Formal didactic lectures, problem-based learning discussions, and literature review sessions are held each Wednesday morning after the Anesthesiology Department Grand Rounds. This is in addition to daily clinical didactic sessions in the operating room. Fellows are expected to attend Grand Rounds and the Wednesday morning Pediatric Anesthesia Fellow Conferences when not on Echocardiography, PICU and NICU rotations. Simulator sessions will also be available. Additionally, journals, educational DVDs and textbooks are available in the Anesthesiology Library.

At present, the on-call schedule for the fellows includes late calls on Mondays and Wednesdays, which tend to be the days in the week with the heaviest pediatric surgery caseloads, in particular neonatal cases. This maximizes the fellows’ opportunities to experience a wide variety of cases. Late call begins at 0630, and cases typically are completed by early evening. Fellows’ will also be on-call one weekend of each month. When on weekend call, the fellows will be called in for all cases for which the Pediatric Anesthesia attending is required. Additionally, fellows will be called in for all pediatric solid organ transplants and any important index or complex cases, even if not on late call. This is the only way to ensure that fellows gain exposure to rare cases that may not present another opportunity during the fellows’ training. Whenever fellows are called in for a case after midnight, they will be relieved of OR duties the following day (except when on weekend call, unless called in after midnight on Sunday). The fellows are not subject to late call and weekend call responsibilities when on specialty rotations (i.e., NICU, PICU, Pain Management, Ambulatory, Echocardiography, Research). Presently, the fellows are not required to take in-house calls. Although the call hours and schedules are subject to change, to meet future requirements of the ACGME and the duties of the Department of Anesthesiology, these call requirements will be in effect for the foreseeable future.

Fellows are highly encouraged to design a research project that can be published and presented at a major professional meeting, such as the annual SPA or ASA meetings. A one month research rotation will be granted to fellows who design an IRB-approved research project. Fellows are encouraged to initiate the project at the start of the fellowship year, to allow adequate time for completion of the project, or at minimum, to collect enough data for an interim analysis of the data. This will allow the data to be presented as an abstract or poster at the appropriate meeting. Fellows will receive 2 days of research each month, on Thursday of every other week, to work on research projects and other approved academic endeavors, apart from the approved research month. Fellows are expected to be present at the workplace on their research days. Should an important index case be scheduled on the fellow’s research day, the fellow will do the case and the research day will be rescheduled. Research days will not be available during the NICU, PICU, Echocardiography, and Pain Management rotations. Additionally, fellows are required to deliver an Anesthesiology Department Grand Rounds presentation on an approved topic in Pediatric Anesthesia sometime during the course of the fellowship.

In compliance with ACGME rules and regulations, 20 days of combined vacation and sick leave are allowed during the fellowship year. Vacation cannot be taken during NICU, PICU, Pain Management, Ambulatory, Echocardiography, and Research rotations.

Fellows are encouraged to attend national or international Pediatric Anesthesia subspecialty meetings. Five days of meeting time are allowed during the fellowship year, in addition to vacation or sick leave. These days can only be taken for approved meetings. Unused meeting days do not roll over into vacation or sick leave. Fellows will be granted additional meeting days if they present research findings at a national meeting.