Pediatric Neuromuscular Fellowship Program

Overview

The Pediatric Neuromuscular Fellowship Program at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) is a one-year clinical training program that offers qualified physicians exposure to neuromuscular medicine and testing modalities, including muscle ultrasound. Additional electromyography (EMG), nerve conduction studies (NCS) and electrophysiology training is available, offered in collaboration with colleagues at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Pennsylvania Hospital.

Length of Fellowship: 1 year

Start date: July 1

Location: Philadelphia, PA

Salary: Commensurate

Application deadline: February 28 year prior to fellowship start date

Institutional GME approval: Yes

ACGME accredited: No

Primary topic: Neuromuscular medicine

Requirements:

• Adult or pediatric neurology residency, board certified or board eligible
• International candidates will be considered

Clinical activities

Fellows will see children with neuromuscular symptoms in the Neuromuscular Program at CHOP and through inpatient consultations by the primary Neurology service teams.

Fellows will gain clinical experience in caring for children with a wide variety of common and rare problems and disorders, including:

• Babies with very poor muscle tone, often referred to as “floppy babies”
• Children who are hypotonic and/or weak
• Children with pediatric muscular dystrophy

• Children with inherited and acquired myopathies, including structural, inflammatory and metabolic myopathies, as well as channelopathies
• Infants and children with acquired myasthenia gravis and genetic myasthenic syndromes
• Children with botulism
• Children with acute and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathies (AIDP and CIDP)
• Children with congenital and inherited neuropathies
• Children with spinal muscular atrophy
• Children with disorders of motor unit hyperexcitability

Electromyography (EMG) of infants and children takes place under sedation during clinic at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and also weekly in the EMG lab at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP). Further EMG and nerve conduction studies (NCS) training with adult patients is available in collaboration with HUP colleagues if desired.

CHOP fellows have the option of attending an ACGME-compatible neuromuscular lecture series that is provided for the HUP Neuromuscular fellow(s).

Nerve and muscle biopsies are performed by general surgery and interpreted by neurology and neuropathology. Trainees attend conferences where the biopsies are reviewed and discussed.

Training faculty

The Division of Neurology currently has approximately 40 neurologists, with seven specializing in clinical neuromuscular care:

• John Brandsema, MD, attending neurologist, section head and director of the Neuromuscular Fellowship Program
• Brenda L. Banwell, MD, chief of the Division of Neurology
• Elizabeth Kichula, MD, PhD, attending neurologist
• Susan Matesanz, MD, attending neurologist
• Gihan Tennekoon, MBBS, MRCS, LCRP, attending neurologist
• Sabrina Yum, MD, attending neurologist
• Vanessa Battista, MS, RN, CPNP, nurse practitioner

There is also a monthly Complex Diagnostic Clinic featuring Carsten G. Bönnemann, MD, of the National Institutes of Health.

Conference schedule

Monday

• Complex Diagnostic Clinic (Brandsema/Bönnemann) – once per month, mornings
• Muscle/nerve pathology conference – once per month, afternoons

Tuesday

• EMGs at HUP (Brandsema/Yum) – mornings
• Neuromuscular Screening Clinic (Kichula/Matesanz) - mornings
• Muscular Dystrophy Assocation Clinic (Banwell/Brandsema/Matesanz/Kichula/Yum) – afternoons

Wednesday

• Muscular Dystrophy Association Clinic (Brandsema/Kichula/Matesanz/Tennekoon/Yum) – mornings
• Brachial Plexus Clinic (Yum) – weekly, afternoons
• Neuromuscular conference at HUP (3 Gates) – 4 p.m.

Thursday

• CHOP Neurology Grand Rounds – mornings
• Neuromuscular multidisciplinary rounds (Colket) – 4 p.m., first Thursday each month

Friday

• EMGs at CHOP (Brandsema/Yum) – weekly
• Urgent Neuromuscular Clinic

Research expectations and opportunities

Fellows have the opportunity to complete both clinical research and basic science research projects. Many of our past fellows have gone on to further training at the U.S. National Institutes of Health or abroad.

How to apply

The following items are required for application to the Pediatric Neuromuscular Fellowship Program:

• Common application
• Three (3) Letters of Reference
• Dean’s letter, also known as Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
• Medical school transcript
• Curriculum Vitae
• Personal statement
• Photograph
• USMLE Parts 1, 2 (ck and cs if applicable) and three (3) score transcripts
• ECFMG Certification if graduate of a medical school outside the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico
• Visa documentation if not a citizen or permanent resident of the U.S.

Application process

Please submit applications via email to Ashley Rees-Jones at reesjonesa@email.chop.edu. If items need to be mailed, they can be mailed to:

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Pediatric Neuromuscular Fellowship Program

Attn: Ashley Rees-Jones, NCERT Program Coordinator

Colket Translational Research Building - Room 10200-11

Philadelphia, PA 19104

If you have any questions at any time during the application process, please contact Ashley Rees-Jones at 215-590-1722 or by email. 

Tobacco-free hiring policy

To help preserve and improve the health of our patients, their families and our employees, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has a tobacco-free hiring policy. This policy applies to all candidates for employment (other than those with regularly scheduled hours in New Jersey) for all positions, including those covered by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Job applicants who apply after July 1, 2014, will be expected to sign an attestation stating they’ve been free of nicotine or tobacco products in any form for the prior thirty (30) days. They will also undergo a cotinine test as a part of the Occupational Health pre-placement drug screen administered after the offer of employment has been accepted but before the first day of hire.

Exemptions: Attending physicians (excluding CHOP physicians in the Care Network), psychologists, principal investigators and/or Penn-based faculty are exempt from this process to better align with our colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.