Research Opportunities

A large part of our fellowship mission in the Division of Neonatology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is to train fellows in the proper conduct of research, helping them lay the foundation for academic careers in neonatology.

Cincinnati Children’s is one of 16 sites in the NICHD Neonatal Network, and clinical trials for the network are always ongoing. The network has been internationally recognized for findings that have led to significant advances in patient clinical care. Our nurseries also participate in the Vermont Oxford Network database, internationally measuring comparative clinical outcomes and collecting data on all neonates weighing less than 1,500 grams at birth. We are in the process of establishing a regional perinatal database, offering fellows access to a large amount of important neonatal data from multiple databases.
Fellows are encouraged to choose a research mentor and project in the first three months of fellowship, and faculty with complementary interests serve as the Scholarship Oversight Committee (SOC) for each fellow. Mentors can be chosen from within or outside the Division of Neonatology, and fellows choose from a broad array of basic science, clinical and health outcomes research options.
As part of their career development, many fellows choose to pursue a master’s degree during fellowship; past fellows have obtained master’s degrees in public health, clinical research, education, epidemiology and business administration. Many graduate degrees are available through the University of Cincinnati or online.

The Section of Neonatology, Pulmonary and Perinatal Biology directs a T32 training grant in developmental biology, which may be an option for fellows who pursue basic science research. Opportunities for post-fellowship training include the Procter Scholar program for those who wish to pursue further training in basic science research, and the Quality Scholars program for those interested in quality-improvement science. These programs offer substantial additional exposure and experience for those pursuing academic careers.
Fellows are encouraged to present their work locally and nationally, participating in Research Days at Cincinnati Children’s, Ohio Perinatal Collaborative meetings, the Midwest SPR and national meetings like the PAS / SPR and ATS meetings. Research-in-progress presentations are given yearly to the division.