Fellowship orientation at the beginning of the program will outline the educational goals of the program at each level of training, including: knowledge, skills, rotations, program assignments, the distribution of rotations and assignments to fellows and staff. Basic principles for first year fellows are the acquisitions of Pediatric Critical Care technical skills, management of patients with multiple organ dysfunction and acquisition of basic Pediatric Critical Care core knowledge. During this year fellows will be required to and have provided opportunities for identifying an area of basic science or clinical science research that is related to Pediatric Critical Care. During the second year the fellow is expected to assimilate knowledge acquired in year one allowing them to have sufficient knowledge in Pediatric Critical Care to assume increasing independence. They will be able to function with multiple sub specialists, giving focused patient care. He/She should begin identifying a desired area of research and start pursuing their Pediatric Critical Care research project. The third year fellow has increased independence. They will be expected to consolidate their efforts in research by completing a manuscript or grant application for submission. The development of skills in administration and personal management that will be necessary to run an effective Pediatric Critical Care program will be acquired during this final year.
The three major areas of focus in the fellowship training program are:
- A broad clinical experience in pediatric critical care
- Exposure to both clinical research trials and basic science research, including instruction in abstract, manuscript and grant preparation
- Didactic and clinical training in methods of education of medical students, house staff and practitioners
The program has a mandatory three year curriculum to enable comprehensive training and so produce board eligible academic pediatric intensivists. The first two years are primarily devoted to clinical training, laboratory exposure and development of an independent research proposal. The third year is focused on a specific research project, including abstract and manuscript preparation.
