In addition to our five (5) adult fellowship positions and our one (1) combined Geri-Pal fellowship position, we offer a dedicated Pediatric Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellowship position focused on the care of seriously ill children and their families.

Although Pediatric fellows share a mature administrative, clinical, and educational infrastructure with their adult colleagues, their clinical and didactic curriculum has a number of major and minor changes to address the unique needs of the Pediatric population.

Pediatric Clinical Curriculum
  • 5 months of Pediatric inpatient consultation service time with the Integrated Pediatric Pain and Palliative Care (IP3) service at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital at Mission Bay forms the core Pediatric palliative care experience. The core IP3 team consists of a Physician, NP, RN, Social Worker, and Psychologist and works closely with Child Life Specialists, Music Therapists, Massage Therapists, Acupuncturists, and other medical professionals to provide comprehensive care to seriously ill children and their families.
  • 1 month of adult consultation experience at the Parnassus campus.
  • 2.5 months of home hospice and concurrent care with By the Bay Health, the number one provider of this care to children in the Bay Area. Fellows join By the Bay Health’s dedicated pediatric hospice and palliative care team to visit children in their homes as they receive both hospice and concurrent care services. 
  • 1 month of elective/scholarly time (please see adult curriculum for details)
  • 1 month exploring supportive services and alternative care models with the PACT team at Children’s Hospital Oakland, the Pediatric Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation team at UCSF (Benioff), and elsewhere. This month is designed to round off the fellow’s experience in the care of children with serious illness by deepening exposure to the hospital and community services upon which these children and their families depend.
  • Long-term care, inpatient hospice, and respite at George Mark Children's House (GMCH), an independent, non-profit, free-standing pediatric respite and hospice house - the only institution of its kind in the United States. The dual role as a respite and hospice facility means that fellows are exposed to children in varying stages of illness. 
Pediatric Didactic Curriculum
  • The Pediatric fellow joins her or his adult colleagues for all of their didactics (see adult curriculum).
  • In addition to the general didactic content, the Pediatric fellow receives 15-20 hours of additional advanced Pediatric content through weekly conferences.
  • The Pediatric fellow participates in the Department of Pediatrics Fellows’ College, a multi-session curriculum provided to all Pediatric fellows that focuses on scholarship, career, quality improvement and other topics.
Pediatric Resiliency Curriculum
  • The Pediatric fellow joins her or his colleagues in the adult resiliency curriculum.
  • In addition, the Pediatric fellow joins ICU and Hematology/Oncology fellows for intermittent debriefs relating to shared patients and has the opportunity to participate in the Pediatric Ethics committee.