Celeste P. Durnwald, MD
Program Director
Lisa D. Levine, MD, MSCE
Associate Program Director
University of Pennsylvania Health System — Department of OB/GYN
Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, c/o Michele Steuber
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
3400 Spruce Street, 2 Silverstein
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 215-662-6913
Please direct fellowship application inquiries to Michele Steuber at steuber@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
This unique three-year program offers extensive experience in the clinical management of high-risk patients as well as formal training and excellent mentorship in clinical, translational or basic research.
The fellowship is designed to support 12 to 18 months of protected research that can be divided over three years as best accommodates any formal research training. The clinical experience will enable a fellow to become extremely proficient at ultrasound, antenatal diagnosis, and the management of complicated medical pregnancies.
There are also numerous didactic sessions which enhance the educational experience, including a weekly fellow lecture series.
Prerequisites
Applicants must be ABOG eligible and have a state medical license. Applicants must also have completed an approved residency program in Obstetrics and Gynecology. A graduate of a foreign medical school must have a standard ECFMG certificate and completed postgraduate training in the United States.
Number of First Year Positions: 2
Program Description
Clinical
Clinical experience is at two of the main Penn Medicine hospitals: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), a tertiary care center in West Philadelphia (4100 deliveries per year) and Pennsylvania Hospital in center city (5000 deliveries per year). We are a tertiary care center with high volume and acuity.
Our MFM fellowship mission is: To train and empower the next generation of leaders in clinical excellence, research and advocacy in order to promote and advance the health of birthing patients and their children with expertise in:
- Critical care & complex maternal disease
- Ultrasound and perinatal diagnosis
- Quality and safety
- Identifying and reducing health inequities
- Leadership and advocacy
- Academic research
Elective Rotations Include:
- Maternal cardiac disease
- Infectious diseases
- Fetal surgery
- Fetal echocardiogram
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
- Hematology
- Diabetes/Metabolism
Research
Within the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, which is consistently ranked in the top five for NIH funding, is the Maternal Fetal Medicine Research Program (MFMRP). The MFMRP is a unique research program in that it performs and supports all types of research from basic, to translational to clinical research studies. Several of the Maternal Fetal Medicine faculty have NIH funding. Along with individual grants, we are one of five March of Dimes Prematurity Research Centers and are one of the sites for the Maternal Fetal Medicine Unit Network. The MFMRP has an established research infrastructure that supports a diverse research portfolio aimed at improving outcomes for mothers and their children.
MFM fellows can perform research on 12 or 18 month tracks pending their long term career goals. There are diverse research opportunities for the fellow. Fellows meet with Dr. Lisa Levine at the start of the fellowship and frequently thereafter to plan an individualized research agenda. All MFM faculty members can serve as mentors for individual projects.
Current lines of active investigation in the MFMRP include:
- Prevention and treatment of hypertension in pregnancy and the impact on immediate and long-term maternal health
- Care delivery management in patients with diabetes
- Decreasing maternal morbidity and racial disparities through various interventions
- Remote fetal monitoring and the impact on racial disparities
- The impact of preeclampsia and other adverse pregnancy outcomes on future cardiovascular health
- Vaginal microbiome and immunology and the impact on preterm birth
- Placental extracellular vesicles and pregnancy outcomes
- Remote blood pressure monitoring
- Standardizing the management of induction of labor to decrease racial disparities in cesarean delivery rates
- Outpatient cervical ripening to decrease cesarean rates
- Placental imaging and prediction of adverse pregnancy outcomes
- Implementation and evaluation of a cardiovascular risk assessment algorithm for pregnancy and postpartum
Specialized training in clinical research methodology is available in the two-year Master's Program in Clinical Epidemiology at Penn. This program includes graduate level courses in epidemiology, survey design, statistics, health economics and others. Tracks within this program relevant to MFM include Reproductive Epidemiology, Patient-Oriented Research, Health Services Research, and Genetic Epidemiology. Several MFM fellows have enrolled in this outstanding program over the past several years.
In addition, the University of Pennsylvania offers a two-year Master of Science in Translational Research (MSTR). This program provides a fellow with a strong foundation in which to pursue translational research.
Education
There are numerous didactic sessions that the fellows are involved in over the course of the fellowship. Most importantly, there is a dedicated MFM fellow lecture series, which covers the topics as laid out by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG). This lecture series occurs weekly. In addition, we have a weekly journal club in which we review all pertinent articles from the top Ob/Gyn and medical journals that impact our specialty.
In addition to the fellow lecture series and journal club, the fellows attend numerous conferences.
- Grand Rounds (weekly)
- Fetal Heart Rate Tracing Review (weekly)
- MFM Division Meeting (weekly)
- MFM Journal Club (weekly)
- Fellow Lecture Series (weekly)
- Resident Journal Club (monthly)
- Joint MFM/Adult Congenital Heart Disease Conference (monthly)
- Ultrasound Anomaly Conference (monthly)
- Genetics Rounds (twice/month)
Application Requirements
- Application Deadline: per ERAS
- Updated Curriculum Vitae
- Personal Statement
- Three Letters of Recommendation
- CREOG and Step Exam Scores Not Needed
- Apply through ERAS
Current Fellows
- Gabriel Arenas, MD
3rd Year Fellow
- Latima Collins, MD
3rd Year Fellow
- Jordan Stone, MD
3rd Year Fellow
- Amber Lachaud, MD
2nd Year Fellow
- Kelly Zafman, MD
2nd Year Fellow
- Catherine Klammer, MD
1st Year Fellow
- Gregory Kirschen, MD
1st Year Fellow
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