Fellowship Program

Mission

The UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital fellowship in pediatric hospital medicine embodies the rich tradition of academic fellowship training at UCSF. The program’s mission is to train leaders in academic PHM, who are expert clinicians in the family-centered care of sick, hospitalized children in the Northern California community, and who approach this work in a scholarly way. Our vision is that graduates become experts in the care of complex, highly specialized, hospitalized children, leaders in hospital safety and quality, excellent educators, and researchers in academic hospital medicine.

Program Overview

Our two-year ACGME-accredited fellowship offers a balanced training program with approximately one third of the training period dedicated to developing core clinical skills, one third dedicated to individualized curriculum, and one third dedicated to developing expertise in a mentored area of scholarly focus. Fellows are exposed to all domains of the PHM core competencies, grouped into: clinical conditions, core skills, specialized clinical services and systems organization and improvement. Furthermore, fellows will develop expertise in one area of scholarly focus with close mentorship from faculty both within the Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine and within the larger scholarly community at UCSF. The expected result is a scholarly work product as outlined by the American Board of Pediatrics.

We currently accept 2 fellows per year. Our program received initial accreditation by the ACGME, effective July 1, 2022.

Program Structure

The fellowship curriculum, organized over two years, draws on a well-established educational infrastructure, coursework, and curricula in place at UCSF. We are proud to offer flexibility in the program such that pathways for individual fellows will vary based on their scholarly interests and skill sets and available mentorship. In general, the curriculum is based on PHM core competencies, ACGME competencies and requirements for PHM, and PHM Entrustable Professional Activities. The core domains are:

• Clinical Care (advanced training in care of hospitalized children and procedural skills)
• Systems and Scholarship (cultivation of an area of expertise and a scholarly product)
• Individualized Curriculum (training in medical education, quality improvement, patient safety, leadership, communication, and individualized electives and coursework)

To achieve these goals, fellows participate in a combination of graduated hospital-based clinical rotations, electives, structured educational seminars, online curricula, research activities, quality improvement initiatives, teaching exercises, simulation activities, and administrative responsibilities. This work is closely mentored by leaders in the PHM division as well as a Scholarship Oversight Committee.

Clinical training is centered at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco where, with attending supervision, the fellow will lead an academic team caring for general pediatric and sub-specialty patients with a focus on complex, chronically ill and subspecialty medical and surgical patients. Fellows will also gain exposure to community hospital medicine through rotations at the UCSF-affiliated community site Washington Hospital in Fremont, CA. Additional clinical experiences include rotating at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland, and rotations with the hospitalist-led Pain and Palliative Care Services. Sedation exposure and elective time are offered.

Education and career development occur through coursework, online curricula, mentorship and other modalities. Fellows may complete formal coursework in clinical teaching skills as well as quality improvement methodology. Fellows participate in the PHM Faculty Development Series, which includes regular journal clubs, research works in progress sessions, and clinical case conferences. They will also participate in Fellow’s College, with other pediatric fellows at UCSF. To improve teaching skills while exploring systems errors and improvement, fellows will lead (with mentorship from a faculty QI lead) PHM Quality, Equity, and Safety Conferences. Fellows participate in PHM division meetings and may serve on educationally relevant committees (such as safety, quality and/or medication committees).

Scholarship and research is a central component of fellowship training at UCSF. Fellows will complete a peer-reviewed scholarly project with mentorship. We can offer formal training in clinical research through the Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics based on the fellow’s academic and career interests. We hold our fellows to the scholarly work product standards set forth by the American Board of Pediatrics.

For additional details on our program, please review:

• Our block diagram
• The curriculum overview
• A summary of scholarly training

Fellowship Benefits

The University provides fellows with a complete package of health & welfare benefits, with additional benefits provided by the fellowship program:

• Health, dental, vision, basic life, and disability insurance
• Malpractice insurance
• Parking discount
• Designated workstation in faculty office building
• Exemption from fees associated with obtaining DEA
• A stipend for attendance at an academic conference annually
• Funding for PALS, NRP and state licensing fees
• Opportunities for moonlighting in accordance with GME policies

Who Should Apply

The fellowship is suited for graduates of an accredited US pediatric or med-peds residency program who seek careers as hospital-based clinician-educators, clinician-administrators, safety and quality leaders, or clinical researchers in an academic teaching hospital environment. We accept two fellows annually.

How to Apply

Applicants must have completed an ACGME-accredited pediatric residency program. Currently, we are unable to accept applications from non-US citizens or those who are training in the US on visas. Please apply through ERAS. 

We are participating in the NRMP Pediatric Specialties Fall Match. Applicants will need to register for The Match.

Applications will be accepted after July 1, 2022 and interviews will be offered no sooner than August 15th. Rank lists are Due by November 16th and Match Day is November 30th.

This year, all interviews will again be virtual. Details to follow if you are offered an interview.

Questions regarding the application process can be directed to:

Kaitlin Clancey, Fellowship Program Manager
University of California San Francisco
Department of Pediatrics, BOX 0110
550 16th Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143
email: [email protected]
This year, all interviews will again be virtual. Details to follow if you are offered an interview.

Program Leadership

Darren Fiore, MD
Clinical Professor
Fellowship Director, Pediatric Hospital Medicine
University of California San Francisco
Department of Pediatrics, BOX 3214
550 16th Street, 5th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143
email: [email protected]

Brian Gin, MA, MD, PhD
Associate Program Director, Pediatric Hospital Medicine
University of California San Francisco
Department of Pediatrics, BOX 3214
550 16th Street, 5th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143
email: [email protected]

Sunitha Kaiser, MD, MSc
PHM Fellowship Research Director
Department of Pediatrics, BOX 3214
550 16th Street, 5th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143
email: [email protected]

Kaitlin Clancey, MS-HCA
Fellowship Program Manager
University of California San Francisco
Department of Pediatrics, BOX 0110
550 16th Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143
Email: [email protected]