The Neuroimmunology Center in the Boston Children’s Department of Neurology has one position available for a two-year combined clinical and clinical research fellowship in pediatric neuroimmunology. The fellowship begins July 1, 2027.

Prerequisites

Applicants must have successfully completed a child neurology or neurodevelopmental disabilities residency by July 1, 2027.

Overview

The fellow will work closely with our multidisciplinary clinical and clinical research team, which includes nurses, nurse practitioners, neuropsychologists, educational specialists, social workers, physical/occupational/speech therapists, dietitians, administrators, and research coordinators. The fellow will have extensive inpatient and outpatient exposure to the full range of pediatric neuroimmunological conditions, including demyelinating and non-demyelinating disorders (including autoimmune and infectious encephalitis), CNS vasculitis, rheumatologic disorders, and paraneoplastic disorders.

Upon successful completion of the fellowship, the fellow will be an expert in the independent clinical management of pediatric neuroimmunological conditions, including prescribing the full range of immunotherapies.

Clinical goals and objectives

The overall goal of the program is for the fellow to develop the expertise needed for expert clinical management of pediatric neuroimmunological disorders. By completion of the fellowship, the fellow will:

1. Learn general concepts in basic immunology and neuroimmunology as they apply to pediatric neuroimmunological disorders
2. Be able to perform a comprehensive history and physical exam geared toward the differential diagnosis and management of pediatric neuroimmunological disorders
3. Generate a thorough differential diagnosis within pediatric neuroimmunological disorders and recognize other disorders that may mimic these conditions
4. Apply up-to-date diagnostic criteria for the diagnosis of pediatric neuroimmunological disorders
5. Develop an organized diagnostic testing plan within pediatric neuroimmunological conditions, including blood, CSF, EEG, MRI, and pathological testing
6. Develop treatment plans for the management of acute presentations of pediatric neuroimmunological conditions, including the use of corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulin, and plasma exchange
7. Determine the need for chronic immunotherapy for pediatric neuroimmunology conditions and develop treatment plans for relapse prevention, including the use of multiple sclerosis disease-modifying therapies, rituximab, mycophenolate, cyclophosphamide, other monoclonal antibodies, and novel therapies
8. Understand the multidisciplinary needs of patients with neuroimmunological conditions and their families, including psychological, neuro-psychological, educational, social, and rehabilitative needs and work with a team to meet them

The above goals and objectives will be met through the following:

1. Weekly clinics with Drs. Gorman, Benson, Stredny, Wilson-Murphy, Andzelm, and MacRae. Patients will be scheduled directly with the fellow and/or with the attending neurologist depending on the clinic templates. When the patient is scheduled on the attending template, the fellow and attending will preview clinic schedules and determine which patients the fellow will see. The fellow and attending will also designate selected patients, particularly new patients, that the fellow will be the primary neurologist for; the fellow will be responsible for all aspects of the neurological care of such patients (phone calls, test result follow up, prescriptions, etc.) with supervision by the attending neurologist.
2. Inpatient consults with Drs. Gorman, Benson, Stredny, Wilson-Murphy, Andzelm, and MacRae
3. Biweekly multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology multidisciplinary team meetings
4. Didactic teaching sessions include the monthly AAN Autoimmune Neurology conference, monthly combined Boston Children’s-Mass General Brigham neuroimmunology conference (led by the fellow bimonthly), and ad hoc using selected slide decks, papers, and/or book chapters.
5. Immunology tutorial with the Division of Immunology

Research goals and objectives

The overall goal of the program is for the fellow to develop clinical research skills needed for the study of pediatric neuroimmunological disorders. The fellow will work with fellowship faculty to develop specific clinical research projects with a goal of submitting one to two manuscripts for publication by completion of the fellowship. At least one of the research projects must be focused on opsoclonus-myoclonus ataxia syndrome (OMAS), reflecting the funding source, primary mentor’s research focus, and availability of a multicenter OMAS registry coordinated at Boston Children’s Hospital.

By completion of the fellowship, the fellow will:

1. Understand the basics of study design
2. Be able to submit a study application to the institutional review board
3. Generate research hypotheses within pediatric neuroimmunology
4. Complete a clinical research project and submit a manuscript for publication

The fellow will attend monthly neuroimmunology research program meetings. As part of the clinical research training, fellows will be required to apply to the Program in Clinical Effectiveness at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, which is a 15-credit certificate program that provides essential training in clinical epidemiology and biostatistics, and other skills needed for quantitative clinical research. Fellows would complete this program in July and August 2027. The fellowship will cover the cost of tuition for successful applicants.

Faculty

• Primary mentor: Mark Gorman, MD, will oversee all aspects of the fellowship and be responsible for the clinical and clinical research training of the fellow.
• Other staff: Leslie Benson, MD; Coral Stredny, MD; Molly Wilson-Murphy, MD; Milena Andzelm, MD; Rebecca MacRae, MD

Feedback

The fellow and mentor will meet monthly to review progress toward the goals and objectives of the fellowship. Written feedback will be provided quarterly.

Other

Notes will be completed in a timely fashion in keeping with Department of Neurology and Boston Children’s Hospital standards.

Additional details

The fellow will be paid at the PGY6 and PGY7 salary levels set by Boston Children’s Hospital with associated benefits. The fellowship is supported by a philanthropic grant from the Lauren Mantz Opsoclonus Myoclonus Syndrome Fellowship Fund. The fellowship has been approved by the Boston Children’s Hospital Graduate Education Committee.

How to apply

The fellowship participates in the SF Match for neuroimmunology and multiple sclerosis fellowships. Interested applicants can submit their applications via the SF Match process. Use this link to apply.

Please contact Jacquelyn Crombie, program manager, at Jacquelyn.Crombie@childrens.harvard.edu with questions.