Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
The Northwestern (NW) Transplant Hepatology (TH) Fellowship offers advanced training in all aspects of liver disease, particularly focused upon the management of decompensated cirrhosis, hepatobiliary cancers, and post-transplant care. There is extensive exposure and engagement to complex clinical cases and procedures (endoscopy and biopsy) supplemented by numerous educational conferences.
Our Liver Transplant (LT) Program has demonstrated continued success with both high volume (over 100 LTs per year, of which ~ 10-15% are living donation) and excellent patient outcomes in-line with national norms. We are one of the few LT centers in the United States to offer both specialized Hispanic and African-American Transplant Programs. Our Hepatology faculty have diverse interests and attachments to research, education, national organizations and industry.
Our mission is to provide excellent patient care, generate substantive research, and train future academic leaders. We proudly serve the Chicagoland and Midwest region, with particular emphasis to under-served populations.
Exhaustive detail can be found in the Handbook.
Clinical Experience
Preamble
The fellowship is 12 months in duration and divided into in/out-patient services. The fellow(s) will alternate on a monthly basis. Vacation is equal to 20 working days. All experiences are supervised by Hepatology and/or Transplant faculty, with graduated autonomy as competency increases.
Outpatient
The outpatient months mainly comprises pre- and post-LT clinics. The post-LT Hepatology clinic serves as a continuity clinic. A Hepatology clinic is also included to maintain broad hepatology knowledge expertise. In the later half of the academic year, subspecialty rotations, Pediatric TH and Transplant Infectious Diseases, will be engaged (2 weeks each).
Inpatient
The Hepatology primary service contains pre-LT (eligible and/or listed for LT) and long-term post-LT patients. The day-to-day work of this service is carried out by residents, whom the fellow will oversee, assist and educate. The fellow has operational control over this service and will present all patients at daily multidisciplinary rounds. The Hepatology consult service (general hepatology issues and/or LT patients with non-graft issues) is managed by the consult GI fellow. The TH fellow is encouraged to attend these rounds to solidify and augment their own hepatology knowledge. For pre/post LT ICU patients, the fellow may indeed be the primary consultant (schedule permitting, otherwise defaulting to the consult GI fellow).
Procedures
Procedural competency in endoscopy (EGD, colonoscopy) is expected by the time of entry to the fellowship, however endoscopy half-days are dispersed throughout the week to maintain and augment skills. In general, on inpatient services, the Hepatology consult service GI fellow performs all procedures. Interpretation of Liver biopsy (at least 200) competency will easily be achieved. During the second-half of the year, fellows will participate in at least 1 deceased donor procurement and 3 recipient surgeries.
Wellness
Wellness is an essential component of the fellowship experience; satisfied by: (1) weekly interactions with the Program Director; (2) formal assessment meetings semi-annually; and (3) monthly wellness social events.
Education
Our program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and the McGaw Medical Center Graduate Medical Education (GME) office.
The education of the fellow will occur through extensive clinical experiences with direct feedback from the faculty for cognitive, procedural and overall professional improvement. The fellows will have access to: (1) an online standardized curriculum (meeting requirements for board review testing) and an iterative reading list in Hepatology and Transplant; (2) participate in multiple, weekly conferences & lectures; and, (3) weekly meetings with the Program Director for 1:1 education, feedback and overall wellness assessments.
Fellowship Experience
The fellowship is clinical in nature, requirements inclusive: (1) competency in interpreting liver biopsies; (2) observation of organ procurement and transplantation; and, (3) completion of a Quality Improvement project. Publishable scholarly/research activity is available and easily attainable. Advanced research performance, e.g. through training grants, is possible as well. We strongly support a collegial work-environment amongst the faculty, fellows and staff. There is continuous multimodal feedback throughout the year to ensure for the growth, safety and overall well-being of the fellows. Wellness events are held on a monthly basis.
Scholarly Activities
This is a clinical fellowship, and as such, formal research is not a requirement. However one intra-mural Quality Improvement (QI) projects is required. Publishable scholarship is strongly encouraged (ideally at least 3), and many opportunities are available given the varied interests and intensity of faculty research. Given the nature of the fellow's traditional schedule, there is in fact ample time to generate a successful QI project and/or publish scholarly work.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Department of Medicine at Northwestern University seeks to attract inquisitive, motivated residents and fellows and is committed to providing them with every opportunity for success. The greatest challenges facing the medical field are complex, and addressing them will require a diverse body of physicians and researchers who can work collaboratively. Northwestern offers unparalleled training and research opportunities and encourages fellowship applications from those who seek to become future leaders in the subspecialties of medicine. We are committed to and inspired by a diverse and inclusive work environment that allows each trainee to achieve their personal goals.
For more information on Northwestern’s commitment to diversity please see the following resources:
Requirements and Eligibility
TH fellows, at time of matriculation, must be board-eligible or board-certified in Gastroenterology. The fellowship is accessible through and completes the following pathways: traditional (totaling 3 year GI fellowship (internal or external to NW) +1 year), or integrated pathway (totaling 2 year GI fellowship +1 year, all internal to NW). At the end of the TH fellowship the fellow will be board-eligible for TH.
Availability of positions are in part determined by internal applicant trajectories.
Positions Offered
The fellowship comprises one academic year for 1-2 fellows.
Application Process
TH fellows, at time of matriculation, must be board-eligible or board-certified in Gastroenterology. The fellowship is accessible through and completes the following pathways: traditional (totaling 3 year GI fellowship (internal or external to NW) +1 year), or integrated (totaling 2 year GI fellowship +1 year, internal to NW). At the end of this fellowship the fellow will be board-eligible for TH.
Availability of positions is in part determined by internal applicant trajectories.
External applicants should utilize the AASLD Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Application System AASLD's Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Application (aasldapp.org); requirements are listed there precisely. In general this includes: (1) CV; (3) three letters of recommendation (1 from the Program Director); (4) personal statement; and, (5) USMLE Step scores.
Internal applicants, via the traditional or integrated pathways, must demonstrate high performance and otherwise meet NW GI fellowship milestones of professionalism and competency. Thus, matriculation is conditional upon the assessment of the GI and TH Program Directors, with the assent of the Hepatology faculty.
2023-24. Position(s) filled.
2024-25. Position(s) filled.
2025-26. 2 Positions available.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Angela Tucker
Program Coordinator, Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
Program Coordinator, Gastroenterology & Hepatology Fellowship
Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Northwestern University
Feinberg School of Medicine
Christopher Moore, MD
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Transplant Hepatology
Northwestern University
Feinberg School of Medicine
Program Director, Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
Education Director, Hepatology Services
Site Director, Visiting Hepatology Rotators
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Christopher Moore, MD
Program Director - Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Angela Tucker
Education Coordinator
Gastroenterology and Hepatology
312-695-5398
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