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Advanced Fellowships and Professional Development
Profound changes are occurring in the U.S. healthcare system. Rapid technological
advances, changing economic and demographic factors, and the growth of managed healthcare
have caused dramatic shifts and demands in patient care. The
VA Advanced Fellowships Program helps address these demands by offering
post-residency fellowships to physicians and dentists in emerging health professions
of particular importance to VA and the nation. The program provides outstanding
opportunities for post-residency research, education, and clinical training in these
emerging professions. Through creative partnerships, use of new technology, and
innovative educational modalities, the
VA Advanced Fellowships Program promotes and fosters the highest standards
of leadership, intellectual integrity, research, and patient care.
Background: In 1978, the Office of Academic Affiliations (OAA)
began the VA Special Fellowships
Program, which was renamed in 2007 to VA Advanced Fellowships Program, to accomplish the following purposes:
- Develop physician and dentist clinical proficiency, academic scholarship and leadership
in emerging areas of health care important to
VA
- Contribute to a talented, well trained recruitment pool for
VA
- Foster an atmosphere of scientific inquiry and excellence within
VA.
The Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and Fellowship Program in
Geriatrics were the first fellowships started in 1978. Over the years new
fellowships were added to meet emerging healthcare needs important to
VA. Highly skilled in treatment and research, the pool of physicians
and dentists participating in the program has made significant contributions to
health care in VA and the nation. Notable examples include nationally recognized
programs and research in geriatrics, substance abuse treatment, and spinal cord
injury medicine. VA support
of fellowship programs in these and other areas has changed physician and dentist
training in America.
Program Operations
Physician and dentist Fellowship Program Directors manage the fellowship
programs at VA facilities.
Working closely with their affiliates, Program Directors plan didactic experiences,
clinical rotations, and research training for the fellows. Most fellowship sites
are selected through a competitive request for applications administered by OAA. Fellowship participants
serve as trainees on a temporary, full-time employment basis at one of the fellowship
sites for the duration of the appointment period.
VA provides two or three years of stipend/salary support for each
fellow. Most stipends/salaries are based on the post-graduate (PG) level the fellow
attained through previous Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)
residency training. The stipend is related as closely as possible to local affiliate
fellowship stipend levels.
Applicant Requirements
To apply to VA's Advanced Fellowships Program, interested applicants can
explore the Advanced Fellowships menu and send a cover letter and curriculum vitae
to the local fellowship site. Applications are processed at the local level, and
OAA provides final approval.
An applicant must have completed residency specialty training and be a board certified
or board eligible physician with an active, unrestricted license to practice medicine
in the U.S. (residency training licenses are considered restricted licenses.) Any
international medical graduate must have an unexpired visa and an Educational Commission
for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) certificate that is valid indefinitely. Applicants
on J-1 visas must have the required ECFMG sponsorship.
Summary
The VA Advanced Fellowship Programs have been extremely important to VA's
clinical, educational, and research missions and the nation's workforce and health-care
needs.
Contact:
Stuart Gilman, M.D.
Director, VA Advanced Fellowships & Professional Development
562-826-5323 ext 3974
Deborah Ludke
Health Systems Specialist
526-826-5492
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Fellowship Program Directors Resources |
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Instructions for Requesting
a Third Year of Support in the Associated Health
Postdoctoral Fellowship Programs and VA Special Fellowships for
Academic Year 2008-2009 |
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Nomination of and Information
about Post-doctoral/Post-residency Fellows in the VA Special Fellowships, VA Interprofessional Fellowships, and Associated Health Fellowships for Academic Year 2008-2009
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