Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship
Welcome to the Pediatric Hospital Medicine (PHM) Fellowship at Akron Children’s. We are excited that you have chosen to explore our program. Our fellowship program was established in 2014 and has been accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). We provide a comprehensive 2-year fellowship program and accept one fellow annually allowing for a highly personalized and individualized training experience. Our division boasts a team of more than 30 hospitalists and 14 advanced care providers (APP’s) with diverse clinical and academic interests.
Our fellowship program provides a gateway to unlimited opportunities. We offer a blend of tertiary care experience and community experience throughout our fellowship and are looking for candidates who are committed to honing their academic and clinical skills, while also having the passion to teach, lead, and innovate.
About the Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship
The mission of Akron Children's Pediatric Hospital Medicine (PHM) fellowship program is:
- To train physicians to be sub-specialists who are experts in providing high quality, patient-centered, evidence and value-based care to hospitalized children in every setting
- To train physicians to be the future leaders of pediatric hospital medicine so they can drive, collaborate, and innovate the field
We plan to do this by providing high-quality advanced inpatient training in diverse settings, keeping abreast of the new knowledge within the field of pediatric hospital medicine, and by integrating meaningful scholarship in quality improvement, clinical research, and medical education. Our training equips the fellows to become qualified pediatric hospitalists who can function independently in any clinical setting (community or academic settings), with a wide range of patient populations (newborns, acute illness to chronic complex patients). In addition, we hope to instill the values in our fellows that we hold as a division – teamwork, lifelong learning, and personal development.
Our sedation program, managed by Hospital Medicine, is one of 11 programs nationally designated as a Center of Excellence by the Society of Pediatric Sedation. With more than 2,500 procedural sedation cases, we're one of the largest hospitalist-led sedation programs in the country.
The faculty members of our division have attained notable distinctions across a range of fields and are vested with leadership roles in several domains, including quality improvement, patient safety, medical education, sedation, global health, medical operations and hospital administration.
The Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship Program at Akron Children’s hospital participates in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) https://www.nrmp.org/fellowship-applicants/ within the Medicine and Pediatric Specialties Match. Applicants must submit their application through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) https://students-residents.aamc.org/applying-fellowships-eras/applying-fellowships-eras.
After applications are received, our fellowship recruitment committee will review applications and send out invitations for interviews. Interviews will be conducted in the Fall. Important NRMP dates, including the Rank Order List Certification deadline and Match Day can be found at the NRMP website. https://www.nrmp.org/fellowship/medicine-and-pediatric-specialties-match/
Contact information:
Prabi Rajbhandari, MD
Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship Director
Akron Children's
One Perkins Square
Akron, OH 44308
prajbhandari@akronchildrens.org
Jamie Prock
Fellowship coordinator
Akron Children's
One Perkins Square
Akron, OH 44308
330-543-4255
Jprock@akronchildrens.org
The pediatric hospital medicine fellowship at Akron Children's is aligned with the ACGME requirements. The fellowship program is committed to ensuring that trainees develop proficiency in the PHM Core Competencies, which have been developed by the PHM sub-board and the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP). This is achieved through diverse clinical experiences across various settings, allowing fellows to gain valuable hands-on experience and exposure to a wide range of cases. All rotations are structured to permit independent medical decision-making with graduated autonomy.
Core rotations
Our core rotations are evenly split over two years, with 16 weeks of core rotation each year. Core rotations include inpatient medicine, sedation, delivery and nursery, community rotation, complex care and co-management service, palliative care, and the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
Individualized curriculum
The fellowship program provides each fellow with an individualized curriculum, evenly distributed over a two-year period and spanning 32 weeks. We design the curriculum to align with the fellow's career plans, ensuring that it is tailored to their specific needs and goals.
Clinical :
- additional time in the inpatient unit, community rotation, sedation, delivery and nursery , palliative care, co-management service, complex care service
- infectious disease, global health, pharmacology-toxicology, child abuse, psychiatry, pediatric surgery, emergency medicine, delivery services, nephrology, neurology, inpatient adolescent medicine
Non-clinicl
- Business administration
- Leadership
- Research/ Quality Improvement (QI) – Additional research/QI dedicated time over 16 weeks for robust ongoing project work. Requires program director and research mentor approval
Training Sites
The core training in hospital medicine takes place at Akron Children's Main Campus, the largest pediatric healthcare provider in Northeast Ohio, boasting a 299-bed flagship hospital. This training occurs on the four inpatient general pediatric teaching services. Each team comprises senior residents, interns, and medical students. In addition to the medical personnel, the teams have access to ancillary staff such as resident assistants, case managers, social workers, dietitians, therapists, and child life specialists. This experience provides an excellent opportunity to gain practical, hands-on experience and work alongside a talented team of professionals in a dynamic and supportive environment.
