Pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship
Explore This Fellowship
Overview
Our Mission Statement:
Training pediatric pulmonologists for today while teaching for tomorrow.
As part of a world-renowned institution, the Pediatric Pulmonary, Allergy, Sleep and Cystic Fibrosis Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital provides sophisticated, evidence-based diagnostic and therapeutic care to a diverse population of patients, and receives referrals from throughout the region and around the country. The division includes a very active cystic fibrosis center, a well-developed pediatric sleep program, a multi-specialty airway, voice and swallowing center, a cutting edge pulmonary genetics clinic, a growing interstitial lung disease program, and an allergy and immunology program. These services are supported by a fully-equipped pulmonary function laboratory, bronchoscopy service and pediatric sleep laboratory. Both full-time and part-time pulmonary faculty members are actively involved in patient care, basic and clinical research, medical education, and teaching. The Pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship at Mass General Hospital offers fellows a rich training environment in which to hone their skills and develop clinical and research interests.
First Year
The primary goal of the first year of the fellowship is to become proficient in the clinical care of pediatric patients with pulmonary conditions in both the inpatient and outpatient setting. The year includes 6 weeks of electives, 4 weeks of vacation, and year-long longitudinal clinical experiences in outpatient pediatric pulmonology, sleep medicine, chest radiology, respiratory care and bronchoscopy. Fellows attend multiple conferences, which are outlined in greater detail in the curriculum tab.
Second Year
The goal of the second year of fellowship is to become proficient at reviewing the biomedical literature, developing an appropriate research question, and generating effective research plans and methods. During this time, fellows begin performing research under the close mentorship of an experienced, independent investigator. Fellows are expected to continue to develop and strengthen their clinical skills, grow their panel of continuity patients, and provide 2 weeks of inpatient coverage. Fellows also become part of the rich network of research at Mass General and have access to courses and training at Harvard via Harvard Catalyst.
Third Year
During the third year, fellows continue to build their research skills with the goal of becoming proficient at implementing research methods and techniques, collecting and analyzing data, interpreting results and presenting research findings in oral and written formats. Third-year fellows continue to strengthen their clinical skills, care for continuity patients, and provide 2 weeks of inpatient coverage.
Our goal is to provide our fellows with the knowledge, skills, and network to advance as academic clinicians in any direction they wish to pursue.
How to Apply to Our Fellowship
Program Contacts:
Program Director - Ben Nelson MD: banelson@mgh.harvard.edu
Associate Program Director - T. Bernard Kinane MD, Division Chief
Program Coordinator - Blanka Travar, 617-726-7613, btravar@partners.org
Curriculum
In addition to the clinical and research components of the program, the curriculum includes a comprehensive collection of conferences, individual learning plans and a quality improvement project.
The program-specific conferences include each of the following:
Summer orientation series: This introductory course provides the core knowledge base required to function effectively as trainees within pediatric pulmonary medicine.
Physiology Tutorial: A one-on-one physiology tutorial for the first-year fellow is led by the division chief. Through this one-hour session, fellows gain a clear understanding of pulmonary physiology and how it is altered by both disease states and therapeutic interventions.
Core Fellows Lecture Series: The weekly core lecture series provides fellows with a comprehensive knowledge base in the field of pediatric pulmonology. The curriculum for these lectures is based on the ACGME Program Requirements for Graduate Medical Education in Pediatric Pulmonology and the Pediatric Pulmonology Content Outline provided by the American Board of Pediatrics.
Part of our mission is to teach fellows about where the field of pediatric pulmonary medicine is heading. To this end, the lecture series will also comprise cutting edge topics by experts in their respective fields. Lectures are attended by both fellows (who are freed from all clinical and research duties during this time) and faculty.
Pediatric Pulmonary Consortium: Each week, pulmonologists from the New England area meet to discuss interesting, challenging and educational cases. Teaching cases are posted online. Fellows often take advantage of this collaborative environment to develop scholarly projects.
