Overview, Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology Fellowship Program
This two-year Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology Fellowship Program is intended to provide additional clinical and academic experience in pediatric and adolescent gynecology for individuals who have completed a basic residency program in obstetrics and gynecology and who wish to pursue careers as clinician educators or investigators in academic medical centers. The program is based in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and is directed by Jill Huppert, MD, MPH.
The Section of Gynecology maintains a referral practice of pediatric and adolescent gynecology within the Division of Adolescent Medicine. The Division of Adolescent Medicine also houses the teaching program for pediatric residents, ob / gyn residents, UC medical students, and the fellowships in Adolescent Medicine. The Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology Fellowship Program at Cincinnati Children's seeks to create a new model of gynecological care, in which expert gynecologists work side-by-side with a multidisciplinary team of providers to provide comprehensive care for girls with complex reproductive health issues.
The subspecialty of pediatric and adolescent gynecology is a viable area of focus within the field of obstetrics and gynecology. There are approximately 350 members of the professional organization, the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology (NASPAG), which comprises pediatricians, internists, and family medicine, as well as gynecologists. The Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology lists a number of objectives related to pediatric and adolescent gynecology. The importance of this subspecialty should not be diminished by it's not being accredited by the American Board of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ABOG).
Few medical centers have expert faculty or the established patient population to support clinical training in pediatric and adolescent gynecology. Nationally, Cincinnati Children's has the largest full-time gynecological faculty of any institution serving only children and adolescents. As a result, it has drawn national attention for its leadership in NASPAG, the Committee on Adolescent Health Care of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the Adolescent Initiative of the Association for Reproductive Health Professionals, and the Adolescent Reproductive Research Group of the International Clinical Epidemiology Network.
A primary goal of the fellowship program is that graduates will pursue careers as clinician educators or investigators in academic medical centers, and will work to improve health care services and professional training in pediatric and adolescent gynecology.
Approximately 60% of fellowship activities involve clinical care, divided between OR, ambulatory, and inpatient services. Fellows will be supervised by three experienced pediatric/adolescent gynecologists, with gradually increasing independent clinical responsibilities during clinical sessions. As residency trained, board-eligible ob / gyn physicians, these fellows will be eligible for hospital privileges at Cincinnati Children’s and will practice independently in caring for basic gynecologic problems in adolescents. Their activities will be closely supervised by the faculty fellowship director and other faculty gynecologists in a graduated fashion. Complex clinical cases, including but not limited to surgeries for complex genital anomalies, will require supervision and direct oversight by faculty physicians. It is expected that fellows in pediatric and adolescent gynecology will supervise resident physicians, medical students, and other trainees in our multidisciplinary clinic.
Approximately 40% of the fellowship will involve research and scholarly activities. Research in the Division of Adolescent Medicine focuses on three areas: sexually transmitted infections, the effect of puberty on young women’s reproductive health, and adolescents with chronic medical illnesses. The research training program in the Division of Adolescent Medicine includes the following components: a didactic program focused on patient-oriented clinical research, a mentored research project, a Scholarship Oversight Committee, and evaluation procedures. This program is directed by Jessica Kahn, MD, MPH, Director of Trainee Research, and Lorah Dorn, PhD, Director of Research. Each fellow in the Division is assigned to a Scholarship Oversight Committee comprised of members both inside and outside the fellow’s area of expertise. This committee meets with the fellow twice per year to provide guidance and support and to ensure that fellows are making progress in their research efforts. It is our expectation that the fellow in pediatric and adolescent gynecology will participate in this research mentoring. Other scholarly activities include literature reviews, case reports, and graduate coursework.
