BWH Fellowship in Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Endoscopy

During the first year of training, the emphasis is on clinical gastroenterology and hepatology in the broadest sense with a focus on inpatient care. The year includes rotations on the consult services at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital, and the VA Boston Healthcare System. There are 50 clinical faculty members at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital, and 10 at the Veterans Administration hospitals. At all the clinical sites, fellows work closely with experienced faculty to learn about gastroenterology, hepatology, and endoscopy. Consulting rounds are made on a daily basis with the gastroenterology faculty who provide patient care and education.

The program provides the majority of clinical training during the first year to allow her or him to focus on academic pursuits during the second and third year of fellowship (see additional information about the tracks below). However, fellows continue to receive clinical training in the outpatient setting and in endoscopy.

Each trainee sees patients in a weekly outpatient continuity clinic for all three years. During the second and third year they have a weekly endoscopy sessions during which they refine their skills in diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy. Subspecialty experiences in a broad range of areas are also available, including inflammatory bowel disease (at the Crohn's and Colitis Center), hepatology, transplant hepatology (inpatient at MGH), pancreas, motility, and GI oncology (Dana-Farber Cancer Institute).

The program provides extensive training in a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopic procedures. Each trainee can expect to perform at least 300 upper gastrointestinal endoscopies and colonoscopies, and to participate in specialized procedures.

An advanced endoscopy service comprised of attendings and an advanced endoscopy fellow provides services in ERCP, EUS, and additional advanced procedures including bariatric endoscopy. Fellows receive broad exposure to inpatient and outpatient hepatology, including hepatology clinical and the hepatology consult service at Brigham and Women's Hospital.

The hepatology section includes 5 board certified transplant hepatologists who actively see patients at Brigham and Women's Hospital as well as the Massachusetts General Hospital liver transplant program. There is a transplant clinic at BWH and fellows can rotate on the inpatient transplant hepatology service at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Formal conferences include a weekly didactic conference that focuses on all areas of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, a clinical case conference every other week (Combined Longwood Conference) involving the three teaching institutions of the Harvard Medical School area (BWH, Beth Israel-Deaconess Medical Center, and Boston Children’s Hospital), clinical research conference, journal club, endoscopy conference (including quality assurance), liver histopathology conference, and multidisciplinary conferences focused on inflammatory bowel disease, motility, and pancreatic disease.

In addition, there are research seminars held through with the Harvard Digestive Diseases Center as well as the Brigham and Women's and Harvard Medical School communities that fellows can attend. The Division also has visiting scientist and mentorship programs. Importantly, our trainees play a major role in the teaching of residents and Harvard medical students at the hospitals through which they rotate.

The Basic Science Research Track fellowship is designed specifically for fellows who desire a career in basic laboratory research and are prepared to make a major commitment to basic scientific research.

During the second and third years of the Basic Research Track, which may be funded through our NIH Institutional Gastroenterology Training Program, the emphasis is on rigorous scientific training in laboratory research. Fellows have limited clinical responsibilities comprised of a weekly continuity clinic and endoscopy session and approximately three-five weeks per year on the inpatient consult service. Trainees are expected to initiate, organize and conduct their own experiments in the laboratory under the guidance and close supervision of a preceptor within the Division or the Harvard Medical Area.

Because of the proximity to, and close ties with, the basic science departments at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, trainees will have the opportunity to develop projects and to receive training in a variety of basic disciplines, utilizing molecular and cell biological, biochemical, physiological, biophysical, physical-chemical or immunological techniques.

The Brigham and Women's Hospital, together with the Harvard Medical School, Children's Hospital Boston and Beth Israel-Deaconess Hospital, has been designated as a Digestive Diseases Center by NIH and is the recipient of a Digestive Diseases Center Award. This Center facilitates close interaction and collaboration among investigators with interests in the digestive and hepatic-pancreatico-biliary systems in these institutions.

