About the fellowship

The one-year (12-month) Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship Program is designed as a comprehensive educational and clinical training program to provide graduates the clinical expertise, scholarly experience, team leadership skills, and supervisory proficiency expected of consultants and leaders in the field of pediatric cardiac anesthesiology.

The experienced 10-member faculty in the Division of Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia is dedicated to the clinical care, education and research related to patients with congenital heart disease and critical pulmonary hypertension. The unique complexity and acuity of our patient population exposes the advanced fellow to an unmatched training opportunity.

During the 2016-2017 academic year, we performed 3,000 anesthetics, including 625 operations with cardiopulmonary bypass, 16 heart transplants, nine lung transplants, among other advanced procedures. We care for one of the largest populations of children with single ventricle physiology nationwide, providing trainees with an unmatched learning opportunities.

Clinical experience: 12 months

A major component of the Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship is geared toward supervised clinical care of cardiac surgical patients of increasing complexity and progression to independent practice.

Clinical areas of rotation will include cardiac surgical operating rooms, catheterization and electrophysiological laboratories, diagnostic imaging suites, and the general operating rooms providing anesthesia care for non-cardiac surgical procedures in children with congenital heart disease (repaired or unrepaired).

In addition, the Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia fellow will be given the opportunity to participate in emergency procedures, including cardiac and lung transplantations, in order to provide a comprehensive training experience.

The Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia fellow will be exposed to unique aspects of the Cardiac surgical program at CHOP, which includes:

• The entire spectrum of surgery for complex congenital heart defects, including fetal and intrapartum surgery, such as ex utero intrapartum treatment (EXIT) and immediate postpartum access to cardiac therapy (IMPACT) procedures
• Major organ transplantations (heart, lung, and heart-lung)
• Patients with single ventricle physiology across the lifespan undergoing a variety of cardiac and non-cardiac surgeries
• Anesthetic management of patients receiving or depending on cardiac assist devices
• Surgical procedures on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)
• An increasing number of patients with adult congenital heart disease for both cardiac and non-cardiac interventions

Clinical elective rotations

The advanced fellowship will include clinical rotations in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU, 1 month). The Cardiac Intensive Care Unit is staffed by intensivists with pediatric cardiology and pediatric anesthesia backgrounds.

The clinical rotation is intended to provide further experience in the perioperative medical and surgical management of children with congenital heart disease. The fellow will be involved in bedside care of critically ill children, transitions of perioperative patients between operating room and CICU, and Cardiac Critical Care didactic conferences.

Other learning opportunities:

• One month of pediatric echocardiography under the guidance of the cardiologist assigned to the echocardiography lab for reviewing perioperative echoes, intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography, and needful didactics for a better understanding of the pathophysiology of congenital heart disease
• Two-week rotation with certified clinical perfusionists in the Cardiac Center to acquire an in-depth understanding of the functional components and physiology of cardiopulmonary bypass in the pediatric patient

General Anesthesia (3 months — in three-week block assignments)

A rather unique concept of our program is the clinical rotation in General Anesthesia operating rooms. The advanced fellow will function in the capacity of attending anesthesiologist. The intent is to provide clinical and consultant experience supervising fellows and certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), and to occasionally function as an independent practitioner.

The advanced fellow, program director and division chief will periodically review progress in the program to identify opportunities for providing additional clinical experiences and modification of clinical assignments.

Educational program

As a future consultant in pediatric cardiac anesthesiology, the advanced fellow will be provided with one dedicated day every week for academic pursuits. Other educational opportunities include:

• Monthly departmental Grand Rounds series
• Attendance and active involvement in the pediatric fellow didactic series — the advanced fellow will coordinate and present lectures to the Pediatric Anesthesiology fellows during their Cardiac Anesthesiology rotation
• Participation in multidisciplinary simulation series, which is being initiated to enhance the clinical experience by exposing fellows to clinical scenarios and management decisions which are rarely occurring, yet of substantial clinical importance

Career preparation

Formal career mentoring will be provided; other opportunities include:

• Exposure to multiple diverse exciting pediatric research opportunities
• Participation in departmental continuous quality improvement activities
• Didactic teaching and clinical supervisory experience for all fellows
• Participation in an annual fellowship retreat for career planning and life-skills development

Research

Clinical research during this limited time fellowship year is beyond the scope and not mandatory. Motivated fellows may choose to participate in current ongoing projects. However, Fellows are encouraged to complete a scholarly academic project (clinical case report, PBLD) worth presenting at departmental grand rounds or a national meeting.

Benefits

All benefits for the advanced fellowship are commensurate with the appropriate level of fellowship training year set forth by the CHOP GME offices.

The package includes: medical, dental, vision benefits, vacation/meeting time, PE (professional expense account).

How to apply

All applications should include the following:

• Common application (CHOP or ERAS)
• Four (4) letters of recommendation (LORs)
• Medical school performance evaluation (MSPE)
• Medical school transcripts
• Curriculum vitae
• Personal statement
• Photograph
• USMLE parts 1, 2 (CK and CS) and 3 score transcript(s) OR COMLEX
• Copy of ECFMG certificate for graduates of medical schools outside the U.S., Canada or Puerto Rico

Please submit all the requisite materials via email to Kathryn Whitesel at whiteselk1@chop.edu.

Other requirements

To carry out its mission, it is of critical importance for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to keep our patients, families and workforce safe and healthy and to support the health of our global community. In keeping with this, CHOP has mandated all workforce members (including trainees) on site at any CHOP location for any portion of their time be vaccinated for COVID-19 as a condition of employment.

This mandate also applies to workforce members or trainees performing work for CHOP at non-CHOP locations. Additionally, all workforce members based in or regularly scheduled to work at any New Jersey location are mandated to be both vaccinated and boosted for COVID-19, with booster timing consistent with applicable guidelines. The CHOP COVID-19 vaccine mandate is in alignment with applicable local, state and federal mandates. CHOP also requires all workforce members and trainees who work in patient care buildings or who provide patient care to receive an annual influenza vaccine. Employees may request exemption consideration for CHOP vaccine requirements for valid religious and medical reasons. Please note start dates may be delayed until candidates are fully immunized or valid exemption requests are reviewed. In addition, candidates other than those in positions with regularly scheduled hours in New Jersey, must attest to not using tobacco products.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, national or ethnic origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other protected category. CHOP is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor seeking priority referrals for protected veterans.

CHOP is committed to building an inclusive culture where employees feel a sense of belonging, connection, and community within their workplace. We are a team dedicated to fostering an environment that allows for all to be their authentic selves. We are focused on attracting, cultivating, and retaining diverse talent who can help us deliver on our mission to be a world leader in the advancement of healthcare for children.

We strongly encourage all candidates of diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply.

Contact

Thank you for your interest in our program. For additional questions, please contact:

Division of Cardiac Anesthesia
Email: cardiacanesthesiafellowship@chop.edu

or

Kathryn Whitesel
Program Coordinator, Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship Program
Email: whiteselk1@chop.edu

or

Lindsey M. Loveland Baptist, MD, FASA
Program Director, Advanced Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesiology Fellowship
Associate Chief for Education and Professional Development
Division of Cardiac Anesthesiology, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine
Email: lovelandbl@chop.edu

Upon completion of our Advanced Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesiology Fellowship Program, to request a Fellowship Verification Form, please contact the CHOP GME office at gme@chop.edu.