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Pediatric Endocrinology Inter-Institute Training Program
- Constantine A. Stratakis, MD, DSc, Program Director and Scientific Director, NICHD
- Maya B. Lodish, MD, Deputy Director, Pediatric Endocrine Fellowship, Assistant Clinical Investigator and Head, Unit on Hormones and Cancer, NICHD
- Carolyn Bondy, MD, Chief, Developmental Endocrinology Branch, NICHD
- Jeffrey Baron, MD, Head, Section on Growth and Development, NICHD
- Rebecca Brown, MD, Senior Clinical Fellow, Clinical Endocrinology Branch, NIDDK
- Angela Delaney, MD, Assistant Clinical Investigator, NICHD
- Rachel Gafni, MD, Craniofacial and Skeletal Diseases Branch, NIDCR
- Joan Han, MD, Assistant Clinical Investigator and Head, Unit on Metabolism and Neuroendocrinology, NICHD
- Margaret Keil, MS, CRNP, Director, Pediatric Endocrine Clinical Services, NICHD
- Cassandra King, Program Coordinator, NICHD
- Deborah Merke, MD, Chief of Pediatric Services Clinical Center, NIH
- Kristina Rother, MD, Head, Section on Pediatric Diabetes and Metabolism, NIDDK
- Jack Yanovski, MD, PhD, Head, Section on Growth and Obesity, NICHD
The fellowship in Pediatric Endocrinology is a three-year ACGME–accredited program providing comprehensive training in clinical patient management and guidance in the development of research skills. The fellowship is at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and based at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center (CC), in Bethesda, Maryland. The NICHD program is based at one of the largest and most sophisticated research institutions in the United States. The CC maintains clinical research protocols investigating the treatment of adrenal and pituitary tumors, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, Turner Syndrome, McCune-Albright sydrome, Cushing's syndrome, obesity, and others. The fellow gains critical skills in the construction and execution of clinical research projects while learning about more rare pediatric endocrine disorders.
Participating institutions include The Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Department of Pediatrics, the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Children's National Medical Center (CNMC), Washington, DC, and, the co-sponsoring institution, Georgetown University (GU) Department of Pediatrics. GU, JHU, and CNMC serve as primary care facilities, and the NIH-CC is home to a large tertiary care referral and research center. These facilities make available to our fellows pediatric endocrine, diabetes, oncology, metabolic, bone disorders, and other pediatric subspecialty clinics and consult services as well as general pediatric inpatient and intensive care units. The fellowship is designed to provide clinical and research exposure that permits the development of academic Pediatric Endocrinologists with experience in both clinical and bench research. The first year of the fellowship is dedicated to the acquisition of necessary clinical skills from all aspects of the principles and practice of Pediatric Endocrinology. During that year, fellows rotate through the NIH-CC and the participating hospitals. The second and third years are focused research years, which allow for training in laboratory or clinical research. During these two years, fellows also receive appropriate courses on statistics, biotechnology and laboratory methods, grant and scientific paper writing, and the development and execution of clinical trials. Pediatric Endocrine fellows maintain a weekly continuity clinic with a variety of patients at the NIH-CC and have the option of attending continuity clinics at participating institutions beyond their first clinical year.
Educational Program
The Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship at NIH consists of one year of clinical training, and two years of combined clinical training and research training.
Clinical Training Rotations
A typical training schedule for first-year fellows includes the following rotations: 6–8 weeks at The Johns Hopkins University Hospital, 6–8 weeks at Georgetown University Hospital, 6–8 weeks at Children's National Medical Center, and 6 months at NIH Clinical Research Center. During the second and third years, mandatory clinical responsibilities are limited to a half-day continuity clinic per week and provide inpatient pediatric endocrine consultation on an on-call basis.
Didactic Training
Regularly scheduled didactic courses, seminars, and case conferences enhance clinical experience. These include the following weekly events:
- Endocrine Grand Rounds
- Pediatric Endocrine Case Conference
- Pediatric post-clinic conference
- Lecture series covering both clinical and research topics
- Journal Club (once a month)
- Board review
Fellows are encouraged to attend at least one national/international professional meeting/year during the three fellowship years.
Research Training
Fellows learn how to develop a research protocol, conduct a study, evaluate the results, and create a presentation or a manuscript suitable for publication. Work in a laboratory setting performing state-of-the-art basic science research is closely supervised by internationally known mentors. During the first year, a research mentor is chosen, and the project for each fellow and progress on it are monitored by a committee, as recommended by the American Board of Pediatrics. With the mentor's help, the fellow defines a topic of special interest and develops a research protocol. The second and third years of the fellowship are dedicated to the successful completion of the selected project(s) with minimal clinical duty requirements.
Call Frequency
There is no in-house call. During the first year, pediatric endocrine fellows are on call from home, supported by one of the endocrine attendings. During the second and third years, fellows take calls from home when they participate in the pediatric endocrine consult service. Third-year fellows attend one month in the wards of the NIH-CRC and are on-call from home for the ward during those 4 weeks.
Teaching Opportunities
Third-year fellows are required to take a supervisory role and cover the pediatric endocrine inpatient service at the NIH-CC for one month. During those 4 weeks, the senior fellow supervises first-year fellows, residents, and students and is responsible for teaching rounds and conferences.
Evaluation and Quality Assurance
The fellow meets with the program director, the mentor, and the supervising committee on a regular basis to assess personal goals and objectives and to review evaluations from the staff. All fellows and other staff participate in regular staff meetings, and quality assurance is monitored both at the program and at the hospital level by regular (weekly and other) meetings.
Application Process
The program participates in the ERAS on-line application process as well as the NRMP match program. Contact information is listed below.
Contact
Pediatric Endocrinology Training Program
NICHD, NIH
Building 10, Room 9D42
10 Center Drive, MSC-1830
Bethesda, MD 20892-1830
Phone: 301-451-1466 • Fax: 301-480-0378
Email: cassandra.king@nih.gov, lodishma@mail.nih.gov, or stratakc@mail.nih.gov
Online Application: www.aamc.org/services/eras
Additional Funding
- NIH intramural program
For more information, please visit pe.nichd.nih.gov.