Newly accredited Pediatric Surgery Fellowship Program is the first of its kind in Iowa
The Department of Surgery will soon welcome its first pediatric surgery fellow as part of its newly accredited Pediatric Surgery Fellowship Program. The UI program is the first of its kind in the state of Iowa and one of 56 across the United States and Canada. The UI’s program was recently accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
The two-year clinical fellowship will provide surgeons with the expertise necessary to treat the entire scope of pediatric surgical problems. Trainees will learn neonatal and pediatric critical care and management of children’s trauma, as well as gastrointestinal, thoracic, cancer, and emergency general surgery. Fellows will also develop the technical expertise to surgically treat patients as young as newborns.
“Pediatric surgeons are involved in every aspect of children’s care,” says Joel Shilyansky, MD, Robert and Hélèn Soper Chair of Pediatric Surgery, and professor of pediatric surgery. “It is a complex subspecialty that often requires treating patients with rare medical conditions, raising the bar for the type of care we provide. “
The Division of Pediatric Surgery will accept one fellow every two years, who will train with our four pediatric surgeons and University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital faculty and staff, including pediatric intensivists and neonatologists.
“As an academic medical institution, an important aspect of our mission is to develop the next generation of surgeons,” says Shilyansky. “The opportunity to work with bright, talented individuals dedicated to pediatric surgery is gratifying.”
Accreditation is based on an institution’s ability to provide a rich educational environment to trainees and assure that surgeons become experts in the clinical care of pediatric patients. A program must have a sufficient number of outstanding academic pediatric surgeons, a diverse clinical experience, and a rigorous didactic training program.
The UI program is already accepting applications, with the first fellow anticipated to begin in August 2017.