Pediatric Fellow and Resident Trainee Distinction Tracks

The University of Louisville Breastfeeding Medicine Distinction Track is designed to expose residents to Breastfeeding Medicine and help them acquire a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) certification and begin the path towards acquiring an International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) certification. 

Goals

• gain exposure to breastfeeding medicine
• Achieve required components necessary for a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) certification
• Accrue needed shadowing hours and Continuing Education Recognition Points (CERPs) needed to sit for the International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) exam within 1-2 years of graduation via Pathway 1 eligibility
• Equip residents with the skills to Determine how best to encourage breastfeeding and human lactation
• Allow Residents to gain insight into clients’ common and uncommon problems with a strong focus on counseling skills

Distinction Track Components

Electives

2-week Breastfeeding medicine elective
2-week Advanced Breastfeeding elective

Scholarly Activity

Residents will work with the track director to identify a scholarly project related to breastfeeding medicine, QI, education, research or other approved topic.

Certification

Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC)
International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants Pathway 1

• 95 Hours of CERPS
• 1000 Hours of Lactation Shadowing or Experience

Topic Focused Workshops

Quarterly Breastfeeding Medicine Journal Clubs

Residents who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the track coordinator. Residents who complete the CLC certification Process will also receive recognition.

The University of Louisville Child Advocacy Distinction Track is a longitudinal experience that weaves an advocacy scholarly project, elective rotations and focused workshop experiences together to explore the role of pediatricians as advocacy and child health leaders.

Goals

• Create a robust experience in advocating for children on multiple population levels (individual, hospital/clinic, local, state and national).
• Educate future leaders in child advocacy through innovative curricula, committee involvement and strong mentorship.
• Foster and disseminate meaningful scholarly activity in child advocacy.
• Improve the health and well-being of children in our community through physician development and leadership.
• Provide an avenue to grow as a resident through advocacy, while still allowing broad focus on all aspects of resident education.

Components

1. Mentorship (Advocacy mentor(s) will be assigned/chosen based upon area of interest.)
   1. Drafting an AAP-CATCH grant (Due January of PGY-2)
   2. Completion of an advocacy/community health scholarly activity in a topic of the resident's choosing during training.
   3. Presentation of scholarly activity at a local, regional, or national platform in the spring of PGY-3.
2. Topic-Focused Workshops
   1. Fundamentals of Working with a Community (including needs assessment and asset mapping). Participation in at least six is required.
   2. Literature Review
   3. Grant writing
   4. Leadership
   5. Health Policy
   6. Media and Writing
   7. Advocacy Journal Club
   8. Advocacy beyond residency - SMART goals
3. Electives
   1. Participants in child advocacy track can elect Poverty and Social Justice, Global Health, Forensics, or Advanced Advocacy as an elective rotation (dependent upon career goals).
   2. Can apply for national conferences, including AAP legislative conference.
4. Leadership
   1. Track participants are expected to have a leadership role in the resident-led advocacy program PUSH (Pediatricians Urging Safety and Health). This can include:
      1. President or other officer
      2. Committee member (community or legislative)
      3. Children's Day organizer
      4. Project leader or event organizer
   2. Opportunity to create an advocacy learning module (podcast, blackboard module, etc.) on a topic of their choice.
   3. Establish or continue a relationship with a community partner. This can be individualized to the resident's career goals and should demonstrate how a pediatrician (either general or subspecialty) can be a lifelong advocate. Examples include: a group home, school, Medicaid, AAP chapter, etc. This relationship can be part of the scholarly project, but does not have to be.
5. Advocacy Portfolio
   1. In the spring of the resident's PGY-3, each participant will give a 20-minute presentation that includes a summary of the following:
      1. Scholarly project
      2. Advocacy writing/Advocacy policy background and strategy
      3. Community partner report
      4. SMART goal

Residents who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the track coordinator.

