Clinician Educator Pathway
Opportunities for physicians who wish to specialize in the clinical practice and education of rheumatic diseases
The Clinician Educator Pathway offers training and educational opportunities to physicians who wish to specialize in clinical practice and/or education. This pathway combines clinical and/or teaching experiences into an experience tailored towards a career in clinical practice and/or an academic environment. The primary goals of the program are to train: (1) outstanding clinicians who will be adept at managing rheumatic diseases; and (2) future academic faculty members.
First year
The first year of the Clinician Educator Pathway is similar to the first year in the Research Pathway of our program, and is dedicated to providing clinical exposure to a broad spectrum of rheumatic diseases. Fellows spend the majority of the year rotating through the inpatient consult services and outpatient clinics at our three training sites under the supervision of attending physicians. In addition, fellows rotate through several Rheumatology subspecialty clinics such as the combined Rheum-Derm Clinic, Vasculitis Clinic, and the VA Women’s Rheumatology Clinic. All fellows receive training in musculoskeletal ultrasound.
One continuity clinic at the VA and two at Stanford are maintained during the first year. Fellows also participate in weekly didactic and research conferences. Lastly, fellows engage in various scholarly activities including QI projects, writing review articles and/or case reports, medical education, research projects and more.
Dr. Neha Shah, Program Director of the rheumatology fellowship, meets with each fellow regularly regarding their progress. Additionally, each fellow chooses a career mentor who advises them regarding their clinical and research training.
Second year
The second year of the Clinician Educator Pathway includes 2 to 3 months on the inpatient consultation service and several outpatient clinics per week, including one Stanford and one VA continuity clinic. Besides rotating through Rheumatology subspecialty clinics including the Rheum-Derm Clinic, Vasculitis Clinic, and VA Women’s Rheumatology clinic, fellows can choose from several elective clinics outside of Rheumatology including but not limited to clinics focused on Interstitial Lung Disease, Pulmonary Hypertension, Osteoporosis, Inflammatory Eye Disease, Orthopedic/Sports Medicine, Podiatry, Radiology, PM&R, Pediatric Rheumatology, and many more.
Additional time is focused on scholarly activities and/or research geared towards training an outstanding academic clinician-educator. The program is supportive of fellows’ specific learning goals and aims to adapt the second year of the program to meet the needs of the individual fellow. A sampling of opportunities includes:
- USSONAR certification in musculoskeletal ultrasound (fully funded)
- Certificate in Epidemiology and Clinical Research (fully funded)
- QI projects
- Clinical trials
- Outcomes research
- Writing reviews and case reports
