCPM at Mass General follows all minimum selection criteria as delineated in the Institutional Policy on Selection (PDF). As a prerequisite for entry, all applicants for the fellowship must be a graduate of one of the following:

• American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOACOCA)
• Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME)-accredited medical school

Medical schools outside of the U.S. or Canada must hold:

• A currently valid Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) certificate
• A full and unrestricted license to practice medicine in the U.S.
• USMLE completion requirement for clinical trainees

Visa Information

All residents, clinical fellows, research fellows and staff who are not United States citizens or legal permanent residents must have the appropriate visa in order to receive a Mass General appointment.

For questions regarding a J-1 visa, please call the Mass General Registrar/Credentialing Office at 617-963-4646. Questions on all other types of visas should be directed to the Mass General Brigham International Office at 617-726-9211.

Curriculum

The Obstetric Anesthesia Fellowship incorporates a multifaceted lecture program with simulation training to enhance the fellows’ ability to provide expert care to obstetric patients. Fellows will participate in discussions centered on basic research concepts, including:

• Critical evaluation of primary literature
• Epidemiology
• Study design

Extensive research-related resources and offerings are available through the Mass General Center for Faculty Development and the Mass General Brigham Education for Researchers website. Fellows are encouraged to attend.

The didactic curriculum includes:

• Case conferences
• Daily hands-on education and discussion with obstetric anesthesia faculty
• Faculty lectures
• Grand Rounds
• Journal Club
• One month of simulation training
• One to four obstetric anesthesia lectures per week
• Simulations held in-situ on the Labor and Delivery Unit
• Twice daily multidisciplinary clinical rounds
• Ultrasound curriculum

Core Rotations

The core of the Obstetric Anesthesia Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital is hands-on clinical experience on the Labor and Delivery Unit and in the operating room.

1. Simulation Experience (one month)

Fellows will participate in team courses focused on labor and delivery crisis resource management and receive didactics in the management of maternal crises. Fellows will create a simulation under expert mentorship, as well as learn and practice essentials of feedback. Fellows will become skilled in fetal heart rate monitoring and interpretation. Fellows will also receive a management course certification and a Collaborative IRB Training Initiative (CITI) certification for ethics in human subjects research.

2. Operating Room and Labor and Delivery Clinical Activity (seven months)

Fellows are taught anesthetic management of pregnancy-related conditions. Fellows will assume the role of perioperative physician for all pregnant patients, from healthy patients to high-risk, complex patients with pregnancy and non-pregnancy co-morbid conditions.

3. Surgical Intensive Care Unit (one month)

This rotation includes care of pregnant women in critical condition. Fellows participate in longitudinal care for any patient admitted to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) or needing operative treatment.

4. Neonatology (two weeks)

Fellows will provide routine neonatal evaluation and care to patients. Fellows will complete a course in neonatal resuscitation and have the opportunity to observe and then participate in neonatal resuscitations, learning from the perinatal delivery teams.

5. Maternal-Fetal Medicine (two weeks)

Fellows will gain experience in antepartum fetal testing and high-risk antepartum care. Fellows will spend time engaged in antepartum and postpartum clinics on the Labor and Delivery Unit and will also be integral members of the maternal-fetal medicine team.

6. Research/Academics/Elective (three months)

Fellows will spend three months conducting research or other well-defined scholarly activity or clinical electives. Possible clinical electives include blood bank, regional anesthesia and fetal surgery. Fellows will be expected to submit a project for presentation at a national meeting and will be encouraged to attend such meeting should the project be accepted, with the ultimate goal of turning the project into a publication. Fellows’ posters will be displayed at the DACCPM Research Day, which occurs every year in May.

How to Apply

Selection to the fellowship is highly competitive. Only completed applications are reviewed. Applicant registration for the SF match begins on Monday, January 6, 2025. Match Day is Tuesday, June 17, 2025. The deadline for completed applications is Friday, May 16, 2025. Interviews will be conducted virtually beginning in March 2025.

Complete the SF match application

Please submit the following documents electronically with the extension naming convention (first five letters of last name, first initial, document type, e.g., Claus_S_CV) to mghobanesfellowship@partners.org:

• A current curriculum vitae in MM/YYYY format; medical school and residency in MM/DD/YYYY format
• A copy of your medical school transcript

Please direct submission to the attention of:

Emily Naoum, MD, fellowship director
Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine
Massachusetts General Hospital