In the first year of training, fellows spend approximately seven months on service at the Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital. This includes two to three months on the pediatric cardiac intensive care service, and one month with anesthesia. During the first year, fellows gain clinical and procedural knowledge that lays the foundation for developing pediatric critical care expertise.   

In the second year of training, fellows spend about four months on service in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. The overall goal is to increase knowledge and proficiency in the skills introduced during the first year. With each rotation, fellows move closer to achieving the specific goals and competencies required to become a successful pediatric critical care specialist, including developing and refining leadership skills.

In the final year, fellows have approximately two months of clinical service. The goal is to transition to an attending role with dedicated “pre-tending” weeks. Third-year fellows will complete a two-week trauma rotation at Westchester Medical Center in Vahalla, New York, and have the opportunity to explore additional electives, which can include vascular access, global health, and rotations through the various adult ICUs. 

Our curriculum includes a structured core lecture series, case conferences, journal clubs, research presentations, and quality improvement conferences. We have recently introduced a one-year longitudinal ultrasound curriculum. In addition, we have regular high-fidelity simulation sessions to enhance leadership, clinical, and procedural skills. The sessions include presentations by fellows and faculty, as well as invited guest lecturers. The goal of these sessions is to develop competencies directed at patient care, knowledge, and performance-based learning. Sessions include:

• Daily resident lectures
• Weekly clinical case discussions
• Weekly sign-out conferences
• Bi-weekly board reviews
• Monthly case conferences
• Monthly morbidity and mortality meetings
• Monthly quality assurance and safety meetings
• Monthly journal clubs

Fellows are also encouraged to join and participate in our various hospital committees. Whether divisional, departmental, or hospital, this service allows fellows to develop administrative and leadership skills. Fellows are expected to provide regular updates at relevant quality assurance conferences.

A meaningful research experience is an integral component of the fellowship. Within Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital, there are a wide range of faculty participating in clinical, translational, basic science, and health-services research. Fellows can also take advantage of non-clinical research mentors through The Mindich Child Health and Development Research Institute.

The process of selecting a research project begins early in the first year. Fellows meet with leadership to discuss interests and explore opportunities for research mentorship. In the second year, fellows have more protected research time to develop research methodology and collect data. Fellows have regular meetings with their research mentor and biannual meetings with a scholarly oversight committee. This committee consists of three or more senior research advisors who have experience with scientific oversight and mentorship. During the final year, fellows work to analyze data, synthesize their findings, and draft a first author manuscript for publication or to present their findings at a national conference.

The Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Fellowship is open to board-eligible or board certified physicians who have completed an ACGME-accredited residency program in general pediatrics. We accept two fellows each year, for a total cohort of six fellows.

Our program participates in the National Resident Matching Program. Applications must be submitted through the Electronic Residency Application Service ® (ERAS).

For more information, please contact Sheemon Zackai, MD, at sheemon.zackai@mssm.edu, or Boran Li, MD, at boran.li@mssm.edu.