We Practice What We Teach

Philosophy:

The Pediatrics Residency program at Children's Hospital at Erlanger strives to provide a balanced education which prepares the graduating resident for any pediatric career, whether general or specialty; inpatient or outpatient; academic, community, or rural.

• Program provides broad general pediatric experience including resident continuity clinic and walk-in clinic, acute care evening clinic, well-baby nursery, private office rotation, community/advocacy rotation, emergency medicine and inpatient experiences.
• Subspecialty rotations provide one-on-one learning between resident and faculty in outpatient, inpatient, and procedural settings.
• Critical care rotations can be tailored to meet the needs of individual residents 
• The volume and variety of patients provides exposure to a full range of well child care as well as disease pathology at all ages.

Educational Aims:

Our residents will be ensured an educational program that is taught by faculty dedicated to resident education using patient care based teaching and a structured didactic curriculum. 

Our program will facilitate learning and assist our residents in acquiring the information and skills they need to become proficient pediatricians who are capable of optimizing the care of children in either general or subspecialty practice.

Our graduates will be advocates for children, practice with the highest ethical standards, provide excellent medical care and be committed to life-long learning.

Faculty and Peer Mentorship:

• A Peer "buddy" mentor is assigned on Match Day. This buddy is great for helping adjust to the new city as well as the new hospital environment. The Program supports the mentorship by protecting time for buddies to meet regularly during intern year.
• A faculty mentor based on common interests, ie preferred career interests, similar family life, or preferred coaching/mentorship style.
• Our faculty mentors are bundled together in groups and once a month, mentor groups will take residents off-campus for lunch and a wellness check-in.

Simulation Workshops:

Due to the generous financial support of our faculty, the Program has been able to purchase over $10,000 in simulation trainers and mannequins for our Pediatrics residents' training.

• Most trainers are stored on-service where residents would most likely encounter the need, ie the hip dislocation trainer is in the Nursery, the LP trainer is on the inpatient service.
• Faculty hold quarterly Simulation Open Houses where all the simulation trainers are available for residents to come and go.
• Faculty also teach annual Splinting and Suturing workshops. 
• Mock Codes are also run randomly through the Pediatric training sites using our high fidelity mannequins.

Educational Retreats:

Each year, residents are able to participate in a class retreat in fun locations, facilitated by Program faculty.

• PGY-1s have a Fall mini-retreat and a Spring day-long retreat focusing on Supervisory Skills necessary to become PGY-2s
• PGY-2s have a Spring day-long, off-site retreat focusing on preparation for fellowship applications and private practice searches
• PGY-3s have a Fall mini-retreat and a Spring day-long retreat focusing on Board preparation skills and transition preparation from resident to postgrad

Wellness Curriculum:

• Wellness Wednesdays occur every month on the fourth Wednesday from noon-1PM. Residents have protected time to participate in the event that targets at least one of the Well-being Targets (emotional, financial, social, spiritual, occupational, physical, intellectual, and environmental). Recent events include:
  • Friendsgiving with the Family Medicine Residency Program
  • Intro to gardening
  • Mindfulness with yoga
  • Board games to de-stress
• Debrief Sessions occur quarterly after lecture block. Facilitated by our trained faculty members, these small group discussions are an open forum for residents to share challenging issues in their lives and work.
• A Wellness Cabinet was established in the Pediatrics Resident Lounge with items resident can use to facilitate their wellness while at work. Items include:
  • Neck massagers
  • Weighted blankets with washable covers
  • Essential oil diffusers
  • Coloring books and brain teasers
  • Yoga mats and DVDs
  • Fidgets
• Thanks to the generosity of our faculty, a massage chair was also installed next to the wellness cabinet.

Lifestyle Medicine Residency Curriculum:

The UTCOM Chattanooga Pediatric Residency Program is the first pediatrics residency program in the nation to offer a Lifestyle Medicine Curriculum integrated in the residency program.

• Evidence-based curriculum on the Principles of Lifestyle Medicine: nutrition, physical activity, sleep health, coaching behavior change, tobacco cessation, managing risky alcohol use, and emotional well-being.
• Resident will learn how to: 
  • Incorporate these principles into clinical practice
  • Enhance efficacy in lifestyle assessments and evidence-based lifestyle prescriptions
  • Leverage community and team-based resources to support lifestyle change
• Optional enhanced educational opportunities available from Lifestyle Medicine rotations to a pathway to board certification with the American College of Lifestyle Medicine by residency graduation.