The University of Louisville Pediatric Medical Education distinction track is a two-and-a-half-year longitudinal curriculum that weaves robust medical education, scholarly activity, elective rotations, mentoring and focused educational experiences together to explore the role of pediatricians as educators. Residents interested in improving their skills and professional identity as clinician educators are encouraged to apply during the 2^nd half of their intern year. Cohorts of 4-6 residents progress through the curriculum, collaborating in their learning and teaching.

Highlights

• Robust, mentored scholarly activity in self-identified Medical Education project.
• Tracks are opt-in: Because residents are not required to complete a distinction track in residency, members of each cohort will be motivated and passionate about medical education!
• We have set high expectations for our team to create great projects ready for conference and journal submission, while knowing that many residents have never performed a curriculum development project or studied educational outcomes. To reach our goals, quarterly meetings with medical education experts are held to share ideas, promote project movement and introduce/teach principles of Med Ed scholarly activity. To show off their hard work, each resident will present a capstone presentation to the Department of Pediatrics in the Spring of their graduation year. 

Didactics

• Track conference is held on the second Wednesday of each month. Topics rotate throughout the year according to the interests or needs of the current group. Additionally, there are quarterly "All Track Conferences" on these days, where the Advocacy, Global Health, Medical Education and Research Distinction Tracks get together for topics that span all areas of interest.
• Asynchronous learning consists of a guided walkthrough of a Medical Education textbook (~1 chapter/article per month). These will be reviewed and discussed during the Spring Elective in a flipped classroom-style session. 

Goals

• Create a robust experience in medical education across multiple disciplines and platforms.
• Educate future academic physicians in adult learning theory through innovative curricula, committee involvement and strong mentorship.
• Compose and disseminate meaningful scholarly activity in the area of medical education.
• Advance the University of Louisville residency program’s culture of learning and growth by developing leaders in education.
• Provide opportunities to apply developing knowledge and skills in medical student and resident educational programs.

Track Components and Requirements

1. Mentorship
   1. Medical Education mentor(s) will be assigned/chosen based on an area of interest.
2. Scholarly Activity
   1. Participants will complete a scholarly activity project on a medical education topic. For project completion, the resident will be required to participate in Medical Education Scholarly Oversight Committee Meetings and submit this work to a local, regional or national platform, with expected presentation.
3. Didactics
   1. Monthly, Medical Education Focused Workshops
   2. Asynchronous Didactics (Podcasts, interesting medical education articles)
   3. Medical Education Textbook Walkthrough
      1. 2021-2022 - "Kern's Curriculum Development" edited by Dr. David E. Kern, Dr. Patricia A. Thomas and Dr. Mark T. Hughes
      2. 2022-2023 - "Researching Medical Education" edited by Dr. Jennifer Cleland and Dr. Steven J. Durning
      3. 2023-2024 - "Curriculum Development for Medical Education" edited by Dr. Patricia A. Thomas, Dr. David E. Kern and Dr. Belinda Y. Chen
      4. 2024-2025 - "Researching Medical Education" edited by Dr. Jennifer Cleland and Dr. Steven J. Durning
4. Elective Rotations
   1. Participants will have the opportunity to participate in an annual medical education elective (Medical Education Elective, Research in Medical Education Elective).
5. Medical Education Leadership, Presentation and Committee Involvement:
   1. Track participants are expected to complete a medical education-focused presentation at the department level during their final year of training. Additionally, they should have a significant contribution and/or leadership to a resident medical education committee or educational opportunity. These experiences could include the medical student education committee, teaching PBL to medical students, simulation education, oversight of 4^th year medical student peer-assisted learning program, among others.
6. Medical Education Portfolio
   1. In the Spring of PGY-3, each participant will give a presentation that includes a summary of the following:
      1. Scholarly project(s)
      2. Educational presentations
      3. Leadership activities and productivity in educational programs/initiatives.
      4. Experience and outcomes of the Med Ed Elective
      5. SMART goals

Residents who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the track coordinator.

For residents with a more defined interest in global health, the residency program has offered a Global Health Distinction Track since July 1, 2018.

