Mission Statement
To train and produce physician-scientists in basic science and clinical research, to become leaders in the field of academic and clinical pediatric nephrology.
Program Overview
Established in 1989, the Pediatric Nephrology Fellowship program benefits from a strong multidisciplinary clinical program that partners a wealth of expertise from specialized nurses (dialysis, transplant and general nephrology), social workers, dietitians and physicians. As the only freestanding children's hospital within a five-state region, we serve children from a large and geographically diverse area, providing our fellows with a breadth of exposure to clinical nephrology.
Our fellowship program is designed to train academic pediatric nephrologists committed to careers with significant teaching and research activities. Each fellow works with the faculty to design an individualized research program in basic science, clinical research or translational investigation. Members of the division engage in basic or clinical research studies and have considerable experience as research supervisors, in addition fellows may select primary research mentors outside the division. As a robust teaching and research institution, the University of Washington School of Medicine (UWSOM) is home to the Kidney Research Institute (KRI), the highly ranked School of Public Health and many other research centers engaged in innovative investigation.
Information and Resources for UW/Seattle Children’s Pediatric Nephrology Fellowship Applicants (password protected)
Curriculum
Clinical Year
Fellows typically begin their training with the clinical year. Clinical activities occur under the supervision of division faculty members who serve as inpatient and outpatient attending physicians on a rotating basis. The clinical year experience encompasses all aspects of clinical pediatric nephrology, including all modalities of renal replacement therapy (acute/chronic dialysis and renal transplantation). Inpatient rotations cover the primary nephrology service and the nephrology consult service for the ICUs (PICU/CICU/NICU), wards and emergency department. Outpatient care includes home or in-center chronic dialysis, renal transplant care, percutaneous renal biopsies, telephone consultations from outside providers and a dedicated fellows’ clinic. Fellows complete all rotations on site at Seattle Children’s Hospital, with opportunities to participate in prenatal consults and regional clinics offsite.
Research Years
The research component of the fellowship program is typically two consecutive years. The University of Washington has many cross-disciplinary and collaborative opportunities for research projects within and outside the division. Starting in the first year, fellows work with faculty to identify a research project and research mentors within the desired area of study. Research opportunities and mentors are available in a wide variety of areas, including basic, translational and clinical research. Coursework may be pursued, depending on the research topic, at the University of Washington School of Public Health.
Each fellow has a Scholarship Oversight Committee, composed of faculty mentors within and outside the division. The SOC meets regularly to provide structure and guidance for research and career planning. Fellows will typically present their work at one of the major national meetings, with travel support provided by the fellowship program.
Research Projects of Current Fellows:
Russell Whelan, MD, PhD (2017-2020) (4th year Research Fellow 2020-2021)
Research Mentors: Dr. Ying Zheng and Dr. Jonathan Himmelfarb
Dr. Whelan has been studying on the role of vascular injury in engineered microvessels, with a particular focus on Shigatoxin-mediated vascular injury. His work this year will focus on (1) optimizing and using engineered microvessels to recapitulate the endothelial injury and thrombotic microangiopathy seen with Shigatoxin-mediated illnesses, and (2) further elucidate the underlying pathologic mechanisms in Shigatoxin-mediated illnesses.
Elizabeth Nguyen, MD, PhD (2018-2021)
Research Mentors: Dr. Mark Majesky, Dr. David Beier
Dr. Nguyen is interested in understanding the cellular response to acute and chronic renal injury. She will be working in the lab of Dr. Mark Majesky and investigating the mechanism of scar-free renal tissue repair in response to injury as demonstrated by the African spiny mouse.
Alexander Kula, MD (2018-2021)
Research Mentors: Dr. Nisha Bansal, Dr. Yuk Law, Dr. Sangeeta Hingorani
Dr. Kula is interested in the pathologic mechanisms connecting the kidney and heart in both primary renal and cardiac disease. He will be working to describe the epidemiology of heart disease in children and young adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and more specifically, he will focus on less described phenotypes of cardiac disease in pediatric CKD such as diastolic dysfunction and chronic, subclinical ischemia.
Elizabeth Yu, MD (2018-2021)
Research Mentors: Dr. Jodi Smith, Dr. Shina Menon, Dr. Kirk Liesemer
Dr. Yu is interested in improving systems based care of the complex medical child with renal disease. She is currently working on utilizing the North American Pediatric Renal Trials and Collaborative Series (NAPRTCS) dataset to describe the clinical characteristics and survival of infants on hemodialysis compared to their counterparts on peritoneal dialysis. She also is beginning to explore ideas for quality improvement, and would like to improve the vaccination rates of children with late stage chronic kidney disease.
Taylor House, MD (2019-2022)
Research Mentors: Dr. Abby Rosenberg, Dr. Susan Wong, Dr. Aaron Wightman
Dr. House aspires to be a leader at the intersection of pediatric nephrology and palliative care, she is interested in investigating, understanding, and improving the communication that takes place with parents and patients regarding initiation, withholding, and withdrawal of renal replacement therapy.
Reya Mokiao, MD (2019-2022)
Research Mentors: Dr. Jason Deen, Dr. Bessie Young, Amanda Fretts, Dr. Sangeeta Hingorani
Dr. Mokiao is interested in social determinants of health such as food insecurity, housing status and its associations with renal outcomes. She is also interested in indigenous population health including American Indians, Alaskan Natives, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. Her research will explore associations between dietary quality as a proxy for food insecurity and renal outcomes using data from the Strong Heart Study.
Board certification eligibility upon completion of program, and completion of previous certification eligibility requirements: Sub-board in Pediatric Nephrology
Length of fellowship: 3 years for ABP eligibility
Core Training Sites
Seattle Children's Hospital & Adolescent Medicine Clinic at Springbrook
Seattle Children's Hospital is both a community hospital for greater Seattle and the pediatric referral center for the Northwest providing excellent pediatric care to meet the medical, surgical and developmental needs of children in the WWAMI region. Serving as the main clinical training site for pediatric residents, this 420-bed hospital is conveniently located one and one-half miles from the University of Washington campus in an attractive, residential neighborhood of Seattle. The staff consists of University faculty and Seattle Children's full-time physicians, as well as private practicing physicians from the Seattle area.
Other sites include Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Harborview Medical Center, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the University of Washington Medical Center.
Faculty
Aaron G. Wightman, MD, MA
Associate Professor, Division of Bioethics Department of Pediatrics University of Washington School of Medicine
Fellows and Alumni
Current Fellows
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Alex Kula, MD, MS (2018-2021) |
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Elizabeth Nguyen, MD, PhD (2018-2021) |
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Elizabeth Yu, MD (2018-2021) |
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Taylor House, MD (2018-2021) |
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Reya Mokiao, MD (2018-2021) |
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Machi Kaneko, MD (2020-2023) |
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Jacob Little, MD (2020-2023) |
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Russ Whelan, MD, PhD (2020-2021) 4th year Research Fellow |
Alumni
Jessica Stahl, MD (2017-2020)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina
Abbie Bauer, MD (2016-19)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, University of Texas-Southwestern
Eliza Blanchette, MD (2016-19)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, University of Colorado
Michelle Starr, MD (2016-19)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, Indiana University SOM
Ranita Patel, MD (2015-18)
Position after graduation: Research Fellowship Seattle Children's Division of Nephrology
Kelsey Richardson, MD (2014-17)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor Pediatrics,Oregon Health & Sciences University, Division of Nephrology
Rachel Engen, MD (2014-17)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, Pediatrics Northwestern University Feinberg SOM, Lurie Children’s Hospital, Division of Nephrology
Sonia Krishnan, MD (2013-16)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, The University of Illinois COM
Michael Semanik, MD (2013-16)
Position after graduation: Associate Professor, Pediatrics University of Wisconsin, American Family Children’s Hospital, Division of Nephrology
Ian Macumber, MD (2012-15)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, University of So. Cal. Keck School/ of Medicine/ CHLA
Neil Paloian, MD (2012-15)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin SOM and Public Health / American Family Children’s Hospital
Aaron Wightman, MD, MA (2011-14)
Position after graduation: Associate Professor, Pediatrics University of Wisconsin, American Family Children’s Hospital, Division of Nephrology
Ari Pollack, MD, MS (2011-14)
Position after graduation: Acting Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, University of Washington; Seattle Children's Hospital, Division of Nephrology & Research Institute
Robin Kremsdorf, MD, MS (2010-13)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, Brown University, Providence, RI
Yolanda Ng, MD (2010-13)
Position after graduation: UCSF Sarwal Lab Associate Specialist
Amy Kogon, MD, MPH (2009-12)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Columbia University, New York, NY
Laurel Willig, MD, MS (2009-12)
Position after graduation: Assistant Professor at UMKC , Children's Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, MO
Raj Munshi, MD (2009-12)
Position after graduation: Dialysis Fellow, University of Washington
Shaun Jackson, MD, PhD (2009-12)
Position after graduation: Acting Assistant Professor in Pediatrics, University of Washington SOM and Seattle Children's Hospital
How to Apply
Requirements
- Prerequisites/post-medical school requirements: U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident; board-eligibility in pediatrics
- Application forms: All applications must be submitted through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)
Timeline
- Application deadline: October 6th
- Interview Time Period: Late August — mid October
- Match Participation: Fall Match
- NRMP Match Day: December 16th
- Fellowship start date: July 7th
Interview Process
- All interviews will be conducted online for the 2020 interview season.
Linda Woltz
Fellowship Program Administrator