Objective
To provide post-graduate fellows in pediatric infectious diseases with the opportunity to acquire specialized clinical, education and research training in tropical and global medicine, and to build an academic and research career in pediatric global infectious and tropical diseases. This track is offered in collaboration with the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.
Track Director: Jill Weatherhead, M.D., MSc, DTMH
Applicant Selection
After matching at BCM Pediatric ID fellowship program, post-graduate fellows will undergo an in-person discussion with the ID fellowship program director and with Dr. Weatherhead, to evaluate if his/her career goals align with the experience offered in the Tropical and Global Medicine track. Post-graduate fellows accepted to the track will be expected to not only complete the expectations of the Tropical and Global Medicine Track but also the clinical, research and educational expectations of the Pediatric ID fellowship program.
Fellows will have the opportunity to develop skills in the following areas:
Clinical Tropical and Global Medicine
Baylor College of Medicine is located in subtropical Houston, Texas, an international hub and the most diverse city in the United States. Baylor’s location in combination with the significant multi-cultural population creates a unique clinical environment with locally and internationally acquired tropical diseases. Chagas disease, cysticercosis, Dengue, leishmaniasis, strongyloidiasis, and toxocariasis are among several endemic neglected tropical disease locally acquired in the Houston region.
Post-graduate fellows will learn appropriate diagnostic, treatment and monitoring strategies in NTDs and neglected disease of poverty through hands-on patient care.
Post-graduate fellows will be required to complete an equivalent of two months of clinical time focused on tropical and global medicine during the three years of fellowship.
Clinic opportunities include:
- Adult Tropical Medicine Clinic
- Pediatric Tropical Medicine Clinic
- Obstetric and Post-partum HIV Clinic
- Pediatric and Adolescent HIV Clinic
- Pediatric Tuberculosis Clinic
Education in Tropical and Global Medicine
Post-graduate fellows will participate in monthly NSTM seminars as well as the TCH Foundations in Global Health Lecture Series. All post-graduate fellow track participants will be required to obtain a Diploma in Tropical Medicine through the NSTM at BCM. After completion of the Diploma Course, post-graduate fellows will be given the opportunity to enhance their educator skills through teaching tropical and global medicine courses in the Summer Institute series and as a teaching assistant in the Diploma in Tropical Medicine parasitology lab. Visit the NSTM website information regarding the Diploma in Tropical Medicine.
Research in Tropical and Global Medicine
In compliance with the Pediatric ID post-graduate fellowship training program, all post-graduate fellows enrolled in the Tropical and Global Medicine track are required to complete a scholarly/research project. Research projects include: clinical, translational or basic science projects with a focus on Tropical and Global Medicine. The Pediatric ID and Tropical Medicine Faculty lead a diverse array of projects in the areas of epidemiology and outbreak investigation including: basic disease pathogenesis, omics and systems biology, the development and testing of new vaccines and diagnostics, and global health public policy. Examples of faculty member research projects with a tropical disease focus include: arbovirus infections (e.g. Dengue virus, West Nile Virus, Zika virus), tick-borne infections, Chagas disease and leishmaniasis; parasitic helminth infections (including soil-transmitted helminthiases and schistosomiasis). Post-graduate fellows will meet Dr. Weatherhead to identify a research mentor that best fits his/her research goals.
About the National School of Tropical Medicine
The NSTM was developed by Dr. Peter Hotez, dean and Dr. Maria Elena Bottazzii, associate dean, which provides comprehensive training in tropical medicine and global health. The focus of the NSTM is to train the next generation of global health scientists and global health care providers in the area of tropical medicine. This mission is achieved through hands-on, innovative education, novel clinical, translational and basic science research, public policy development and health communication training in neglected tropical diseases and neglected infections of poverty. Learn more about the NSTM.