Goals

• Gain a deep understanding of worldwide health and economic inequities, with an emphasis on the historic roots of these disparities.
• Develop a broad knowledge of the global burden of pediatric diseases, with special attention paid to common causes of pediatric mortality, vaccine preventable diseases, mosquito borne infections and neglected tropical diseases.
• Gain an appreciation of issues related to public health, professionalism and cultural sensitivity.
• Maintain and foster a passion for partnering with populations who face limited access to health care and health care resources.

Track Components and Requirements:

1. Elective rotations
   1. Domestic Global Health (2 week rotation)
   2. International Elective in Tamale, Ghana (or other AMPATH sites)
2. Core Curriculum Noon Conference Topics (Rotating 18-month curriculum)
   1. Social and Economic Determinants of Health
   2. Global Burden of Disease (Global Health 101)
   3. Vaccine Preventable Diseases
   4. Malaria
   5. Refugee Health Issues
   6. Global Health as Public Health
3. Optional Web-based modules (available if unable to attend our in-person educational sessions)
   1. Global burden of non-communicable diseases
   2. Impact of global child health on the US communities
   3. Environmental impact on global child health
   4. Approach to internationally adopted children
   5. Water-borne and vector-borne illnesses/neglected tropical diseases
   6. Approach to fever in low-resource settings
   7. Approach to non-infectious emergencies in low-resource settings
   8. Malnutrition
4. Travel preparation and post-travel debriefing
5. Global Health Seminars
   1. Monthly noon conference series for track residents
      1. Journal Clubs
      2. Ethics Case Sessions
      3. Guest speaker seminars
      4. Case presentations
      5. Critical Reflections regarding various aspects of global child health (medical, cultural, ethical, etc.)
      6. Workshops
6. Critical Reflections on Global Health Experiences
   1. This is a requirement of the Distinction Track and for any residents participating in international electives. Reflection question suggestions will be provided by our core global health faculty.
7. Scholarly Activity
   1. All residents participating in the Global Health Distinction Track are required to complete a scholarly project related to global child health, health inequities, or healthcare issues of marginalized populations. Scholarly activity may be related to our international programs or may pertain to local issues of health equity, which affect populations here in Kentucky.

All Global Health opportunities are available to all residents, regardless of track participation. However, if there is limited space for some experiences (such as our international rotations) priority is given to our global health track participants. 

Resident Research Track

The goal of the resident research distinction track is to foster meaningful, collaborative scholarly activity in the area of original research for resident trainees interested in an academic career or fellowship.

Goals

• Guide the development of a robust original research, quality improvement, or curriculum-based project.
• Foster mentorship with research-oriented faculty.
• Educate residents on advanced research design and education topics, including evidence-based medicine.
• Prepare residents to submit an abstract to a local, regional, or national meeting and/or to submit a manuscript for publication.

Track Components and Requirements

1. Mentorship
   1. Research mentor(s) will be assigned or chosen based on the resident's area of interest. 
2. Scholarly Activity
   1. All residents will complete a scholarly project during their training. Required components of this project include:
      1. IRB application
      2. Meaningful participation in project design, data collection, analysis and write-up. 
      3. Submission of scholarly work or to a local, regional, or national meeting or publication by the end of the residency program.
3. Monthly Conferences and Workshops
   1. Rotating 2-year curriculum, topics include: IRB application process, literature search, citation management software, advanced biostatistics, abstract and manuscript preparation, etc.
   2. Quarterly group conferences and workshops with other distinction tracks.
   3. Must attend at least 50% of these conferences or workshops
4. Semi-annual Scholarly Oversight Committee (SOC) Presentations
   1. PGY-1 (Med/Peds PGY-1 or 2): potential project ideas; early design planning and feedback.
   2. PGY-2 (Med/Peds PGY-2 or 3):
      1. Fall - refining research idea and design
      2. Spring - department-wide presentation of research concept (and any data collection)
   3. PGY-3 (Med/Peds PGY-3 or 4): Data collection updates and final abstract/poster/manuscript preparation and presentation.
5. Research Elective
   1. All residents may participate in a 2-4 week research elective during their training. Research track members are able to participate in additional elective time or may split their elective time into multiple blocks on their schedule to focus on research design vs. data collection.

