Fellowship Program

Program Description

The Pediatric Pathology Fellowship at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is a 12-month program designed to provide a comprehensive experience in pediatric and perinatal pathology, preparing the trainee for a successful career in academic pathology or specialized private practice.

The fellowship includes:

• Approximately 40 weeks of anatomical pathology, doing daily service in the areas of surgical pathology, autopsy pathology, hematopathology, neuropathology, and at departmental and clinical conferences at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
• Four weeks at the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Pathology Department, focusing on embryo, perinatal and placental pathology.
• Four weeks in the area of clinical pathology rotating through the clinical lab, blood bank, molecular and cytogenetics lab, and microbiology.
• A four-week elective is available at the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office. Fellows perform forensic-based autopsies to further understand the types of cases referred to the Coroner’s Office and the forensic approach to infant and child autopsies.

The Pathology Department evaluates approximately 5,500 pediatric surgical specimens and 100 perinatal/pediatric autopsy cases per year, including fetal autopsies. In addition, the fellow reviews cases from a large pediatric consultation service. Fellows supervise and contribute to the education of residents and medical students rotating in the department on a daily basis. They also prepare cases for interdisciplinary conferences and present the findings as per the monthly schedule.

The Pediatric Pathology Fellowship program is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. All fellows receive two paid weeks of vacation and a stipend to attend a conference during the fellowship. An optional second year may be available depending on the fellow’s individual training goals.

To Apply

Candidates must have a valid unrestricted California medical license to apply and must be anatomic pathology board eligible. Clinical pathology board eligibility is preferred. To be considered, email your CV, statement of career goals and three letters of recommendation to:

Paul Pattengale, MD
Program Director
ppattengale@chla.usc.edu
323-361-5608