Journal Club: Faculty and fellows convene for a monthly journal club to discuss current literature and cutting edge treatments.
Patient Care and Quality Assurance: The division meets weekly for clinical case conference. Trainees and attending physicians bring challenging diagnostic and management issues to the table for group discussion and input, thereby allowing members of the division to learn from each others’ collective knowledge and experience.
Additional conferences available to fellows in the Mass General Pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship Program:
Mass General for Children Grand Rounds: Pediatric Grand Rounds is held every week except during the months of July and August.
Introduction to Pulmonology and Critical Care: This is a summer lecture series held during the months of July and August in order to provide adult pulmonary and critical care fellows with the core knowledge base required to function effectively as trainees within their field of practice. This lecture series is run by the adult program, and pediatric fellows are encouraged to attend.
Introductory Course for Allergy Fellows: Due to the overlap between pulmonary, allergic, and immunologic conditions, fellows have the option to attend an introductory course for allergy fellows held at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Mass General Brigham Clinical Fellows Retreat: The Graduate Medical Education Office of the Mass General Brigham invites all clinical fellows at all levels of training and across all specialties to participate in an annual Fellows Retreat. The primary goal of the fellows’ retreat is to provide clinical fellows with educational content which is important for clinical training and professional development. A secondary goal of the retreat is to provide fellows with valuable networking opportunities to meet their peers across Mass General Brigham hospitals.
National subspecialty conferences: Attendance at annual academic conferences is encouraged but not required. These include the annual Cystic Fibrosis Conference, as well as the annual meeting of the American Thoracic Society (ATS). Fellows are encouraged to present clinical cases and research projects at these meetings, and are given protected time and funding to attend at least one national conference each year of training.
Clinical Experience
Inpatient Pediatric Pulmonary Service
The primary goal is to prepare fellows to provide high-quality, evidence-based care of patients with pulmonary conditions in the inpatient setting. When not participating in other required and elective activities, the first year pulmonary fellow spends weekdays and every 4th weekend on the general pediatric pulmonary service. In this role, the fellow responds to all requests for consultations on patients admitted to the general pediatric service, the pediatric and neonatal intensive care units, and the emergency department. The fellow also initiates the management of children admitted to the pulmonary service, designs and implements inpatient management plans, follows the daily progress of each patient, and performs outpatient discharge planning. These activities are all performed under the direction of our attending physicians.
Outpatient Pulmonary Clinical Component
The goal is to prepare fellows to provide high-quality, evidence-based care to pediatric pulmonary patients in the outpatient setting. Throughout all three years of training, fellows see patients in the outpatient setting on a weekly basis, becoming more independent as they progress through training. The first-year fellow sees patients under the mentorship of the program director, Ben Nelson. One clinic each month is dedicated to the care of cystic fibrosis patients, which is supervised by the CF directors Dr. Fracchia and Yonker. The second- and third-year fellows see patients on Tuesdays under the mentorship of the division chief, Dr. Bernard Kinane. One clinic each month is dedicated towards sleep disordered breathing, neuromuscular diseases, or aerodigestive issues. Patients are scheduled in the fellow’s name in order to promote continuity of care.
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Care
Throughout their training, fellows care for patients with CF, both in the outpatient and the inpatient setting. During the first year, the fellow is the key member of the multidisciplinary CF care team, which includes physicians, physical therapists, nutritionists, social workers, and psychiatrists. Fellows are involved in genetic counseling of parents and families where appropriate, and encouraged to attend the CF national conference.
Pulmonary Function Testing
Fellows participate in the interpretation of pulmonary function tests and cardiopulmonary exercise tests.
Bronchoscopy Component
During the first year of the fellowship, trainees learn the art of bronchoscopy through interactive educational sessions and hands on training in the simulation center. Trainees perform bronchoscopies on Monday mornings at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary as part of the aerodigestive clinic, and at Mass General under the supervision of the program director. On average, trainees perform greater than 75 procedures in their first year.
