The UAB Pediatric Residency Program offers four scholars programs to provide residents the opportunity to gain experience in the target areas of medical education, health disparities, global health, and underserved and rural health.

The aim of the Health Equity Scholars (HES) Program is to train pediatric and medicine-pediatric residents to lead advances in child health equity through a two-year longitudinal and experiential curriculum. The program is led by Chrystal Rutledge, M.D., associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Critical Care, Morissa Ladinsky, M.D., associate professor in the Division of Academic General Pediatrics, and Tina Simpson, M.D., professor in the Division of Adolescent Medicine. In October, the inaugural group of scholars, listed below, spent three days traveling throughout the Black Belt and to prominent places pivotal to the Civil Rights Movement to explore the historical context of health disparities and inequities within Alabama. They visited the Legacy Museum and National Museum for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, spoke with Selma High School students along with our UAB Selma Family Medicine colleagues, met a local wastewater activist, Ms. Perman Hardy, in Lowndes County, and discussed the origins of medical mistrust by learning more about the Tuskegee Syphilis Study with bioethicist, Dr. Stephen Sodeke, at the Tuskegee Historic Center. Monthly interactive workshops on topics such as implicit bias, culturally responsive care, racism in healthcare and advocacy will be facilitated by HES program leadership and faculty (Drs. Christine Campbell, Erin Shaughnessy, Kimberlly Stringer, Lauren Nassetta, Madhura Hallman, Samantha Hill, Tamera Coyne-Beasley, and Tom Harris). Funding to support this program has been provided by the Carlo Family.

The aim of the Pediatric Underserved and Global Health (PUGH) Scholars Program is to provide residents with the opportunity of understanding the general principles related to health in developing countries and providing culturally sensitive and competent care in a limited resource setting.

In 2021, the PUGH Scholars Program selected its inaugural class (see below). Throughout the fall of the 2021–2022 academic year, the program held events to provide education and discussion. In July, there was an introductory talk on global health as an overview to all residents interested in global health. In August, one of our global health faculty, Dr. Erica Bjornstad, gave Pediatric Grand Rounds on “Global Nephrology—Stories and Data from the Field,” which the scholars watched as a group followed by a discussion afterward. In September, there was a social gathering to get to know one another better and define goals and expectations for the year; one of the third-year PUGH Scholars, Dr. Amelia Schuyler, also led a quarterly Global Health Morning Report. In October, there was a simulation session at the Children’s of Alabama Simulation Center, highlighting a low-resource simulation that was designed to elicit the emotions of working in a lower resource setting. Several of our global health faculty, including Drs. Meghan Hofto, Erica Bjornstad, Carmelle Wallace, and Nora Switchenko, gave Pediatric Grand Rounds on “State of Pediatric Global Health at UAB/Children’s of Alabama,” which included a discussion of the PUGH Scholars Program. The residents were encouraged to watch this session. Toward the end of October, the three intern PUGH Scholars participated in Helping Babies Breathe, a discussion on global health ethics, and additional hands-on global health education during their Injury Prevention and Advocacy week. In December, there was a talk and discussion on “Fever in the Returning Traveler.”

Pediatric Residents Interested in Medical Education (PRIME) Scholars is a longitudinal experience designed to provide pediatric residents with skills and knowledge to become excellent medical educators. Scholars meet monthly to discuss topics ranging from medical education theory to teaching strategies. Participants also work together in small groups to develop teaching and learning resources for residents. These “Scholarly Projects” provide an introduction to medical education research through curriculum design and evaluation. Projects currently in progress include:

• Development of a Chalk Talk Guide Repository
• Utilization of X-Ray Rounds to Improve Intern Comfort in Radiograph Interpretation
• Development of a Peer Mentor Support Program
• Introduction to Point of Care Ultrasound Curriculum

Pediatrics and combined-program residents are selected to participate starting their PGY-2 year.

The McDonald Scholars Program provides the opportunity for interested residents to enhance their general pediatric experience in rural/underserved areas through a two-week immersion experience. Selected residents will be placed in an established rural and/or underserved pediatric practice in Alabama, where they will have the opportunity to be an observer and a patient caregiver.

The program is open to PGY-2 and PGY-3 Pediatric or PGY-2 through PGY-4 Med-Peds residents and accepts applications in the spring. Four to eight residents will be selected each year to participate in the program. Funding to support this program has been provided by the McDonald family.