Allergy & Immunology Fellowship Program

Sponsored by the University of Colorado Denver in Conjunction with National Jewish Health.

Note: We are listed in the ACGME and ERAS systems as: University of Colorado Program #0200731086 

Why Choose Our Program?
Whom We Will Choose?
Goals of the Fellowship Program
The Curriculum
Consultations
Teaching
Salaries, Vacations, Leave
The Application Process
Faculty

Why Choose Our Program?

• National Jewish Health is known worldwide for treatment of patients with respiratory, immune and allergic disorders, and for groundbreaking medical research.
• National Jewish Health has ranked as the number one or number two hospital in pulmonology on the U.S. News & World Report Best Hospital list ever since pulmonology was included in the rankings.
• Scholarly publisher Thomson Scientific has ranked National Jewish Health among the 25 most influential research institutions in the world in its areas of focus.
• July 13, 2007–University of Colorado Hospital is once again among the nation’s best healthcare centers, ranking in seven of 16 specialties and reaching top-20 status in three categories, including seventh nationwide for the treatment of patients with respiratory disorders, according to the latest “America’s Best Hospitals” survey by U.S. News & World Report.
• Unique opportunity to study at two institutions, both of which focus on treating patients and academic research. 
• The faculty-to-student ratio is very high, which allows for one-one interactions between fellows and faculty members.
• State-of-the-art patient clinics and bench science and clinic trial research laboratories.
• Opportunity for hands-on experience with Rush Immunotherapy procedures, aspirin and other drug de-sensitization procedures.
• Internationally recognized faculty physicians and scientists.

Whom We Will Choose

• Residents in our program must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, refugee, asylee, or possess the appropriate documentation to allow Resident to legally train at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine.
• Highly motivated, dedicated, and enthusiastic individuals interested in being physicians and scientists.
• Individuals interested in clinic training and research training.
• Individuals interested in making research discoveries and publishing those discoveries that will improve the way we treat patients.
• Individuals capable of becoming world-renowned physicians and scientists.

Goals of the Fellowship Program

The primary objective of this fellowship is to train outstanding physician-scientists and clinician-educators who will develop new and additional understanding and knowledge of the mechanisms and treatment of allergic and immunologic diseases. These physician-scientists will also become the teachers of allergy and clinical immunology for future generations.

To accomplish this, we have developed a two-stage training program with two years devoted to fulfillment of the requirements for certification by the American Board of Allergy and Immunology. The first year is primarily devoted to clinical training. The second year of fellowship is dedicated to completion of clinical requirements and research training, which involves coursework, laboratory research, writing manuscripts and grants and is designed to provide the foundation of skills and experience that are necessary for success in academic medicine. The program is open to physicians who are either certified by or eligible to sit for the certification examinations of the American Board of Internal Medicine. Currently, three fellows enter the program each year.

The Curriculum

The fellowship training is conducted on the campuses of National Jewish Health and the University of Colorado Denver (UCD). The Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Clinics for the University are held at the new Anschutz Campus. Cross training in Pediatrics is done at National Jewish Health and the Children’s Hospital.

During the first year, the fellows rotate between the two campuses every two months. At National Jewish Health, one receives experience in management of severe asthma as well as experience in management of patients with allergic rhinitis, urticaria, angioedema, food and drug allergy, and adult immunodeficiency diseases. The UCD Clinics also provide experience in diagnosis and management of asthma, allergic rhinitis, urticaria, anaphylaxis, angioedema and immune deficiency diseases. This gives the fellow the opportunity to witness diverse approaches to recognition and management of allergic and immunologic diseases. The UCD rotations also provide experience in clinics that are important to the practice of Allergy and Clinical Immunology such as dermatology, rheumatology, ENT. In addition, fellows are required to rotate in the Clinical Immunology Laboratories to learn the methods used and applications of assays such as flow cytometry, immunoglobulin and antibody quantitation, interpretation of protein electrophoresis patterns and assays of complement activity and cell-mediated immunity.

Consultations

The fellows are the first to respond to requests for consultations from other departments at UCD. These consultations may involve different questions that are relevant to Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Examples include immune deficiency disorders, difficult asthma, adverse drug reactions, anaphylaxis and urticaria.

Teaching

The Faculty to Fellow ratio is very high with 13 full time faculty. Case-by-case teaching is done in the clinics and is supplemented by several formal-teaching conferences:

Allergy Journal Club

Allergy Journal Club is a monthly forum for surveying the published literature regarding specific topics relevant to the clinical practice of allergy. First- and second-year residents present summaries of assigned articles. The articles offer a historical perspective of the particular issue being discussed and highlight controversial issues. 10-12 articles are typically covered per session and a faculty preceptor guides the discussion.

Immunology Journal Club at University of Colorado

Resident and faculty discuss one or two articles that have been published recently on clinical immunologic topics. The purpose of this journal club is to carefully critique an article regarding hypothesis testing, methodology, statistics, and conclusions.

Denver Allergy Rounds

Denver Allergy Rounds is a weekly, city-wide meeting of allergists from the private practices and academic centers. Lecturers include local allergists and invited guest speakers of national prominence. A curriculum format is used to cover topics in basic and clinical allergy and immunology.

Tuesday Afternoon Didactic Conference

Fellows present formal and informal cases as well as research proposals and updates. The fellows are evaluated twice yearly, the program is evaluated twice a year, and other Division business is discussed.

Board Review Conference

This is a weekly meeting with both pediatric and adult residents where they review a major immunology textbook. Additionally, the faculty present didactic lectures on various allergy and immunology topics. The residents also review board type questions on the topic of the week.

Systems Based Case Conference Conference

Morbidity and Mortality Conference, held quarterly where complicated cases are discussed. Core competencies of Medical Knowledge and Practice-Based Learning and Improvement are addressed.

Salaries, Vacations, Leave

Salaries are determined according to the fiftieth percentile of the Western Region according to ACGME guidelines and then stipends are set by the Dean of the University of Colorado Denver. Stipends are increased each year according to the consumer price point index. Currently, house staff are given 20 calendar days of vacation/education leave annually. Specific information can be found here (Opens in a new window)(Opens in a new window).

The Application Process

All applications will now be submitted online through ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service).

Application Process:

• Completed on-line application through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) system. Our Program Number is: 0200731086.
• Curriculum vitae.
• Personal statement addressing the following: 1) Why are you interested in allergy and clinical immunology as a medical sub-specialty? 2) What attracted you to our program, and how will our program enhance your career goals?  3) Do you envision yourself in a clinical or academic career (or a combination of both) and how much time do you envision yourself doing clinic-based work versus academic research?
• MPSE 
• Official test transcripts for all applicable examinations (USMLE, COMLEX).
• Four original letters of recommendation.
• Any other ERAS application requirements.

Program Director and Coordinator information: