The Pediatric Pulmonology Fellowship Training Program at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and Connecticut Children's Medical Center is designed to train academic pediatric pulmonologists to pursue investigative careers in pediatric pulmonology and to become skilled clinicians capable of caring for children with all types of pulmonary disease. To accomplish these goals, the fellow is exposed to both clinical and basic science research and to patients with a wide variety of pediatric respiratory diseases. The fellow is also instructed in effective teaching techniques, in the methods of design and execution of research, and in medical statistics and pulmonary physiology at both an introductory and advanced level. The fellowship program is thus focused on preparing the fellow for an academic career in pediatric pulmonology.
The Department of Pediatrics of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine is located at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center (CCMC), a 126-bed pediatric hospital that is home to most of the pediatric academic subspecialty divisions. The Pediatric Pulmonary Inpatient Service has an average daily census of 4-8 patients. The Pediatric Pulmonary Outpatient Service presently sees over 3600 clinic visits per year, including 600 new patient referrals. Ambulatory services include general pulmonary sessions at CCMC and several satellite offices and two half-day Cystic Fibrosis clinics each week at CCMC. The division has a full Pulmonary Function and Exercise Laboratory, capable of a complete array of pulmonary function testing, and a flexible bronchoscopy program. CCMC also supports a polysomnography laboratory.  The Pediatric Pulmonary Division has consultative associations with the following area hospitals:

• University of Connecticut Health Center, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
• Hartford Hospital, medicine inpatient unit (for adults with cystic fibrosis)
• St. Francis Hospital, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and small inpatient pediatrics unit
• New Britain General Hospital, outpatient outreach program

Requirements for subspecialty certification by the American Board of Pediatrics in Pediatric Pulmonology are three years of full-time subspecialty training in pediatric pulmonology, including 16 months of clinical training and a minimum of 16 months of research training. Our 3-year fellowship program includes:

The fellowship requirements will be scheduled over 3 years as follows (flexibility is permitted as needed for special interests):

The first-year fellow attends 1-2 half-day clinics per week while on the inpatient service. Second and third-year fellows will also attend 2 half-day clinics per week.
Clinical training:
While on the pediatric pulmonary clinical service, the fellow has primary responsibility for running the inpatient service under the supervision of the pediatric pulmonary attending. The fellow interacts directly with and supervises the pediatric housestaff on the pediatric unit, and residents and medical students on pulmonary elective. The fellow interprets pulmonary function tests. The fellow performs flexible bronchoscopies under attending physician supervision. The fellow takes daily night call during the week and two weekends of call per month while on the inpatient service. When on elective or research, call is limited to one weekend per month.  The first-year fellow attends most of the clinics during outpatient rotations and 1-2 half-day clinics per week while on the inpatient service. Second and third-year fellows attend 2 half-day clinics per week. By continuing subspecialty and general pediatric pulmonary clinic attendance through the second and third year, the fellow will assume primary responsibility for the management of selected patients on a continuing, longitudinal basis.
Research training:
The fellow will learn the scientific method and become proficient in selected basic and/or clinical research techniques. A research elective is offered during the first year, so that the fellow can meet with individual faculty members within and outside the division in order to discuss their research. Following this elective, the fellow will choose a faculty member as a research mentor to help in the choice and design of a project. The fellow is required to submit a research proposal to his/her Scholarship Oversight Committee during the first year, so that work on the project may begin in July of the second year of training. Although most fellows have one major area of research, one or two small, additional research projects may also be performed during the fellowship. Clinical research will be conducted in sites at CCMC, as well as through the General Clinical Research Center of the University of Connecticut Health Center or CCMC. Basic science laboratories for pediatric pulmonary research faculty and their collaborators will be maintained at the University of Connecticut Health Center campus in Farmington (approximately 10 miles from CCMC).   Evidence of productive scholarly activity is required for successful completion of the fellowship program and for eligibility to take the American Board of Pediatrics certifying examination in Pediatric Pulmonology.  To fulfill this requirement, the fellow must engage in a project in which they develop hypotheses or pursue exploration and analysis that requires critical thinking.  Involvement in the project must result in a specific written “work product”, examples of which include:  a peer-reviewed publication in which the fellow played a substantial role (preferably first author); an in-depth manuscript describing a completed project; an extramural grant application that has been accepted or received a favorably review. It is also desirable that the fellow submit and present two abstracts at a national meeting during the fellowship period.
Application and Selection Process: