Overview

premier Pulmonary and Critical Care fellowship program, the University of Washington offers excellent clinical training and an unparalleled breadth of research opportunities designed to prepare young physicians for a successful career in academic medicine. Supported by an NIH training grant for over 25 years, the program has produced internationally recognized clinicians, researchers and leaders in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. The fellowship program's success centers on the fact that it remains collegial, supportive and focused on the goals of individual fellows.

The University of Washington is an ideal location for an academic training program. The UW system provides access to a broad range of patients and medical conditions. Training includes rotations at the University of Washington Medical Center, a tertiary and quaternary referral center for the entire Pacific Northwest, Harborview Medical Center, a public hospital and the only Level 1 trauma center in Washington State, the Puget Sound Veteran's Administration Hospital, and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Experience in outpatient pulmonary medicine is also gained during rotations at the Virginia Mason Medical Center and Madigan Army Medical Center. Clinical training at the different sites is balanced and well-integrated, with the weekly Seattle Area Chest Ground Rounds serving as a focal point.

Opportunities for research training abound in the program. The University of Washington receives more federal funding than any other public institution in the nation. Within the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, faculty researchers span areas and techniques from basic cellular and molecular biology to integrative physiology to clinical outcomes and epidemiology. Fellows may pursue training in one of two well-defined tracks, either basic science or clinical research, or embark upon a translational pathway encompassing skill sets from both of these tracks. What sets the University of Washington apart is the collaboration of faculty and fellows across disciplines and sections, perhaps best exemplified by the UW Lung Biology Center.

Assisting fellows in discovering the area of research most stimulating and suited to them remains the most critical step in the training process. In order to help fellows explore the many options available to them, the program provides two weeks (one in the fall, another in early spring) where all first-year fellows are excused from clinical responsibilities in order to meet with various faculty members to discuss potential research projects. The program also has a comprehensive mentoring plan focused on elucidating and facilitating the research and professional goals of individual fellows. The fellow's advisory committee is not simply focused on the successful completion of particular research projects, but on aiding the fellow in securing grant funding and negotiating the path to a faculty appointment.

Most fellows in the program stay on for one or two years after the three-year ACGME program in order to transition to an academic appointment. Our fellows have been extremely successful in securing the NIH funding, both NRSA and K-grants, usually necessary to move into a junior faculty position. Graduates of the UW fellowship currently populate the faculties of top medical schools in the US and overseas, as well as leadership positions at the NIH.

Drawing fellows from excellent Internal Medicine residency programs across the nation, the UW fellowship participates in both the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS) and the National Residency Matching Program for Medical Subspecialties (NRMP). Applications are due January 31 to begin training July 1 of the following year.

In addition to the 3-year combined PCCM fellowship in Seattle, the University of Washington also offers a one-year Critical Care-only clinical fellowship based in Seattle.

Critical Care-only Fellowship

The University of Washington offers a one-year Critical Care-only fellowship aimed at physicians who have completed or plan to complete a full fellowship in another sub-specialty of medicine (e.g. Nephrology, Infectious Disease, etc.) When combined with another fellowship program, this twelve-month clinical experience confers eligibility to sit for the Added Qualifications exam in Critical Care Medicine. The structure of the program closely resembles the first year of the three-year combined PCCM program.

The Critical Care-only program does not participate in the National Residency Matching Program. Interested candidates should contact Mark Tonelli, MD, the fellowship program director, for more information.

Seattle is a vibrant and friendly city that provides all the pleasures of urban living, with top-flight music, arts and restaurants, in close proximity to both the sea and mountains. Recently named America's "Fittest City", the area offers the opportunity for sports from rowing to skiing and many miles of urban and cross-country trails for hiking, running and biking, all within minutes of downtown. The city itself is a composite of neighborhoods, each offering a different flavor and feel, with something to appeal to just about everyone.

Some of the over 100 fellows trained by Len Hudson at the
University of Washington gathered in his honor.

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Copyright ©1998 University of Washington. All rights reserved.
Comments to Donna Schier, dschier@u.washington.edu
Last reviewed: July 20, 2005- Last updated: July 20, 2005