Residents who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the track coordinator.

The University of Louisville Breastfeeding Medicine Distinction Track is designed to expose Fellows to Breastfeeding Medicine and help them acquire a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) certification and begin the path towards acquiring an International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) certification. 

Goals

• Gain exposure to breastfeeding medicine.
• Achieve required components necessary for a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) certification.
• Accrue needed shadowing hours and Continuing Education Recognition Points (CERPs) needed to sit for the International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) exam within 1-2 years of graduation via Pathway 1 eligibility.
• Equip Fellows with the skills to determine how best to encourage breastfeeding and human lactation.
• Allow Fellows to gain insight into clients’ common and uncommon problems with a strong focus on counseling skills.

Distinction Track Components

Electives

2-week Breastfeeding medicine elective
2-week Advanced Breastfeeding elective

Scholarly Activity

Fellows have the option to work with the track director to identify a scholarly project related to breastfeeding medicine, QI, education, research or other approved topic.

Certification

Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC)
International Board of Certified Lactation Consultants Pathway 1

• 95 Hours of CERPS
• 1000 Hours of Lactation Shadowing or Experience

Topic Focused Workshops

Quarterly Breastfeeding Medicine Journal Clubs

Fellows who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the track director. Fellows who complete the CLC certification process will also receive recognition.

For Fellows with a more defined interest in Global Health, the Office of Medical Education has offered a Global Health Distinction Track since 2024.

Goals

• Gain a deep understanding of worldwide health and economic inequities, with an emphasis on the historic roots of these disparities.
• Develop a broad knowledge of the global burden of pediatric diseases, with special attention paid to common causes of pediatric mortality, vaccine preventable diseases, mosquito-borne infections and neglected tropical diseases.
• Gain an appreciation of issues related to public health, professionalism and cultural sensitivity.
• Maintain and foster a passion for partnering with populations who face limited access to health care and health care resources.

Track Components and Requirements:

1. Elective rotations

   1. Fundamentals of Global Health (2 week US-based rotation)
   2. International Elective in Tamale, Ghana (or other AMPATH sites**)

   **As of July 2023, the University of Louisville is now a member of the AMPATH Academic Consortium, with a leadership role in Pediatric Global Health with our partner hospital and medical school in Tamale, Ghana. For more information about AMPATH, please visit: www.ampathglobal.org 

2. Core Curriculum Noon Conference Topics (Rotating 18-month curriculum)
   1. Social and Economic Determinants of Health
   2. Global Burden of Disease (Global Health 101)
   3. Vaccine Preventable Diseases
   4. Malaria
   5. Refugee Health Issues
3. Travel preparation and post-travel debriefing
   1. Fellows will have robust support in preparing for their international experience, including intensive preparation during their 2 week "Fundamentals of Global Health" rotation. Dedicated pre-trip briefings will be provided for each team, as well as required post-travel debriefing and reflection. Currently all trips are supported by University of Louisville Faculty traveling alongside resident and fellow teams to Tamale, Ghana for the duration of their elective. Funding Scholarships for travel are currently available for all global health track residents & fellows.
4. Global Health Seminars
   1. Monthly noon conference series for track residents
      1. Journal clubs
      2. Ethics case sessions
      3. Guest speaker seminars
      4. Case presentations
      5. Critical reflections regarding various aspects of global child health (medical, cultural, ethical, etc.)
      6. Hands-on workshops
      7. High intensity simulations
5. Critical reflections on Global Health experiences
   1. This is a requirement of the Distinction Track and for any Fellow participating in international electives. Reflection question suggestions will be provided by our core global health faculty.
6. Scholarly Activity
   1. Fellows participating in the Global Health Distinction Track have the option to complete a scholarly project related to global child health, health inequities, or healthcare issues of marginalized populations. Scholarly activity may be related to our international programs or may pertain to local issues of health equity, which affect populations here in Kentucky.

