Gastroenterology Fellowship Curriculum

Over a 3-year period, you will have 28 months of supervised clinical training in the evaluation and management of a wide variety of patients with acute and chronic gastrointestinal conditions.

Rotations

There are 39 4-week block rotations.

Each rotation has a comprehensive rotation-specific curriculum designed to promote progression toward independence and supervisory authority in procedural skills and patient management. The curricula document the goals, objectives, graded responsibilities, and schedule unique to that rotation.

* The 9 4-week blocks of elective time may be used for research activities and to pursue additional clinical training in aspects of gastroenterology of particular interest to you.

Inpatient

Your advanced clinical training gastroenterology takes place primarily at Baystate Medical Center for inpatient GI, hepatology consults, nutrition, GI radiology, motility, GI pathology, pancreaticobiliary, transplant hepatology, and procedures.

Outpatient

Our outpatient sites are the setting for teaching outpatient clinical gastroenterology, hepatology, and inflammatory bowel disease. 

Continuity Clinic

Fellows participate in a weekly ½-day continuity clinic throughout fellowship training. This experience gives you substantive ambulatory experience in the management of complex gastroenterology patients with physical, social, and psychological needs.

The clinic is a longitudinal experience—you will follow a panel of patients over a 3-year time period. A dedicated teaching gastroenterologist is assigned to the clinic to ensure quality of education and care in the evaluation and management of all patients.

The clinic experience also provides exposure to systems-based practice and practice-based learning improvement. You will be introduced to a variety of medical practices and health care systems that provide care and coverage for a wide spectrum of patients.

Hepatology and IBD Clinic

In addition, you will participate in weekly ½-day GI subspecialty clinics on motility, hepatology or IBD throughout the 3 years of fellowship. Fellows are expected to attend these clinics while assigned to other required or elective rotations.

Assessment

Milestones are used to assess your progression across the competencies, and you will earn greater autonomy and responsibility as you meet specific targets.

Competency-Based Assessment and Multi-Source Feedback (MSF)

Assessments in our program are entirely competency-based. We use MSF (self-assessment, patient, peer, nursing and faculty surveys, etc.) to develop an accurate assessment for each fellow. The assessments are used to direct feedback and develop experiences that support your advancement into a competent independent provider.

The clinical research training, 8 weeks over the course of 3 years, introduces fellows to the field of gastroenterology and hepatology research.

You will participate in increasing levels of research activity depending on your level of experience and competency. What you learn from this rotation is directly proportional to the amount of time, effort and mentorship dedicated to research. 

Fellows will display the following ACGME core competencies during this rotation: medical knowledge, practice-based learning, professionalism, and systems-based practice. 

Clinical Research Training

Fellows will follow a complete course of research study during this rotation including:

• research ethics (if working on a protocol with human subjects)
• project exploration and planning
• actual research activities
• analysis and written outcomes
• project presentation at a national gastroenterology or hepatology meeting, or publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

First Year

In the first month of fellowship, you may complete, and become certified in, the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) online course. CITI provides clinicians with information on ethical conduct of research involving human subjects, and is a collaboration between the University of Miami and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

You also take an 8-hour Introduction to Research course that emphasizes the importance of original research and scholarship and how it applies to patient care. It provides the information and tools to help you initiate an original research project. You will have opportunities to collaborate across fellowships with your peers and faculty as you discuss and plan for your future research and develop relationships with mentors.

Second and Third Years

The research rotation is primarily designed for second- and third- year fellows, and specifically allots protected educational time for research planning, work, and post-research outcomes.

The Division of Gastroenterology has a faculty with diverse clinical and academic interests. You will have many opportunities to investigate the gastroenterology or hepatology research project of your choice, generally designed and conducted in close interaction with their mentor.

Expectations for Fellows' Research

As a fellow, you are expected to:

• attend Baystate's research meetings
• present at GI research conferences
• complete at least one scholarly project or clinical research study during the 3-year fellowship duration
• present the study at a national meeting, and/or write at least one manuscript to be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

You will play an important role in the supervision and teaching, and ultimately the training, of other medical house staff, students, and allied health personnel. You are expected to contribute in a meaningful way to the education of other learners.

Specific fellow responsibilities and interactions with other house officers and medical students are delineated in each individual rotation curriculum.

Internal Medicine Residency Program’s Academic Half Day (AHD)

AHD is a weekly, four-hour block of protected educational time that provides you with a robust and dynamic opportunity for education and team-building curriculum with our Internal Medicine residents.

Fellows are encouraged to participate. AHD is led by faculty and teacher residents with the expertise of subspecialty faculty and fellows.