Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship

Program Structure & Facilities

The Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program at the University of South Florida Medical College is a combined three-year program designed to provide opportunities to learn the basic and clinical aspects of each of these areas of medicine.

The training program consists of rotations at James A. Haley Veterans, Moffitt Cancer, and Tampa General Hospital.

The PCC program is noted for offering a diverse clinical exposure to trainees. Combining the patient populations at the three hospitals give the fellows a broad experience that offers a more complete experience in PCCM than is offered in many training programs.

An Interventional Pulmonary Service is now established at TGH. This is a rotation that is unique at this medical center and offers the fellow experience under direct faculty supervision in newer techniques such as: bronchial ultrasound and biopsy, pleuroscopy, and bedside percutaneous tracheostomy.

The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center is a National Cancer Institute designated comprehensive cancer center, allowing for a broad experience in care of patients with cancer in all organ systems and famliarity with immunosuppressive drugs and complications. The Moffitt Cancer Center also offers a special care unit rotation where the faculty and fellows of the PCC program assume primary responsibility for most of the patients, whether medical or surgical. This affords the fellow opportunities to manage the broad spectrum of surgical patients in the post operative setting.

James A. Haley VA is one of four designated traumatic brain injury and spinal cord centers for Veterans in the United States. There is a newly expanded spinal cord intensive care unit that will be managed by the PCC program with a full time onsite Director.

Lastly, opportunities for research projects in Occupational Medicine through association with our faculty who are primarily in charge of the Master's of Public Health degree in Occupational Medicine. This occurs at the only public health school in the State of Florida, and is located on the campus at USF Health.

Consultative & Clinic Services

The program offers a broad experience with a number of patients with pulmonary disorders. Consultative services are offered at all three hospitals.

The fellows will attend a pulmonary continuity clinic one half day per week for all three years of fellowship. This clinic experience may be obtained at the USF Medical Clinic, or James A. Haley VA or both over the course of the training period.

Additional outpatient clinical experience is provided at James A Haley VA Hospital, Moffitt Cancer Center and the USF Health Morsani and the USF Health South Tampa Centers, which include the General Pulmonary, Sleep Medicine, and the USF Pulmonary Hypertension Clinics.

Critical Care

An important strength of the training program is the presence of a closed primary Medical Intensive Care Unit Service at Tampa General Hospital, Moffitt Cancer Center, and the James A. Haley VA Hospital. Overall responsibility for direction and implementation of patient care on this service rests with our Critical Care staff, and the Fellow who acts in a key junior attending role. Fellows also rotate on the Surgical Intensive Care Service, the Neurointensive Care Service, and the Cardiology service during their elective critical care time.

Tampa General Hospital

This is the principal teaching hospital and a major affiliate for the University of South Florida. There is a wide spectrum of diseases managed here including, but not limited to, acute and chronic respiratory failure, obesity hypoventilation, severe life threatening asthma, severe community acquired pneumonia, pulmonary complications of HIV and transplantation, pulmonary hypertension and COPD. Lung cancer diagnosis and treatment may include ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration (EBUS), stent placement, Argon plasma coagulation, and percutaneous trans-tracheal oxygen catheter placement.

James A Haley VA

There are five services at JAHVA, a consultation, MICU, sleep medicine, traumatic brain injury (TBI), spinal cord injury, and chronic ventilator care services. MICU residents and fellows receive patients via direct admission from the ER. Patients deemed too ill to be cared for on the general medical floor are accepted for transfer to the MICU after appropriate consultation with the medical resident and PCC fellows and attending.

Research

The fellows are encouraged at all stages of their training to participate in investigative projects and are expected to become associated with research being done in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine or related divisions and departments.

A dedicated research block of time will be provided during the second or third year of training. Several well-equipped laboratories are associated with the Division, including the Cardiovascular Research Center and the Pulmonary and Physiology Laboratories at the VA Medical Center.

Fellows will be encouraged to submit and present abstracts of work completed in their training to both local and national scientific meetings.

Teaching

The fellows are encouraged to play an active role in teaching and training of students and house staff at the USF College of Medicine & affiliate hospitals. This includes formal lectures and informal conferences in both Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.

Lectures, Conferences & Evaluations

Weekly lectures are given by the faculty on the central curriculum covering Pulmonary Diseases and Intensive Care Medicine. Faculty and fellows also participate in the daily ICU lecture. Didactic lectures cover all areas of pulmonary physiology and medicine. A Research Conference and Pathology Conference are held each month at Tampa General Hospital.

The program director meets with the fellows on an individual basis twice each year to discuss the assessment of the faculty regarding their progress. This also gives each fellow an opportunity to make recommendations regarding the program.

A yearly educational retreat is held and attended by fellows and faculty.

Benefits & Stipends

Information regarding benefits and stipends can be provided through the Graduate Medical Education Office for additional benefits information you may contact:

Office of Graduate Medical Education

12901 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., MDC41

Tampa, Florida 33612

Telephone: (813) 974-9744 Fax: (813) 974-8359

Application & Interview Process

We will start accepting applications for 2014 fellowship through ERAS website on July 15, 2013.

Those interested in applying to the Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship Program at the USF College of Medicine, Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship should apply via ERAS. Our program participates exclusively in the NRMP to select three-year Pulmonary and Critical Care candidates.

CITIZENSHIP REQUIREMENT:

While we do consider international medical graduates for the program, we do not accept applicants with visas or work permits of any type. It would be necessary for the applicant to be a United States Citizen, or Legal Permanent Resident for his/her application to be accepted and considered.

Program Director:

David Solomon, MD, Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
USF College of Medicine c/o Lourdes Rodriguez

12901 Bruce B Downs Blvd. MDC 19

Tampa, FL 33612

For additional information, please contact Lourdes Rodriguez, Program Coordinator at (813) 974-2460 or LRodrig1@health.usf.edu or Pat Oswald (813) 259-0619 poswald@health.usf.edu