Didactic Training

Required Conferences for Fellows in Pediatric Endocrinology

Pediatric Endocrinology Case Conference: These 2-hour sessions are held once weekly. This series is the main academic exercise for faculty and fellows in the division. Interesting inpatient and outpatient cases are presented for in-depth discussion. In addition, faculty and fellows present topic reviews, research updates and summaries of national meetings. Members of the teaching faculty from other departments or pediatric specialties are periodically invited to present lectures to our division on topics of interest to pediatric endocrinology. Fellow Core Curriculum sessions in July and August are designed to orient new fellows to acute issues in diabetes and endocrinology. A Diabetes Technology curriculum is presented annually.

Pediatric Endocrinology Journal Club: This occurs twice per month during Case Conference. Faculty and fellows present a critical review of a recently published article covering original basic science or clinical research topics in pediatric diabetes and endocrinology.

Pediatric Endocrinology Fellow Discussion Series: This series is intended to educate fellows on the subject content topics as specified by the American Board of Pediatrics for board-certification in Pediatric Endocrinology. Fellows engage in self-directed learning sessions for two hours a month, using “Pediatric Endocrinology” (Mark Sperling, Editor) as the textbook for the topic discussions. The content specification statements detailed in “Content Outline in Pediatric Endocrinology” (the American Board of Pediatrics) serve as a template and guide the discussions. A designated member of the faculty meets with fellows for one hour a month and discusses an assigned topic. Additional monthly sessions dedicated to board review questions are presented by fellows.

Fellowship Core Curriculum: This is a series of didactic and interactive sessions that meets once a month, and attendance is mandatory for fellows in all pediatric subspecialties at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. Speakers include members of the pediatric teaching faculty and individuals from other departments. Topics cover a wide range of areas pertinent to academics, research and career planning. There is also a three hour Teaching Symposium that is held once a year.

CRSP 401 (Clinical Research Scholars Program): This “Introduction to Clinical Research” summer series is organized by Case Western Reserve University every July and runs for three weeks, with each day’s session lasting 3-4 hours in the morning. The course includes didactic sessions as well as assignments for participants. A wide range of topics relevant to clinical research and biostatistics are covered. Fellows are required to enroll and attend this series in the first year of their fellowship, i.e., in the first month of their training period.

Optional Conferences for Fellows

Adult Endocrine Grand Rounds: These didactic sessions are held once a week, October through May. Faculty and fellows of the Division of Adult Endocrinology at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center and invited speakers from other institutions present research updates and perplexing cases. Fellows and faculty in pediatric endocrinology are periodically invited to present their research projects.

Pediatric Grand Rounds: These lectures are coordinated by the Department of Pediatrics at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. The target audience is the pediatric house-staff and community pediatricians. Speakers include members of the teaching faculty at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital as well as regionally and nationally renowned researchers and clinicians from outside institutions. Fellows are encouraged to attend when the topics are of relevance to pediatric endocrinology and when faculty members from our division are invited to speak.

Fellows can also participate in fellow-specific educational programs and board reviews offered at national meetings of The Endocrine Society, The Pediatric Endocrine Society and the American Diabetes Association.

Teaching Opportunities for Fellows

Fellows are expected to lead daily pediatric endocrine inpatient team rounds with the resident team. This generally includes bedside teaching as well as group discussion and didactics in the team workroom. Fellows can participate in weekly resident educational sessions and case conferences, and are often asked to attend if an endocrine case is being discussed. Senior fellows generally present 1-2 formal resident lectures to the pediatric residents on a general endocrine topic. Fellows can also work with other learners on the clinical team including rotating residents, medical students and observers.