Electives
First year fellows have protected time for 6 weeks of electives as follows:
Pediatric Sleep Disorders: Each fellow gains experience caring for patients with sleep disordered breathing, interpreting sleep studies (polysomnography), and learning equipment involved in the care of these patients.
Lung Transplantation: The transplant elective is a 2 week clinical experience for fellows during their first year of training. During this time, fellows admit and follow patients both before and after single or double lung transplantation. They are carefully supervised by the Lung Transplantation Medical Director and the transplant surgeons. Trainees perform consultations on patients who have received heart, liver, bone marrow and other solid organ transplantations.
Pediatric Respiratory Care: During the first year of the fellowship, trainees spend one week with the respiratory therapy service, participating in the care of patients in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, including ventilator management.
Pediatric Radiology: During the first year of the fellowship, trainees spend one week with the pediatric radiology service, reviewing imaging studies and attending all radiology rounds and teaching conferences.
Pulmonary Artery Hypertension (PAH): During the first year of fellowship, trainees spend one week with the PAH service. Trainees participate in clinical care, and interventional procedures such as cardiac catheterization.
Research Experience
The goal of the research component is to provide trainees with the fundamental skills required to perform original research in fields related to pediatric pulmonology.
Each fellow performs research in a laboratory of their choosing during the second and third years of training, facilitated by the program director. The process of selecting a research topic begins early in the first year, and the intent is to match each fellow’s interests with those of one of the many accomplished faculty available throughout Harvard. Collaboration is available with the Adult Pulmonary Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, the Channing Laboratory, the Harvard School of Public Health and affiliated clinical and research facilities throughout the region. Some fellows are able to obtain a master’s degree in Public Health as part of their research years.
With the guidance of their research mentors, fellows are expected to generate a research question, develop an appropriate study design, collect and interpret data, and present the data in the form of an original publication. Fellows participate as active members of the research team, attending and participating in laboratory meetings and journal clubs. In order to ensure a successful research experience, each fellow is assigned a Scholarly Oversight Committee (SOC) which meets with the fellow biannually in order to assess the fellow’s progress, provide feedback, and ensure productivity according to guidelines of the American Board of Pediatrics. The program director also meets with fellows and mentors individually on a biannual basis to facilitate their progress.
How to Apply
We accept applications electronically through ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service) on the July application cycle. We participate in the NRMP Match program (National Resident Matching Program) on the Pediatric Specialties Fall Match cycle for fellowships.
ERAS opens for applications in June each year, and programs receive applications in mid-July. Applicants are encouraged to complete applications as soon as possible or by August 20th. Interviews for competitive applicants are conducted in September and October, before the December match date. Matched applicants begin fellowship training the following July.
Applicants should submit the following documents through ERAS:
- ERAS Common Application Form
- Curriculum vitae
- Personal statement
- 3 letters of recommendation, including one from current Residency Program Director
- Official medical school transcript
- USMLE transcript to include USMLE III
- Photo
- Any other ERAS-required items
- ECFMG certification report (international medical graduates only)
International Medical Graduates:
Applicants must be ECFMG certified and must graduate from an ACGME-accredited Pediatrics or Medicine-Pediatrics residency program in the United States, or accredited Canadian equivalent.
We sponsor J1-ECFMG and H1B visas for competitive applicants. Applicants must not have exceeded maximums of stay for a visa. There must be a minimum of 3 three years remaining on the applicant’s visa in order to complete fellowship training. To apply through ERAS, please click here: ECFMG ERAS Support
For additional questions about our fellowship program or the application process, please contact us via e-mail at MGfCpulmfellowshiprecruitment@partners.org.
Contact Us
MGfC Pulmonary Fellowship Program
- Phone: 617-726-7613
- Fax: 617-724-4306
- Email Us
Program Director: Ben A. Nelson, MD
Assistant Director: T. Bernard Kinane, MD
Program Coordinator: Blanka Travar
Program Manager: