Pediatric Epilepsy Fellowship

Program Overview

The 1-year Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University (TJU) Epilepsy Fellowship Training Program, affiliated with Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware and accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), provides knowledge and skills to pursue a career as a specialist treating children with epilepsy.

You will be exposed to a diverse patient population of all ages, in a wide range of clinical settings. You will also have support and encouragement to pursue basic science and clinical research efforts.

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Our Fellowship Program

(2 POSITIONS)

This is an ACGME-approved epilepsy fellowship program at an internationally renowned epilepsy center.

As a fellow in this program, you’ll spend a minimum of 2 months at the comprehensive epilepsy center at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), and 8 months at Nemours Children's, with duties split between an inpatient EEG/EMU service week, outpatient EEG/epilepsy clinic week, and research/other elective time (1-2 months).

During the fellowship, you’ll master six core competencies in caring for children and young adults, from birth through age 21, in accordance with ACGME requirements:

  • Patient care
  • Medical knowledge
  • Practice-based learning and improvement
  • Systems-based practice
  • Professionalism
  • Interpersonal skills and communication

Our mission is to improve the future of epilepsy care for children and young adults, by training pediatric epileptologists who possess outstanding EEG interpretation skills, clinical judgement, scientific reasoning and humanism, and who render individualized patient care guided by the application of these skill sets.

This program participates in The Match.

Rotations and Electives

  • TJU EEG — 2 weeks
  • TJU EMU — 2 weeks
  • Nemours inpatient EEG/EMU service — approximately 13 weeks
  • Nemours outpatient EEG/epilepsy clinics — approximately 13 weeks
  • Vacation — 6 weeks
  • Elective — 4-8 weeks

During your training you will spend 6 months of time in direct EEG interpretation, with 1:1 supervision and mentorship from attending epileptologists in the program. You will have your own continuity clinic for 40 sessions/year minimum, engage in outpatient epilepsy clinics with selected epilepsy faculty members 1-3 times per month, and provide direct oversight of inpatient care for patients admitted for prolonged EEG monitoring for significant epilepsy management questions and epilepsy surgical evaluations, including intraoperative electrocorticography. Each of these activities is mentored in 1:1 fashion by a member of the epilepsy faculty. You will also present current research articles in journal club, participate in a fellow-specific statistics course through Nemours, attend selected national conferences, and are encouraged to present critical data in conference, poster, abstract and article publication formats. The standard expectation is at least 6-8 conference presentations, and 2-3 poster or abstract publications per year. You will execute a quality improvement project with significance for patient care in epilepsy each year. Program faculty, as Sidney Kimmel Medical College faculty, are required to maintain faculty development standards, as monitored by annual reviews in the division of pediatric neurology, and to mentor fellows in 1:1 fashion when on applicable clinical rotations, as monitored by fellow feedback evaluation forms. Fellows are encouraged to participate in advocacy and community engagement activities. Examples include family conferences and patient-directed activities sponsored by diverse advocacy groups in the region (e.g., Epilepsy Foundation of Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapters), and face-to-face meetings with legislators in the state of Delaware annually.

Educational Conferences

  • Neurology Grand Rounds, monthly
  • Neuroradiology Conference, twice monthly
  • Epilepsy didactic in conjunction with the SKMC comprehensive epilepsy center adult epilepsy fellows, weekly
  • Mid-Atlantic Regional Epilepsy Conference, monthly
  • Neurology Journal Club, monthly
  • Neurology Core Lecture Series, epilepsy-focused topics, 1-2 times a month
  • Epilepsy Care Conference, weekly
  • Zambia International Case Conference, monthly
  • Neo-Neuro Clinical Case Conference, with EEG discussion

Salary & Benefits

Salary

  • PGY 6: 86,212

Benefits

  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Prescription drug coverage
  • Malpractice insurance
  • Mental health resources

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

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:

Greater Wilmington Convention and Visitors Bureau

Delaware Tourism

Delaware’s Beaches

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:

New Jersey Beaches

Pennsylvania Mountains

Train With Recognized Leaders

If you’re looking for a rewarding program built on academic excellence and family-centered care, Nemours Children's offers outstanding medical, surgical, pharmacy, nursing, therapy and psychology programs. Train with faculty who are respected leaders in their fields, a patient care model that stands apart and access to groundbreaking research. 

Meet Our Clinical Leadership

 

Train With Recognized Leaders

If you’re looking for a rewarding program built on academic excellence and family-centered care, Nemours offers outstanding medical, surgical, pharmacy, nursing, therapy and psychology programs. Train with faculty who are respected leaders in their fields, a patient care model that stands apart and access to groundbreaking research.

Stephen Falchek, MD

Fellowship Program Director
Learn More About Dr. Falchek


Rebecca Stainman, MD

Associate Program Director
Learn More About Dr. Stainman

Meet Our Program Faculty

  • Information not available at this time.

Meet Our Participants

Current Participants

  • Amelia Ahmed, DO
  • Nicholas Harris, MD

Alumni

  • Padmavati Eksambe, MD — class of 2022
    Private Practice
  • Sumair Husain, MD — class of 2023
    Remote Neurophysiology Monitoring
  • Sharyu Krishnakumar, MD — class of 2023
    Private Practice
  • Soham Trivedi, MD — class of 2023
    Private Practice
  • Elise Mercier, MD — class of 2024
    St. Christopher’s Hospital

Apply Today

Application Requirements

1. Submit application electronically using ERAS

2. Personal statement

3. Board scores

4. Three letters of recommendation

5. Dean's letter

6. Transcript

7. Curriculum vitae

8. Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) Certification if graduated from a medical school outside the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico

9. International medical graduates must have completed one year of formal training in the United States

Note: Letter from the Chairman is not required.

Questions About Applying?

Stephen Falchek, MD
Program Director
(302) 651-5930
stephen.falchek@nemours.org

Jen Hultberg
Program Coordinator
jennifer.hultberg@nemours.org