Orthopedic Surgery Fellowship

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Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Fellowship

Program Overview

The Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Fellowship Program at the Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware, in affiliation with Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University (TJU), trains physicians in advanced skills in pediatric orthopedic surgery.

Our program provides in-depth training for a wide spectrum of congenital and acquired musculoskeletal problems in children.

Our one-year program, accredited by the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North American (POSNA) and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), admits three fellows annually for a well-rounded training experience with our large, diverse faculty. The fellowship year not only focuses on surgical and clinical training, but includes a strong research component, to best train our future leaders in pediatric orthopedics.

Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Fellowship

Learn more about our program.

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Our Fellowship Program

The Nemours pediatric orthopedic surgery clinical fellowship program provides in-depth training for a wide spectrum of congenital, acquired and traumatic musculoskeletal pathology in children. Fellowship should not simply be a sixth year of training, and our Fellows are offered the support and autonomy they need to become insightful, competitive pediatric orthopedic surgeons. You’ll gain clinical and surgical competence in the management of a wide range of orthopedic issues, including:

  • Complex spine disorders and deformities
  • Neuromuscular disorders
  • Skeletal dysplasia and osteogenesis imperfecta
  • Trauma
  • Sports medicine
  • Disorders of the hip
  • Lower extremity deformity and clubfoot
  • Bone and soft tissue tumors
  • Hand and upper extremity problems

A Long History of Pediatric Orthopedics Care

Nemours has been setting the standard for pediatric orthopedic care since 1940, when Alfred I. duPont’s philanthropic vision was first realized through the creation of the duPont Institute in Delaware — a place which, for 40 years, was devoted entirely to pediatric orthopedics and led by renowned physicians in the developing field.

Today, we are an international leader in the field of orthopedics for children, with one of the world’s most widely respected pediatric orthopedic practices. With 15 orthopedic surgeons on faculty, we are one of the country’s largest and most diverse practices, providing comprehensive care to all children with orthopedic conditions. Our Skeletal Dysplasia Program is one of the world’s foremost centers in the treatment of skeletal dysplasia, offering expert, state-of-the-art multi-disciplinary medical and surgical care used to treat children and adults up to age 35 with dwarfism and osteogenesis imperfecta. Our Spine Center is one of the country’s busiest pediatric spine practices, with eight surgeons providing care for the entire spectrum of scoliosis, kyphosis and spine anomalies.

Department of Orthopedic Surgery Brochure

Curriculum

Modern surgical education requires a firm foundation in general orthopedics with the flexibility to tailor clinical training to the growth of niche specialties within pediatric orthopedics. To that end, our fellowship curriculum evolved into two complimentary halves:

  • First six months: Service-based rotations where fellows are assigned to one of the three main services: Spine and Sports Medicine, Neuromuscular, and Skeletal Dysplasia/Limb Deformity.
  • Second six months: Clinical autonomy where fellows have the choice to focus on areas of interest or improvement, assigning themselves to the cases and clinics where they will benefit most and develop subspecialty expertise for their career choice.

Throughout the year, the Fellows manage their own clinical schedule. The ideal week consists of 3 operative days, 1.5 days in the clinic, and a half day set aside for education, research and personal use. This breakdown allows for our Fellows log an average of more than 350 cases per year, in addition to learning the invaluable clinical skills every young surgeon needs to begin in practice. Extensive one-on-one teaching in the operating room and outpatient clinic form the basis of pediatric orthopaedic teaching and career-long mentorship.

Every weekday morning begins with structured didactics, starting with Trauma conference, where the Fellows oversee the management of the prior day’s consults. This is followed by a rotating schedule of conferences, including weekly lectures in our year-long Pediatric Orthopedics curriculum, Preoperative Indications, a boards-style Postoperative Review, monthly Journal club and Morbidity and Mortality (M&M) conference. Fellows also participate in regular sub-specialty conferences for the Spine, Neuromuscular, Osteogenesis Imperfecta, and Skeletal Dysplasia services.

Fellows are also expected to develop as teachers and many of our graduates go on to become academic surgeons and educators (see below). Residents from 5 Orthopedic Surgery training programs rotate through our department, and work closely with our Fellows. Fellows are given the chance to hone their instructional skills by guiding them through supervised trauma cases, and helping oversee their consults. The Fellows are also responsible for one lecture per week in the second half of the year, allowing development of their teaching-style and instructional materials for future use.

Call is managed at each Fellowship class’ discretion, and usually is taken a week at a time. Fellows take call from home, with an in-house Resident performing all patient consults and non-urgent procedures in the Emergency Department and Level 1 Trauma Center. While emergent cases may go to the OR overnight, there is an Orthopedic Trauma room available most mornings for operative cases that present overnight.

Travel & Education

Our department believes strongly that the chance to learn, present and interact with your colleagues at national conferences is an important aspect of fellowship training. Our surgeons are on the faculty of many of the top pediatric orthopedic conferences, and are able to assist our Fellows as they make inroads into their future professional community.

Fellows are allotted 25 days paid time off (all inclusive) during their year at Nemours, are and encouraged to attend:

Resources

At Nemours, we are fortunate to be able to offer our Fellows substantial support during their year in Wilmington. There is a private Fellows’ office with an up-to-date library of all relevant orthopedic texts, as well as access to the hospital’s Medical Science library.

There is an annual stipend for each Fellow to use for travel and tuition, as well as access to numerous grant opportunities. We consider conference attendance a priority, and several times per year, all three Fellows travel together to major meetings.

Our Program Coordinator, Donna Lizut works tirelessly to ensure that the Fellows always have what they need to focus on their clinical training, from onboarding, orientation and credentialing to transition to future practice. The Director of Clinical Research, Dr. Kenneth Rogers, is a fantastic resource to help get our Fellows started on research early on in their fellowship, making it feasible to complete several projects within the year. We are members of virtually every important multicenter study group in pediatric orthopedics and fellows are systematically involved in prospective clinical outcomes studies.

Several of our staff members will also mentor the fellows in the soft skills that are so critical for success: emotional intelligence, delivering a lecture, interviewing, contracting and negotiation, leadership and philanthropy.

Recent Alumni

Notable alumni of the Nemours Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Clinical Fellowship have shaped our national and international pediatric orthopedic community, and include: Alvin Crawford, William Bunnell, Robert Hensinger, James Kasser, James Beaty, Robert Campbell, In Ho Choi, Freeman Miller, Randall Betz, Patricia Fucs, John “Jack” Flynn, William Mackenzie and Suken Shah.

See a Complete List of Current Participants and Alumni

Awards & Recognition

Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware is ranked among the best in orthopedics by U.S. News & World Report's Best Children's Hospitals.

Nemours Orthopedics ranked by US News & World Report

Research Opportunities for Fellows

We believe in the value of research as a key component in a well-rounded fellowship training program in Orthopedic Surgery. You’ll be encouraged to learn about the process of conducting clinical and basic research, and to investigate the research facilities and resources available at our campus.

Our Fellows have the chance to work with our Director of Clinical Research, Dr. Kenneth Rogers, and collaborate with our three Research fellows, who are international surgeons spending a year at Nemours to focus on clinical research. Nemours is partnered with several large multi-center clinical databases and we routinely collect clinical outcomes data, allowing for easy access when designing and carrying out Fellows’ research projects. 

The Department also provides an annual stipend and access to several grants to support our Fellows as they travel to present their research and attend educational conferences.

Contact Us

Mihir Thacker, MD
Orthopedic Research Program Director
(302) 651-5728
mihir.thacker@nemours.org

Donna A. Lizut
Program Coordinator
(302) 651-5929
donna.lizut@nemours.org

Learn More About Research at Nemours

Salary & Benefits

Salary

Benefits

As a pediatric Orthopedic Fellow you'll receive the following:

Health Care Benefits:

  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Prescription drug coverage
  • Malpractice insurance
  • Wellness program

Organizational Benefits:

  • Reimbursement for Delaware license, fingerprints and clearance fees
  • Sponsorship for a Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America membership
  • Office space with program coordinator support provided
  • Onsite fitness center membership
  • Access to INFOLINK online library resources and JEFFLINE (Sidney Kimmel Medical College Library resources)

Time Off:
In addition to 25 PTO (paid time off) days we offer a $2,000 yearly stipend towards education and conferences. Additional conference time is available for scholarly presentations upon Department and GME office approval

 

About Our Hospital in Delaware

The Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware is a multispecialty, tertiary care teaching institution located on a 300-acre estate in the scenic Brandywine Valley in Wilmington, Del.

 Among the hospital’s amenities for all staff are:

  • Free parking
  • Park-like setting
  • Gym/fitness center
  • On-site child care center for children of staff
  • Massage therapy

Learn More About Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Living in Delaware Valley

Because of our location in the tri-state area of Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, we offer unique living/working opportunities. For example, you can choose to live in the downtown Philadelphia area and easily commute to our park-like hospital campus in Wilmington.

Explore Wilmington

Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware is located in Wilmington, Del., about 30 minutes from center city Philadelphia, and an easy drive to Baltimore, Lancaster County, Pa. (“Amish Country”), and the beaches in Atlantic City and Delaware. There is much to do in and around the city, including mansion and garden tours, museums, breweries, wineries, fine restaurants and numerous state parks.

Learn More About Delaware:

Explore Philadelphia

Philadelphia is the sixth largest metropolitan area in the United States and offers a wealth of historical, cultural and recreational opportunities. From world-class museums to its professional sports teams to the colorful, bustling districts of South Street, Chinatown and the Italian Market, Philadelphia has something for everyone.