Research interests of the faculty at Brigham and Women's Hospital and the VA Boston HealthCare System vary widely but all of the laboratories share equipment and expertise and interact closely in a collegial atmosphere. The Division also has been designated as a Center for Autoimmunity, which, together with the Dermatology and Neurology divisions, is funded to study autoimmune diseases such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

The following members of the academic research faculty, who participate in the Gastroenterology and Hepatology Training Program, provide a wide scope of research activities in major scientific disciplines.

• Richard S. Blumberg, MD
• David Cohen, MD, PhD
• Matthew J. Hamilton, MD
• Hiroshi Mashimo, MD, PhD
• Vanessa Mitsialis, MD
• Sahar Nissim, MD, PhD
• Scott B. Snapper, MD, PhD
• Carlo G. Traverso, MD, PhD
• Zhenglun "Jerry" Zhu, MD, PhD

Other Selected Program Faculty:

• Sangeeta Bhatia (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
• Sudha Biddinger, MD, PhD (Boston Children's Hospital)
• David Breault, MD, PhD (Boston Children's Hospital)
• Lynn Bry, MD, PhD (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Fernando Camargo, PhD (Boston Children's Hospital)
• Wayne Lencer, MD (Boston Children's Hospital)
• Judy Lieberman, MD, PhD (Harvard Medical School)
• Lydia Lynch, PhD (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Richard Maas, MD, PhD (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Vamsi Mootha, MD (Massachusetts General Hospital / Broad Institute)
• Ramesh Shivdasani, MD, PhD (Dana Farber Cancer Institute)
• Jerrold R. Turner, MD, PhD (Brigham and Women's Hospital)

The Clinical & Translational Sciences Track fellowship is designed specifically for fellows who desire a career in academic gastroenterology/hepatology and are prepared to make a major commitment to clinical research.

During the first two months of the second year, fellows can take the summer Program in Clinical Effectiveness at the Harvard School of Public Health. The curriculum includes required courses in biostatistics and epidemiology, as well as electives such as decision analysis and large database research. For the remainder of the year it is expected that fellows will work with a mentor, develop and execute projects in clinical research, and apply for research funding.

The third year is devoted to ongoing clinical research under the supervision of their mentor. In addition, it is possible for some fellows to take additional courses and obtain a Master’s degree in Public Health through an internal application and selection process. Clinical & Translational Sciences trainees participate in brief inpatient clinical rotations during the second and third year, as well as their weekly continuity clinic and endoscopy sessions. They are also encouraged to do clinical electives that fit their interests and future plans.

The following are members of the Clinical & Translational Sciences faculty in a wide range of disciplines:

• Hiroyuki Aihara, MD, PhD
• Jessica Allegretti, MD, MPH
• Gyorgy Baffy, MD, PhD
• Peter A. Banks, MD
• Walter Chan, MD, MPH
• Disentuwahandi Punyanganie De Silva, MD, MPH
• Sonia Friedman, MD
• Nikroo Hashemi, MD, MPH
• Kunal Jajoo, MD
• David Jin, MD, MPH
• Pichamol Jirapinyo, MD, MPH
• Joshua Korzenik, MD
• Navin L. Kumar, MD
• Linda S. Lee, MD
• Ramona Lim, MD
• Wai-Kit Lo, MD, MPH
• Frederick L. Makrauer, MD
• Julia McNabb-Baltar, MD, MPH
• Molly L. Perencevich, MD
• Anna E. Rutherford, MD, MPH
• Marvin Ryou, MD
• John R. Saltzman, MD
• Lin Shen, MD
• Helen Shields, MD
• Daniel Stein, MD
• Sapna Syngal, MD, MPH
• Christopher C. Thompson, MD
• Jerry S. Trier, MD
• Rachel W. Winter, MD, MPH
• Kathleen Viveiros, MD
• Stephen D. Zucker, MD

Other Selected Program Faculty:

• Adam Landman, MD (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Ali Tavakkoli, MBBS (Brigham and Women's Hospital)
• Brian Wolpin, MD, MPH (Dana Farber Cancer Institute)