All Global Health opportunities are available to all Fellows, regardless of track participation. However, if there is limited space for some experiences (such as our international rotations) priority is given to our global health track participants. Fellows who successfully complete the required elements will graduate with a certificate and letter of distinction from the Track Director.

The Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track is a 3-year program (2-year applicants considered on a case-by-case basis) that trains Fellows in bioethics with a focus on pediatric issues in the clinical and research spheres. It is intended to be conducted concurrently with a clinical fellowship. The program is sponsored by the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. Fellows benefit from collaborations between the University of Louisville Department of Philosophy, School of Medicine, Law School, School of Social Work, and School of Public Health.

Mission Statement  

Our goal is to develop fellows who are emerging experts in pediatric bioethics issues such as the role of the ethics committee, ethics consultations, non-beneficial treatment, shared decision making, moral distress, and research ethics, among other topics, and are well equipped to serve as clinical and research ethics consultants, attain positions on ethics committees, and participate in scholarly endeavors in bioethics.  

Aims

The primary goal of the Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track is to prepare Fellows for positions that incorporate bioethics work, including service-based work with time allocated for ethics consultations and ethics committee positions, as well as academic-based work with an emphasis on education and scholarship in pediatric bioethics. We do not anticipate that the program would prepare scholars for careers in full-time classroom teaching roles, or careers focused on empirical research in ethics or palliative care topics. Fellows will have the opportunity to accrue hours that contribute to qualifying for HEC-C certification but are unlikely to accrue enough hours by fellowship graduation to qualify for certification without additional work. 

Prerequisites 

• The candidate should hold either an MD or DO degree (or equivalent). 
• The candidate should be in good standing with their clinical fellowship program.  
• Candidates must plan to engage in pediatric clinical care and/or research.  
• This fellowship is to be pursued concurrently with pediatric subspecialty training. Applications will typically be accepted from clinical fellows immediately upon starting their clinical fellowship, with coursework in the bioethics fellowship starting a month or so later in the Fall Semester. Alternatively, those interested in confirming their admission to the pediatric bioethics fellowship program concurrently with the clinical fellowship match may apply early. 

Fellowship Components  

1. Scholarly Activities: Fellows will complete 1 (one) mentored scholarly project with the goal of completing a project suitable for submission for publication by the end of the program. This project may also be used to simultaneously meet the graduation requirements for the clinical fellowship and the mentored capstone project of the Health Care Ethics MA, if it meets the requirements of all three programs. Fellows may complete additional projects as bandwidth allows, but one completed project is a requirement of the program. 
2. Coursework Activities: Fellows are expected to enroll in either the Master of Arts in Applied Philosophy – Healthcare Ethics program or the Graduate Certificate in Health Care Ethics program.  
3. Other Educational Activities: Fellows are expected to attend the monthly Pediatric Ethics Faculty Meeting. Fellows are expected to attend the annual Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care Conference in Seattle at least once during the fellowship.  
4. Consultation Activities: Fellows are expected to serve on the NCH Ethics Committee and attend 12 committee meetings during their fellowship. The course Advanced Clinical Ethics (described below) provides an opportunity to for mentored work on clinical ethics consultations with experienced bioethicists at Norton Healthcare (focused primarily on pediatric cases but may also include adult cases to maximize learning opportunities). Fellows will participate in monthly conferences via videoconferencing platforms to review recent cases.  
5. Teaching Activities: Fellows are encouraged to participate in lectures, seminars, grand rounds, and case-based group discussions for medical students, residents, and staff. 
6. Optional Activities: Membership in the American Society for Bioethics & Humanities and attendance at the ASBH Annual Conference.  

