Electives & Clinics

Pediatric Inpatient Wards & Call Schedule

Our inpatient census is divided into 4 teams— Red, Purple, Green, and Orange. Our Red and Purple Teams care for general pediatric admissions under the supervision of pediatric hospitalists. This team may also have patients from additional sub-specialties (e.g., neurology, genetics, rheumatology, etc.) that do not have an admitting team, but work closely with the staff from those departments. The remaining primary teams are split with sub-specialists.

For the past 4 years, we have utilized a night float system for inpatient ward teams. In fact, PGY-1s do NOT have any 24 hour calls! Senior residents will complete 2 x 24 hour calls in a module when on an inpatient ward team (to allow for the night senior to have time off). We have also transitioned to a night float system in the PICU, and a long call system in the NICU. The inpatient ward hours are:

  • Interns:

    • 3 weeks of Day Shift: 6 AM to 5 PM

    • 1 week of Night Shift: 5 PM to 6 AM

  • Seniors:

    • 4 weeks of Day Shift: 6:30 AM to 5 PM + 2 x 24 hour calls

    • Unlike the interns where the night float is integrated into the inpatient ward team block, seniors complete a separate, 2-week night float block at a later time

All residents are guaranteed at least 2 golden weekends (Saturday and Sunday) each month, while on an inpatient ward team.

  • Pediatric Hospital Medicine

    • Rounding Team

      • 1 - Attending Physician

      • 1 - Senior Resident

      • 2 - Intern Residents

      • 1 - Pharmacist

      • 1 - Resident Assistant

      • 1 - Social Worker

      • +/- Fellow and Medical Students

  • Pediatric Gastroenterology + Pediatric Pulmonology

    • Rounding Team

      • 1 - Attending Physician

      • 1 - Fellow

      • 1 - Senior Resident

      • 1 or 2 - Intern Residents

      • 1 - Specialized Pharmacist

      • +/- Medical Students

    Social workers and schedulers from each department are available via CCF iPhone messaging, but do not always round with the team.

  • Pediatric Nephrology + Pediatric Hospital Medicine Overflow

    • Rounding Team

      • 1 - Attending Physician

      • 1 - Senior Resident

      • +/- Intern Resident

      • +/- Medical Students

    Uses Red Team’s Resident Assistant, Pharmacist, and Social Worker when needed.

  • Pediatric Hematology/ Oncology + Pediatric Endocrinology

    • Rounding Team

      • 1 - Attending Physician

      • 1 - Fellow

      • 1 - Senior Resident

      • 2 - Intern Residents

      • 1 - Specialized Pharmacist

      • +/- Medical Students

    Social workers and schedulers from each department are available via CCF iPhone messaging, but do not always round with the team.

  • All Inpatient Ward Teams combine at night time.

    • Night Team

      • 1 - Attending Physician*

      • 1 - Senior Resident

      • 2 - Intern Residents

      • 1 - Pharmacist

      • +/- Medical Students

    *The Pediatric Hospital Medicine attending remains in house, while the subspeciality attendings and fellows are available via telephone. They will come to the hospital when needed. There are always two critical care (PICU) physicians in the hospital as well, with one specialized in cardiac intensive care.

 

Required Electives

Following ACGME and American Board of Pediatrics graduation requirements, our residents complete a variety of inpatient, subspeciality, and ambulatory experiences. Below are the descriptions for the electives:

  • Residents will spend one month each training year in the Pediatric Emergency Departments located at Hillcrest and Fairview Hospitals. Residents have increasing responsibility providing pediatric emergency care under the supervision of our Cleveland Clinic Pediatric Emergency Medicine staff.

  • During your PGY-1 and PGY-2 years, you will work directly with a Cleveland Clinic Children’s Neonatologist in the community-based Level III NICU at Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital or Fairview Hospital. The teams consist of neonatologists, NICU fellows, residents, interns, neonatal nurse practitioners, pharmacists, dieticians, respiratory therapists, social workers, etc. The experience includes management of deliveries, neonatal resuscitation, acute and chronic neonatal issues, and performance of invasive procedures.

    Residents who plan to pursue a fellowship in Neonatology often opt-in for a third NICU elective at Cleveland Clinic Children’s Level IV NICU as part of an individualized learning plan.

  • As PGY-2 and PGY-3, you will rotate through our 25-bed intensive care unit at Main Campus. You will be exposed to a variety of critically ill medical and surgical pediatric patients including those with congenital heart disease, acute respiratory distress, toxic ingestions, encephalitis, and transplant recipients. You will work directly with our PICU staff, fellows, and nurse practitioners that are all in-house 24/7, managing critically ill patients and gaining experience performing a variety of procedures.

  • The primary care pediatrics elective is completed during PGY-1 year to gain a solid foundation in general outpatient pediatric medicine in a variety of settings — urban, suburban, and rural. This elective is performed at one of our 50+ Cleveland Clinic Children’s outpatient sites.

  • This rotation combines outpatient general pediatrics with an introduction to behavioral pediatrics. The outpatient general pediatric experiences take place in one of our many ambulatory pediatric practices, either on Main Campus, Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital for Rehabilitation, or in one of our numerous community-based pediatric practices. Residents also attend scheduled clinical and didactic sessions with our pediatric psychology and psychiatry staff, aimed toward providing experience in managing the common behavioral and development problems most frequently encountered in general pediatric practice. These educational sessions include topics such as: ADHD, behavioral interventions, learning assessments and psychological/ psychiatric evaluations.

