Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Pediatric Endocrinology Inter-Institute Training Program

  • Rachel Gafni, MD, Program Director, Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship Program, NICHD and Senior Research Physician, NIDCR
  • Catherine M. Gordon, MD, MS, Clinical Director and Chief, Adolescent Bone and Body Composition Section, NICHD
  • Jeffrey Baron, MD, Chief, Section on Growth and Development and Affinity Group Head, Developmental Endocrinology, Genetics, and Endocrine Oncology, NICHD
  • Jack Yanovski, MD, PhD, Chief, Section on Growth and Obesity and Associate Scientific Director for Translational Medicine, NICHD
  • Deborah Merke, MD, Chief of Pediatric Services and Chief, Section of Congenital Disorders, NIH Clinical Center; Adjunct Investigator, NICHD
  • Rebecca J. Brown, MD, MHSc, Chief, Section on Translational Diabetes and Metabolic Syndromes, Diabetes, Endocrinology, & Obesity Branch, NIDDK
  • Alison M. Boyce, MD, Lasker Tenure-Track Investigator, Head, Metabolic Bone Disorders Unit, Section on Skeletal Disorders and Mineral Homeostasis, NIDCR
  • Stephanie Chung, MBBS, Lasker Tenure-Track Investigator and Acting Chief, Section on Pediatric Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism, Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Obesity Branch, NIDDK
  • Christina Tatsi, MD, MHSc, PhD, Assistant Clinical Investigator and Head Unit on Hypothalamic and Pituitary Disorders, NICHD
  • Marissa Lightbourne, MD, Assistant Research Investigator/Staff Clinician, Section on Translational Diabetes and Metabolic Syndromes, Diabetes, Endocrinology, & Obesity Branch, NIDDK
  • Vivian Szymczuk, MD, Staff Clinician, Metabolic Bone Disorders Unit, NIDCR
  • Samar Rahhal, MD, Assistant Research Physician, Office of the Clinical Director, NICHD
  • Sanjay Jumani, MD, Fellow, Pediatric and Adult Endocrinology Fellowship Program
  • Sheila M. Brady, FNP, MSN, Nurse Practitioner, Office of the Clinical Director, NICHD
  • Harinder Raipuria, DNP, FNP-C, Nurse Practitioner, Pediatric Endocrinology Consult Service, OCD, NICHD
  • Devora Stein, FNP-BC, MSN, Nurse Practitioner, Pediatric Endocrinology Consult Service, OCD, NICHD
  • Brittney A. Corbin, BA, Pediatric Endocrine Fellowship Program Coordinator, NICHD
  • Kassie Nantz, Program Assistant
Jeffrey Baron (PEITP)

The Fellowship in Pediatric Endocrinology is a three-year program, accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Applicants must have completed a residency in Pediatrics or Medicine/Pediatrics and, if trained in the US, be eligible for the American Board of Pediatrics certification examination (exceptions can be made on an individual basis, according to ACGME rules, to allow fellows without pediatric residency training in the US to join this program). The fellowship is open for new trainees. It is also possible for research-oriented fellows at other institutions who are selected to participate in the Pediatric Scientist Development Program to complete their training in the program. Training takes place predominantly at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, which is the largest clinical research hospital in the world, on the NIH Bethesda research campus, which is the world's largest biomedical research facility. Additional clinical training takes place at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC, and at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. The fellowship is designed to provide clinical and research exposure that fosters the development of academic pediatric endocrinologists with experience in clinical, translational, and/or basic research.

The URL https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/org/dir/osd/tp/peitp provides more detailed information about the program.

Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service

Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service. From left to right: Stephanie Chung, MBBS; Christina Tatsi, MD, MHSc; Jack Yanovski, MD, PhD; Samar Rahhal, MD; Rachel Gafni, MD (Pediatric Endocrinology Program Director); Vivian Szymczuk, MD; Deborah Merke, MD, MS; Alison Boyce, MD; Catherine Gordon, MD, MS (NICHD Clinical Director); Sanjay Jumani, MD (Pediatric Endocrinology fellow); Marissa Lightbourne, MD, MPH; Jeffrey Baron, MD; Sheila Brady, FNP.
Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service
Click image to enlarge.
Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service
Click image to enlarge.

Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service

Members of the NIH Pediatric Endocrinology Service. From left to right: Stephanie Chung, MBBS; Christina Tatsi, MD, MHSc; Jack Yanovski, MD, PhD; Samar Rahhal, MD; Rachel Gafni, MD (Pediatric Endocrinology Program Director); Vivian Szymczuk, MD; Deborah Merke, MD, MS; Alison Boyce, MD; Catherine Gordon, MD, MS (NICHD Clinical Director); Sanjay Jumani, MD (Pediatric Endocrinology fellow); Marissa Lightbourne, MD, MPH; Jeffrey Baron, MD; Sheila Brady, FNP.

Program structure

The Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship at NIH consists of one year of clinical training and two years of combined clinical and research training.

First year

A typical training schedule for first-year fellows includes four months at the NIH Clinical Center, four months at Children’s National Hospital (CNH), two months at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, one month on consult service, and one month elective (e.g., at The Johns Hopkins University Hospital, Baltimore, MD). Continuity clinics are held once a week and alternate between the NIH outpatient pediatric endocrine clinic and the diabetes and general endocrine outpatient clinics at CNH. In addition, multi-disciplinary clinics in long-term follow-up for bone disorders, neuroendocrine tumors, differences in sex development, obesity, and other conditions are offered. Endocrine investigators in the intramural research program at the NIH run clinical protocols involving individuals with adrenal and pituitary tumors, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, McCune-Albright syndrome, bone and mineral disorders, differences of sexual development, obesity, lipodystrophy, and others.

Second and third years

During the second and third years, mandatory clinical responsibilities are limited to one half-day continuity clinic per week and inpatient pediatric endocrine consultation on an on-call basis for three months per year. Fellows learn how to develop a research protocol, conduct a clinical study or basic research, evaluate the results, and generate presentations and manuscripts suitable for publication. Fellows may choose to work in a laboratory setting, clinical setting, or both, and they perform state-of-the-art basic and clinical research closely supervised by internationally known mentors. During the first year, a research mentor is chosen, and the fellow’s progress is monitored by the Scholarship Oversight Committee. Many of our fellows choose academic careers following graduation.

Application information

Application to this program can be made through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS): The program participates in the National Resident Matching program (NRMP). For those with international medical training, the ERAS application process begins by obtaining a residency token from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates' (ECFMG’s) OASIS. Those with international residencies and/or J1–supported trainees may also consider reaching out via E-mail during the application cycle.

Physician-scientists who have already started fellowship training and are interested in completing their training at the NIH should seek admission to the Pediatric Scientist Development Program at https://amspdc-psdp.org.

To discuss the program with the Fellowship Director before you apply, please contact Rachel Gafni, MD, at gafnir@nih.gov.

Publications

  1. Szymczuk V, Boyce AM, Merchant N. Metaphyseal sclerosis in a child with a giant cell tumour treated with denosumab. Lancet 2023 402:e4
  2. Jee YH, Jumani S, Mericq V. The association of accelerated early growth, timing of puberty, and metabolic consequences in children. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2023 108:e663–e670
  3. Gun ZH, Osamor C, Taylor J, Li X, Szymczuk V, Boyce AM. Serum phosphorus as a driver of skeletal morbidity in fibrous dysplasia. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2024 108(5):1334–1340
  4. Gun ZH, Arif A, Boyce AM. Fibrous dysplasia in children and its management. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes 2024 31(1):60–66
  5. Zenno A, Nwosu EE, Fatima SZ, Nadler EP, Mirza NM, Brady SM, Airaghi KJ, Turner SA, Yang SB, Lazareva JL, Te-Vasquez JA, Chen KY, Chung ST, Yanovski JA. An open-label 16-week study of liraglutide in adolescents with obesity post-sleeve gastrectomy. Pediatr Obes 2024 19(11):e13154

Collaborators

  • Andrew Dauber, MD, MMSc, Director, Pediatric Endocrinology, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC
  • Sarah M. Reynolds, MD, Program Director, National Capital Consortium Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship, The Children's Center, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), Bethesda, MD

Contact

Brittney Corbin, BA, Program Coordinator; Brittney.Corbin@nih.gov; tel: 301-496-8368

Pediatric Endocrinology Training Program
NICHD, NIH
Building 10, Room 5-2583
10 Center Drive
Bethesda, MD 20892