Learn More About the Philadelphia Area:

Meet Clinical Leadership

Suken A. Shah, MD

Chairman, Department of Orthopedic Surgery and Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Division Chief of the Spine Center, Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware; Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University

Learn More About Dr. Shah

Meet Program Faculty

Alfred Atanda Jr., MD
Surgical Director of the Sports Medicine Program, Orthopedic Surgeon and Sports Medicine Specialist, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware, Nemours Children's Health, Riverfront Fieldhouse in Delaware and Nemours Children's Health, Abington in Pennsylvania; Director of the Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Medical Student Clerkship, Thomas Jefferson University

William A. Emanuele, MD
Sports Medicine, Nemours Children's Health, Deptford

Emelynn J. Fajardo, DO
Sports Medicine, Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware; Nemours Children's Health,  Riverfront Fieldhouse in Delaware and Nemours Children's Health, Glen Mills in Pennsylvania

Jeanne M. Franzone, MD
Osteogenesis Imperfecta and Limb Deformity, Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware; Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University

Peter G. Gabos, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware; Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University

Jason J. Howard, MD
Cerebral Palsy and Muscle Disease; Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Richard W. Kruse, DO, MBA
Division Chief of the Orthopedic Trauma Service and Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware; Staff member of the Medical Center of Delaware and Director of the Multidisciplinary Osteogenesis Imperfecta Program; Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University and the Uniformed Services University School of Medicine in Bethesda, MD

W. G. Stuart Mackenzie, MD
Skeletal Dysplasia and Spine Deformity; Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

L. Reid Nichols, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Brett A. Shannon, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware

M. Wade Shrader, MD
Chief of the Division of Cerebral Palsy and Freeman Miller Endowed Chair of Cerebral Palsy; Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Alvin W. Su, MD
Sports Medicine, Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware; Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University

Mihir M. Thacker, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Arianna Trionfo, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware

Jennifer M. Ty, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware

Meet Our Participants

Timothy Hereford, MD
Christina Herrero, MD
Bryan Menapace, MD

Alumni

Nanni Allington
Joseph Altongy
Jack Andrish
Kallur Antony
James Aronson
Alfred Atanda
Margaret Baldwin
Douglas Barnes
George Bassett
Jennifer Bauer
James Beaty
Mohan Belthur
Brent Berger
Randall Betz
Craig Blum
Desmond Brown
William Bunnell
Robert Campbell
In Ho Choi
N M P Clarke
Jose Collazo
Justin Connor
Juan Carlos Couto
Alvin Crawford
Wojciech Czoch
Kirk Dabney
Ellen Dean Davis
Ozgur Dede
Brian Deignan
Julio de Pablos
Timothy Domer
Shevaun Doyle
Guy Fabry
Thomas Florack
John Flynn
David Fralinger
Jeanne Franzone
Patricia Fucs
Peter Gabos
Glen Gaebe
Nicholas Gajewski
Daniel Grant
Ur Guion
Ganesh Gupta
Brian Hakala
Arun Hariharan
Heather Harnley
Robert Hensinger
John Heydemann
Candace Holden
John Hyndman
Kamal Ibrahim
Kenneth Jeffers
Mara Karamitopoulos
James Kasser
Brian Kaufman
Kathryn Keeler
Michelle Klaumann
Richard Kruse
Victoria Kuester
Alexander Kuzma
Hubet Labelle
Arabella Leet
Frank Liggio
Amelia Lindgren
Kerry Loveland
Meryl Ludwig
William Mackenzie
W. G. Stuart Mackenzie
Neil Macy
Kathleen Maguire
Abigail Mantica
Andrew Martin
Dan Mason
William McCluskey
Tyler McDonald
John McKeon
William Mirenda
Kevin Morash
Marc Moreau
Richard Munk
Mary Nagai
Nicholas Nahm
Susan Nasser-Sharif
Reid Nichols
Prasit Nimityongskul
Jon Oda
Jay Nogi
John Parenti
Monica Payares-Lizano
Norgrove Penny
Joseph Petfield
Candice Pfeiffer-Holden
Peter Pizzutillo
Aki Puryear
Rameez Qudsi
Cathleen Raggio
Juan Realyvasquez
Mark Rieger
Tracey Roberts
Dennis Roy
Shabetay Sabato
Jeremy Saller
Jayanth Sampath
John Sarwark
Chigusa Sawamura
Scott Schoenleber
Claude Scott
Julieanne Sees
Suken Shah
Yushane "Celestine" Shih
Larry Stankovits
Enrico Stazzone
Michael Stevens
Khalid Sulaiman
David Tager
Mihir Thacker
Patrick Thornley
Roger Timberlake
Stephen Tredwell
James Tucci
Maegen Wallace
Mark Wellisch
Virginia Wintersteen
Guney Yilmaz
Lewis Zionts

Apply Today

Application Requirements

  1. Submit application electronically using SF Match
  2. Curriculum vitae
  3. Personal statement
  4. USMLE scores (all three levels)
  5. Three letters of recommendation

Interviews

  • January 20, 2024
  • February 10, 2024

Questions About Applying?

Donna A. Lizut
Program Coordinator
(302) 651-5929
donna.lizut@nemours.org

William Giles Stuart Mackenzie, MD
Program Director, Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Clinical Fellowship
Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware
(302) 651-5915
stuart.mackenzie@nemours.org

Mihir Thacker, MD
Program Director, Pediatric Orthopedic Research Fellowship
Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware
(302) 651-7738
mihir.thacker@nemours.org