  • The community medicine rotation is a required outpatient rotation that introduces residents to the collaboration needed between pediatricians and community-based organizations to optimize the care we give to our patients. The rotation also gives residents exposure to public health policy and child health advocacy. A variety of experiences is available and includes visits with multiple community-based organizations such as Women, Infants and Children (W.I.C.) and the American Sickle Cell Anemia Association. They work in general pediatrics clinics providing care to the medically underserved and multidisciplinary clinics which address public health issues such as obesity and lead exposures. Residents learn about evidence-based medicine as well as designated sessions on child abuse. Residents are responsible for health care education sessions at local elementary schools.

 

  • This experience takes place at two of our Cleveland Clinic community hospitals, Hillcrest Hospital and Fairview Hospital, where over 4,000 deliveries occur annually. As an intern, you will work in the nursery with a pediatric hospitalist and become competent in the newborn exam, common newborn issues, and in delivery room resuscitation skills. Your experience in delivery room resuscitation skills is under the supervision of our Neonatology and Hospitalist Staff.

  • The adolescent medicine rotation is a required 4-week outpatient module designed to highlight the unique needs of this transitional age group. Clinic time is spent at Main Campus, Lakewood Clinic, and various other community outreach centers. There is extensive exposure to the care of LGBTQ+ youth, patients with complex eating disorders, the medically underserved, menstrual irregularities, sexually transmitted diseases, and substance abuse.

Additional Electives

  • Allergy & Immunology

  • Cardiology

  • Dermatology

  • Endocrinology

  • Gastroenterology

  • Hematology/ Oncology

  • Infectious Disease

  • Medical Genetics

  • Nephrology

  • Neurology

  • Pulmonology

  • Rheumatology

  • Hospice & Palliative Care

  • Nutrition

  • Otolaryngology

  • Sleep Medicine

  • Psychiatry

  • Radiology

  • Rehabilitation Medicine (CCCHR)

  • Sports Medicine

  • Acute Care/ Emergency Medicine

  • PICU

  • NICU

  • Ambulatory Elective

  • Hospital Medicine

  • Combination Electives

  • Research Elective

  • Individualized Learning Plans

  • International Electives

 

Continuity Clinic

Our continuity clinics are held at three primary care offices within Cleveland Clinic Children’s large primary care network. These sites were selected for resident clinics due to faculty dedication to education, patient diversity, and their close proximity to metropolitan Cleveland:

  • Cleveland Clinic Main Campus (R Building)

  • Cleveland Clinic - Stephanie Tubbs Jones Health Center

  • Cleveland Clinic - Westown Physicians Center

Each resident attends their continuity clinic for three half days per week during their ambulatory blocks. They will work with the same group of preceptors at the same site throughout their training. As a result, our residents develop a robust and meaningful longitudinal experience serving as the primary pediatrician for their own patient panel. Prior to each clinic, residents can expect a mini educational conference focused on a blend of primary care and community pediatrics with staff members who are very familiar with and active within their communities. Our engaged continuity clinic faculty are also invaluable resources for residents interested in developing quality improvement or clinical research projects in primary care.

 

Individualized Learning Experiences

Residents are able to design their own individualized curriculum during their last two years of training. In addition to choosing electives noted above, our program offers:

  • Residents have the opportunity to design their own electives through individualized learning plans (ILPs). ILPs are incredibly flexible and is overseen by a mentor selected by the resident and residency advisor.

    For example, a resident interested in Pediatric Cardiology may design an elective where they attend cardiac catheterizations, fetal echocardiograms, cardiac imaging, heart transplant, and electrophysiology clinic— which are beyond what a typical Pediatric Cardiology elective would provide. The world is your oyster!

  • Many of our PGY-2s and PGY-3s opt-in for a second continuity clinic. Instead of having 1.5 days of continuity clinic per “white” block week, a resident would have an additional half day of clinic. This second continuity clinic can be in primary care (with a physician you met on your Community Elective) or in a pediatric subspeciality, such as Pediatric Infectious Diseases.

  • Cleveland Clinic, in collaboration with Case Western Reserve University, sponsors an annual elective to Peru where medical students and residents from multiple specialties, including pediatrics, provide healthcare and education to members of the community.

    In addition, trainees may arrange electives to other areas of the world. In recent years, our residents have participated in electives to Ireland, Brazil, Haiti, Africa, Thailand, Cambodia, Palestine, Lebanon, India, Kuwait, and the Philippines to name a few.

  • Residents have the opportunity to rotate in our free-standing Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital for Rehabilitation (CCCHR). This facility is home to Cleveland Clinic Children's Center for Autism, the Judith M. Power Pediatric Dialysis Unit and Community-Based Services for Children with Special Needs.

    The rotation will include inpatient service time along with outpatient exposure with our inpatient rehabilitation patients and chronic pain patients, along with outpatient work with the same patient population. There is also opportunity for additional experiences with children with special nutritional needs and feeding disorders, as well as time with our pediatric physiatry clinics.