Master’s and Graduate Certificate Programs in Health Care Ethics
The Master of Arts in Applied Philosophy - Health Care Ethics is a 33 credit-hour program, consisting of seven required core courses and four electives. The Certificate Program is a 15 credit-hour program. 

Core courses will be drawn from philosophy and medicine, with electives available from the Schools of Law, Medicine, Public Health and Information Sciences, and Social Work, as well as the Arts & Sciences Departments of History, Pan-African Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychological and Brain Sciences, Sociology, and Women’s and Gender Studies.  

The core courses provide essential grounding in ethical theory and the foundations of bioethics, current controversies in health care ethics, and the social and political context of health care decision-making, and a capstone seminar integrates program courses with each other and with students’ experience in the health care professions. 

As a part of the Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track, fellows are expected to enroll in and successfully complete the following elective courses: 

1. PHIL 505 – Selected Topics: Pediatric Ethics 
   This course provides students with an in-depth investigation into the ethical issues unique to pediatric medicine, including the participation of children and adolescents in medical decision-making, the responsibilities and limits of surrogate decision makers, perinatal healthcare decisions, etc. This classroom course is taught by a team of pediatric ethics experts, with weekly readings and classroom discussions designed to familiarize the student/fellow with ethical issues they are likely to encounter when practicing pediatric medicine and when completing clinical ethics consultations in the clinical setting. 
    
2. PHIL 505 – Selected Topics: Advanced Clinical Ethics
   Prerequisite: BETH 684: Clinical Ethics 
   This course focuses on mentored work on clinical ethics consultations with experienced bioethicists. Students will take first call on clinical ethics consultations, including gathering initial information from those requesting clinical ethics consults, and participating in discussions with stakeholders and family and team meetings, with delegation of consultation tasks depending on the experience and skill level of the student. In addition to taking participating in consultations, students are expected to conduct independent study on issues raised by individual cases and to present cases at appropriate educational outlets such as hospital ethics committee meetings and the monthly clinical ethics case conference. Given that the Advanced Clinical Ethics course involves participation in clinical ethics consultations, the required time commitment is variable and learning opportunities are offered on a whenever-available basis. Students are expected to keep flexible schedules and respond after hours and over the weekend, although every effort will be made to accommodate clinical practice commitments and other coursework.  

Pathways to the Program 

Expected Pathway  
Clinical Fellows who have matched into a subspecialty training program at the University of Louisville with an interest in bioethics apply simultaneously for (a) the Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track, and (b) either the Master of Arts in Applied Philosophy - Health Care Ethics or the Graduate Certificate Programs in Health Care Ethics. There is a single application for both components of the program, and this application is submitted in July of Year 1 of the clinical fellowship. GRE or other standardized tests are not required for admission. Students who are admitted to the Master of Arts degree program are encouraged to begin classes immediately – in the Fall Semester of year 1 of their clinical fellowship.  

Alternative Pathway 
Candidates for pediatric clinical ethics fellowships at the University of Louisville may wish to apply proactively to the Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track and the graduate program of their choosing prior to the Fellowship match. Those wishing to take this path should mention their intention during the fellowship interview process, and arrangements will be made for early admission to the Pediatric Bioethics Distinction Track and the Master’s or Certificate program. 

Application 

To complete the application, interested candidates should submit their application to Dr. Lyle at Allison.Lyle@louisville.edu. Please include the following items:

1. Expected Start Date (ex. July, 2026)
2. Contact Information - Name, Address, Phone Number(s), and Email
3. Curriculum Vitae (CV)
4. Personal Statement (1-page about career and research interests)
5. 2 Letters of Recommendation – Include the name, title, and organization of the authors 
6. Pediatric Subspecialty Fellowship Program Name
7. Supplemental Research-Related Educational Experience: list any research projects, publications, or experience with mentor name and location (if none, please list "None.")
8. Answer this question: How did you hear about this fellowship?

For more information, please contact Dr. Allison Lyle at Allison.Lyle@louisville.edu or Dr. Kyle Brothers at Kyle.Brothers@lousiville.edu.