Pediatric Residency Program

Cincinnati Children’s is an ideal place to discover academic pediatrics and grow from residency to fellowship, and from fellowship to a faculty position. A variety of approaches, including the “Integrated Research Pathway” and “Accelerated Research Pathway,” are available if you are interested in academic pediatrics.

 Our vision at Cincinnati Children’s is to be the leader in improving child health. The Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation, created in 1931, is a key element in achieving that vision. It is an integral part of the medical center and houses each of our academic programs. Cincinnati Children’s and the Research Foundation now rank among the top two children’s hospitals and pediatric departments for National Institutes of Health (NIH) research and research training support. Subspecialty training is supported by 11 federal institutional training grants. We train fellows in virtually all pediatric subspecialties.

Our investigators conduct research with both basic and clinical orientations. Underlying basic science themes include developmental biology, the study of normal and altered growth and differentiation of tissues.

The Research Foundation has put in place core support capabilities for both basic and clinical research that will allow young investigators to successfully engage projects, with or without extensive research experience. These core capabilities include:

• Transgenic mouse facility
• Protein analysis
• Morphologic assessment
• Bioinformatics
• Genomics
• Proteomics
• State-of-the-art animal facility
• Imaging research facility
• Biostatistics section
• Clinical effectiveness research capability
• Epidemiologic expertise
• An NIH-funded Clinical Research Center
• An academic research organization that facilitates pharmacologic clinical trials and other studies involving human subjects

 If you’re interested in an academic career and research experience, you will be paired with a faculty mentor and will be encouraged to develop an individualized curriculum. This will allow you to become an excellent clinician and maintain your research skills.

In addition, funding is available for research projects. Small start-up grants are awarded to residents with approved research projects. Residents are encouraged to present completed research projects at the annual Pratt Lectures and at regional and national sciatic meetings. Each year, a former Cincinnati Children’s trainee is invited to be the Pratt Lecture’s keynote speaker, followed by current residents presenting abstracts of their clinical or laboratory research.

There are three pathways to an academic career. The traditional approach is a three-year residency in general pediatrics, followed by a three-year fellowship in a specific subspecialty. The latter two years have a strong research emphasis. Some individuals choose additional training in specific research areas for one to three years. Cincinnati Children’s offers fellowships in nearly 30 pediatric subspecialties.

If you have significant research experience and a definite commitment to an academic pediatric career, there are two options for you to choose from:

1.) Integrated Research Pathway

This pathway is designed for MD / PhD candidates, as well as physicians with extensive research experience and a strong commitment to a career in academic pediatrics. It will allow you the opportunity to participate in significant research activity. The goal is to provide future academic pediatricians with a highly integrated, efficient and flexible training program to facilitate the development of an independent academic career.

The program allows for up to 11 months to be spent in specific research activities, which can be credited to fellowship programs, and 22 months in clinical activities. Continuity clinic continues weekly throughout the three years. During research months, a minimum of 80 percent of your time is spent in research activities. Numerous outstanding laboratories throughout Cincinnati Children’s are available to you.

Candidates will be chosen during the first six months of the residency program; they must be approved by the program and the American Board of Pediatrics. You must continue to develop your clinical skills at an appropriate rate. A local committee will monitor your clinical and research progress, and a research mentor will be chosen and be responsible for facilitating the research experience, which may be oriented toward basic science, clinical or health policy. The total duration of this pathway through fellowship is five to six years.

2.) Accelerated Research Pathway

The Accelerated Research Pathway, established by the American Board of Pediatrics, is a flexible training program that combines residency and fellowship training. After approval of the residency program and the American Board of Pediatrics, you will complete two years of residency and complete fellowship training in basic and clinical science during the third through sixth years. Training in clinical research may be incorporated into the curriculum developed by you and your mentor.

We guarantee research stipend support during training. Continued academic support through the Procter Scholars Program [link to PSP] will be available postfellowship to suitable candidates to ensure that trainees establish themselves as independent investigators during the critical early period of faculty development.

Personalized Training

 
These programs are flexible and will be tailored to maximize your clinical experience at Cincinnati Children’s and research opportunities in the Research Foundation. We will match opportunities for research training and development with your individual needs, depending on previous experiences and established goals.

We choose residents for the research programs based on previous accomplishments, training, postgraduate degrees and research experience, as well as performance during clinical clerkships and basic science courses. If you are interested in these programs, discuss this option during the application process. The interview for the physician-scientist resident candidate consists of a two day interview. The first day is like other interviews for the clinical training component of the residency and the second day is a reverse scientific interview where you interview scientists and potential mentors here at CCHMC.

• Developmental biology of lung, heart, gastrointestinal tract, urogenital system and coagulation factors
• Mechanisms of inflammation in viral and allergic airways disease
• Immunologic basis for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and its treatment
• Vaccine development and evaluation
• Bone mineralization
• Epidemiology and nutritional dimensions of childhood obesity
• Enzyme replacement for neurodegenerative diseases
• Pathogenesis and therapy of sickle cell disease
• Neuropsychotherapeutic drugs
• Bile acid metabolism
• Functional imaging of the brain
• Eating disorders
• Pathogenesis of shock
• Cystic fibrosis
• Preventive cardiology
• Growth disorders
• Biology of gene transfer
• Histiocytoses and hemophagocytic syndromes
• Analysis of effectiveness of child healthcare
• Mouse and human genetics
• Genetic and immunological analysis of allergic diseases, especially asthma and food allergy