Mitochondrial Medicine Fellowship Program

Mitochondrial Medicine, a Frontier Program at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), is excited to offer a one-year fellowship program We seek to recruit a dedicated MD, DO, MD/PhD, or DO/PHD fellow in any clinical field who thrives to advance their knowledge in clinical care and clinical or translational research in mitochondrial disease.

This unique fellowship opportunity is located fully within the CHOP’s Mitochondrial Medicine program, and may be modified to maximize a successful applicant’s career goals. The Mitochondrial Medicine program is supported by an integrated team of three highly expert genetic counselors, two registered nurses, dedicated administrative support, a mitochondrial dietician, physical therapists, exercise physiologists, a financial counselor and a social worker.

Fellowship research director

Matthew M. Demczko, MD
Education Director, Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
The Hub for Clinical Collaboration
Human Genetics/12th Floor
3500 Civic Center Blvd
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 267-995-1436
Email:  demczkom@chop.edu

Fellowship clinical director

Amy Goldstein, MD
Clinical Director, Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
3615 Civic Center Blvd., ARC 1002c
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 267-426-2877
Email: goldsteina@chop.edu

The mission of Mitochondrial Medicine is to become the premiere center in the world to provide integrated multidisciplinary care, advanced diagnostics and therapeutics, and individualized basic, translational and clinical research programs to improve the health of patients of all ages living with mitochondrial disease.

Clinical experience

During the course of the Mitochondrial Medicine Fellowship, fellows:

• Will engage in the clinical care of individuals in both outpatient and inpatient settings for suspected or definite mitochondrial disease, with current volumes of nearly 1,000 annual visits from patients in 44 states and eight countries.
• Will work with four faculty members who provide mitochondrial-focused evaluations and management of children and adults with primary mitochondrial disease, while also conducting clinical and/or basic research focused in mitochondrial medicine.
• Will have the opportunity to work with expert mitochondrial disease specialists accessible to patients in 15 different clinical divisions at CHOP and half a dozen more at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania — physicians who are highly knowledgeable about and committed to improving integrated clinical care for patients with mitochondrial disease.
• Will have the opportunity to regularly participate in clinical research to better characterize the natural history and organ-specific areas affected by mitochondrial disease, as well as multiple pharma-sponsored clinical trials underway in both children and adults with primary mitochondrial disease.
• Will be given the opportunity to participate in a year-long R25 Rare Disease clinical research course offered at the National Institutes of Health, as well as in monthly mitochondrial medicine fellows conferences sponsored by the North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium.
• Will have the opportunity, if interested, to adjust their clinical time to arrange to work with a collaborative team of CHOP research scientists who work to functionally validate novel mitochondrial disease genes, investigate the mechanistic subtleties of different types of mitochondrial disease, and develop precision therapies tailored to each mitochondrial disease subtype and clinical disorder. A suite of robust pre-clinical cellular and animal model systems are available in which to decipher precise disease mechanisms and effectively screen, validate, optimize, and de-risk therapies for diverse mitochondrial disease in academic-pharma partnerships as well as develop novel diagnostic methods for mitochondrial disease.

The fellow is mainly responsible for regular participation in the care of mitochondrial medicine patients seen in the CHOP Mitochondrial Medicine program outpatient clinics and coverage of the inpatient mitochondrial medicine consult service. The fellow is supervised at all times by an attending physician. Every patient seen by the fellow is discussed with an attending physician in clinic or on the consult service, and presented for discussion in weekly mitochondrial medicine multidisciplinary clinical care and pathology case results conferences that the fellow will coordinate.

By the end of the year, the fellow will be competent in performing diagnostic evaluations of mitochondrial disease including genetic and biochemical test interpretation, as well as performing and interpreting results of skin and percutaneous needle muscle biopsies. The fellow will be expected to give lectures on mitochondrial medicine to residents and student trainees. Weekend consult coverage will be expected for two weeks and two weekends per month.

Eligibility

This fellowship is a non-ACGME accredited position and completion does not lead to board certification. Individuals with permanent U.S. status and an MD or DO degree at any level of training who are eligible for an unrestricted MD/DO license (but not training license) are eligible to apply. Residency or fellowship training in any field or specialty (pediatric or adult) is acceptable. Applicants will be prioritized who seek to establish their career involving any aspect of mitochondrial medicine. Minorities and individuals of any gender are encouraged to apply. Inquiries about off-cycle starts and future year planning are welcome.

Salary and benefits are commensurate with experience and training.

How to apply

Interested applicants should prepare and submit the following information:

1. Personal statement detailing background and interest in the CHOP Mitochondrial Medicine Fellowship. Include availability and preferred start dates for program participation.
2. Completed application
3. Updated CV
4. Three letters of recommendation
5. Dean’s letter (MSPE)
6. Medical school transcript
7. USMLE parts 1, 2 and 3, taken within the last seven years as required by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or equivalent scores
8. If a graduate of a medical school outside the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico, valid ECFMG certificate or one that does not expire prior to the start of the fellowship

Completed applications should be sent by email or mail to:

Matthew Demczko, MD
Education Director, Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
The Hub for Clinical Collaboration
Human Genetics/12th Floor
3500 Civic Center Blvd
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 267-995-1436
Email:  demczkom@chop.edu