Experience and Schedule
The bulk of the fellowship year is spent in the main operating rooms. Time spent in the general operating rooms is divided into two-week blocks, each focusing on various surgical sub-specialties, which include ENT, urology, orthopedics, plastics/craniofacial, ambulatory, neurosurgical, and general pediatric surgery.
A minimum of two months is spent in the cardiac operating rooms and cardiac catheterization suites. Nationwide Children's Hospital is nationally renowned both as a blood conservation center for cardiac surgery and for the hybrid procedure for single ventricle palliation. In addition to learning to care for patients of all ages with various types of complex congenital heart disease, fellows will be exposed to challenging cardiac cases utilizing blood conservation techniques, care of patients undergoing hybrid procedures, as well as managing patients for lung and heart transplantation. Additional time can be spent in the cardiac rooms if desired.
One month is spent split between the Pediatric Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit and the general Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Nationwide Children's operates one of the largest NICU consortiums in the country. All NICUs in the city are run by Nationwide Children's physicians. This has created a large referral base since the most medically fragile neonates are brought to the main Nationwide Children's NICU for care. All newborns requiring intervention are brought here. Elective time can be spent in the Neonatal ICU if desired.
Fellows will also have rotations devoted to regional anesthesia, acute/chronic pain, PACU and remote anesthesia (predominately in various radiology suites). An average of 150 nerve blocks are performed each month in patients of all ages, consisting of epidurals, caudals, and peripheral nerve blocks (femoral, popliteal, sciatic, paravertebral, interscalene, infraclavicular, supraclavicular, truncal). The program has also expanded to the use of inpatient and outpatient peripheral nerve catheters. These services provide outstanding training in regional anesthesia for fellows.
For more information on our Regional Anesthesiology Fellowship, click here.
- Main OR (6 months)
- Cardiac (2 months)
- Regional anesthesia
- Chronic and acute pain management (1 month)
- ICU (1 month)
- Fellows rotate for 2-week blocks in the pediatric ICU and cardiothoracic ICU
- Remote anesthesia
- Elective/ambulatory (1-2 months)
A formal didactic curriculum is in place for all pediatric anesthesiology fellows. This consists of:
Pediatric Anesthesiology Core Lecture Series
Pediatric Anesthesiology Core Lecture Series is given each Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday morning for the first three months of training. The pediatric anesthesiology fellows are expected to attend these lectures for the first three months they are at Nationwide Children's. Following completion of the core lecture series, fellows complete the year with the fellow lecture series.
Fellow Lecture Series
The Fellow Lecture Series is tailored to only the anesthesiology fellows and is given weekly, covering advanced topics. Most lectures are given by faculty members within the Department of Anesthesiology, with guests from other departments sprinkled into the schedule.
Additional Didactic Curriculum
- Weekly morning grand rounds
- Monthly Morbidity & Mortality/Quality Improvement
- Mock oral board preparation with junior and senior faculty
- Quarterly journal clubs presented by fellows
- Hospital GME sponsored lecture series that are available for all Nationwide Children's fellows and are currently “on-demand” online
Research And Quality Improvement
Fellows are expected to participate in a research project during their fellowship with the intent of presenting at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiology and /or the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia or another meeting of commensurate standing. Fellows will meet with Drs. Tobias, Corridore and Thung at the beginning of their fellowship to discuss research interests and participation in ongoing or developing projects. A current departmental mission is the commitment to faculty and fellow research, which has translated to a robust research program with numerous research projects, publications, and presentations. Full time research nurses will assist in grant preparation, IRB certification, study submission, research coordination and data collection. Fellows will be provided with protected non-clinical time so that they may effectively complete their projects.
Fellows will also complete a Quality Improvement project during their fellowship as per ACGME guidelines. Nationwide Children's Hospital’s mission is to provide the highest quality patient care in the safest possible environment and the hospital has been a pioneer in quality improvement and safety initiatives among children’s hospitals in the country. Fellows will have an opportunity to work with experienced mentors who teach basic techniques and help direct their project. These fellow-driven QI projects will address real quality improvement issues and will help improve care on a departmental and organizational level. Both the QI project and poster presentation are unique opportunities for the fellow to work closely with a faculty member and gain exposure to the larger issues facing anesthesia and medicine in general. Opportunities in QI are not limited to the Department of Anesthesiology as inter-departmental collaboration is highly encouraged by the Department and Institution.
View Nationwide Children's Hospital's Quality and Safety site.
