Dear Applicant,
Thank you for inquiring about the Pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship at the University of Washington
School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle. This is a 3–
year program that trains individuals to become board-certified pediatric pulmonologists with
emphasis on clinical expertise and research experience. The fellowship is accredited by both the
American Council on Graduate Medical Education and the American Board of Pediatrics. The
Fellowship is offered by the Division of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine at Children’s Hospital and
Regional Medical Center as part of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Washington
School of Medicine. Our division includes 12 pediatric pulmonologists, all of whom participate in
clinical activities, teaching, and research. The clinical program includes activities at the Children’s
Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle, a 240 bed pediatric hospital with a four state
referral system and outreach opportunities, including clinics in Alaska. Division members are
nationally and internationally recognized for their expertise, and we enjoy working together and
making fellows an integral part of the team. We are located in the magnificent Pacific Northwest
surrounded by beautiful mountains and the Puget Sound. The activities during each year of
fellowship training are described below:
In accordance with the American Board of Pediatrics, fellows receive approximately 14 months of
combined inpatient/outpatient clinical training during the 3–year program. The first year
emphasizes clinical training and an introduction to research. There are approximately six months
of inpatient duties, during which the fellow is responsible for an average of 8–12 inpatients per
day on the pulmonary service and 5-10 patients on the consult service at Children's Hospital and
Regional Medical Center. The outpatient experience includes participating in Chest, Sleep,
Asthma and/or Cystic Fibrosis Clinics, one-two ½-days per week, throughout the year. There is a
fully equipped clinical pulmonary function lab with body plethysmography, spirometry, formal
exercise testing, and infant pulmonary function testing. There is also a state-of the-art Sleep
Center, which performs approximately 18 polysomnographic studies each week. Fellows learn to
interpretation of pulmonary function tests and sleep studies and are also instructed on flexible
bronchoscopy. During the first year, fellows will spend 1 month in the Pediatric ICU and have
opportunities for electives. Fellows also are active participants in a respiratory physiology review
each year. We have a weekly Journal Club, monthly Radiology/Chest conferences, and monthly
clinical case conferences and/or research “works in progress” discussions.
First Year:
 Training and direction in research begin. This includes discussions of research topics/areas
of interest and identifying a research mentor. The first-year fellow can rotate through
basic laboratories within the University of Washington system and the basic science
laboratories of the Cystic Fibrosis Research Development Program. Specifically, the
laboratories that are performing lung cellular and molecular biology at the University of
Washington provide excellent research opportunities for trainees. An active clinical
research program in cystic fibrosis including Cystic Fibrosis Foundation-funded
Therapeutics Development Center provides trainees with opportunities to participate in
cystic fibrosis clinical trials. There are also opportunities to participate in clinical studies in
other diseases, such as asthma.
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Examples of current research interests among divisional and non–divisional faculty
include, asthma, non-invasive monitoring of lower airway inflammation in wheezing
infants, RSV preventive therapies, clinical investigation of novel new therapies and
outcome measures in cystic fibrosis (i.e. raised-volume infant lung function tests,
hypertonic-saline induced sputum), early anti-pseudomonal treatment in young
children with cystic fibrosis, basic research on pseudomonas-host interactions in the
CF airway, and gene therapy related to cystic fibrosis.
Second Year:
 The second year is devoted primarily to research efforts, which can be clinical and/or basic
science in nature. Fellows who are interested in clinical research are encouraged to enroll
in the University of Washington School of Public Health to pursue a Masters of Public
Health degree. Each fellow is expected to complete one research project during the second
year that can be presented at a national meeting and submitted for publication. Clinical
activities in the second year include two months on the pulmonary service at Children's
Hospital and Regional Medical Center and weekly participation in Chest, Sleep, Asthma,
and Cystic Fibrosis Clinics (1/2-day per week, total). We emphasize continuity of care and
encourage fellows to manage a core group of patients identified from the first year.
Third Year:
 The third year of the fellowship is devoted to research, further clinical training, and team
leadership skills. A goal is for the trainee to work with faculty to obtain research funding
for an individual research project during the third year of training. There is ongoing
longitudinal participation in Chest, Sleep, Asthma, and Cystic Fibrosis Clinics (1/2-day per
week) and one month in a supervisory role on the pulmonary service at Children's Hospital
and Regional Medical Center.
One first year fellowship position is open beginning in July of 2010 and another in July 2011.
Please note that our fellowship funding sources require U.S. citizenship* to enable funding this
position.
If you are interested in the program, please send your personal statement, curriculum vitae and 3
letters of recommendation to our Division office. Following review of these materials, selected
applicants will be interviewed.
Thank you for taking the time to consider our program. Please feel free to call us if you
would like to talk about the program. We would be more than happy to communicate with you by
telephone or via email. We believe that our program has excellent clinical and research
opportunities and an outstanding tradition of training. We look forward to meeting with you to
discuss the fellowship.
Sincerely,
Ronald L. Gibson, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
University of Washington School of Medicine
Attending Physician, Pulmonary Division
Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center
Email: ron.gibson@seattlechildrens.org
Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center
4800 Sand Point Way N.E.
P.O. Box 5371
Pulmonary Medicine (A-5937)
Seattle, WA 98105-0371
Contact: Holly Kaopuiki
Office Phone: 206-987-2174 option #4
Office Fax: 206-987-2639
Email: holly.kaopuiki@seattlechildrens.org
*Citizenship: A fellow or trainee must be a United States citizen, or, as an alien, must have been
admitted to the United States with a permanent resident visa.
Licensure: For any profession for which licensure is a prerequisite, the applicant must also be
licensed by one of the States, or, in the case of foreign graduates, meet other requirements which
legally qualify him/her to practice his/her profession in the United States.