Our fellows benefit from an extensive sedation training program conducted at our state-of-the-art Infusion and Sedation Center, located at our Main campus. This Center is fully equipped with advanced technology and is staffed daily by three teams, led by our hospitalists. Our sedation services cover a wide range of procedures, including MRI and nuclear medicine studies, Botox injections, nerve blocks, lumbar punctures, biopsies, interventional radiology procedures, bone marrow aspiration and biopsy, and dental procedures. Learn more about our Infusion and Sedation Center.
Our community site training occurs at Akron Children’s Mahoning Valley Campus, also known as the Boardman campus. Located approximately 55 miles away, this location is staffed 24/7 by our hospitalists and APP’s.
Intelligence for Quality Improvement (IQI): Fellows have the opportunity to participate in a six-month longitudinal capstone quality improvement course hosted by our Department of Quality and Patient Safety. The course provides fellows with the opportunity to choose a topic of personal interest, while receiving expert guidance from a dedicated project mentor and a QI coach. Fellows can master the QI process as it pertains to their chosen subject matter.
Project to Publication (P2P) program: For fellows looking to delve deeper into QI writing, our institutional P2P program offers an exclusive opportunity. Fellows can join this 20-week course after completion of IQI which provides a structured pathway for participants to turn their QI projects into peer-reviewed manuscripts. Each participant is paired with a dedicated mentor, guiding them through the nuts and bolts of manuscript writing. With meticulous guidance, fellows navigate the intricacies of manuscript development, ultimately transforming their QI projects into impactful publications. PD’s approval will be required.
Global health: Fellows with interest in Global Health can join a graduate certificate-level program. The certificate features a highly flexible learning plan with online didactic learning, workshops and full immersion experiences in a resource-limited environment in which students will experience medical care constrained by poverty, lack of resources and understand the impact of economic, social, environmental and cultural barriers. A master’s degree in global health is available at an additional cost.
Akron Children’s accredited fellowship programs offer:
Stipends
(Effective July 1, 2025)
PL-4 – $75,794
PL-5 – $77,309
PL-6 -- $78,856
Vacation
House offices are granted 3 weeks of vacation or 15 customary working days.
Conference Time
Fellows are entitled to 5 days of conference time each year for medical conventions and courses outside the hospital.
Educational Allowance
Fellows are provided $1,500 annually for use toward medical-related journals or books, conferences, and license renewals.
Research and Scholarship Travel
The Department of Pediatrics encourages and supports investigator-initiated research by subspecialty fellows. Therefore, the Department supports research-related travel when the fellow is in good academic and professional standing, and when prior written approval of the program director is documented. All hospital policies relating to travel must be followed.
Although the policy relates to presentation at a national forum, requests for support for presentation at a regional forum are considered on a case-by-case basis.
Additionally, funding may be available to offset costs for professional conferences (travel, lodging, registration, meals) if not presenting scholarly activity.
Professional Liability
Professional liability insurance is provided by the hospital.
Health Benefits
Fellows, and their dependents, are eligible to enroll in the hospital’s health, dental, and vision insurance programs. Costs are shared between the fellow and the hospital. Benefits are available immediately.
Retirement Benefits
Fellows may participate in the Hospital’s 403(b) Plan from their date of hire. Match dollars are not available to fellows.
Other Benefits
- Group Term Life Insurance equal to one time the fellow’s annual income, with an option to purchase additional coverage in increments of annual earnings.
- Dependent Life Insurance coverage and Medical Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts.
- Voluntary Universal Life, Accident & Critical Illness through Trustmark & Home& Auto through Met Life.
- Employee Assistance Program available to all fellows and their families.
- Short and Long Term Disability benefits available, effective for three months following start date.
Medical License & DEA
Fellows are required to obtain an Ohio State Medical License and DEA certificate prior to beginning training.
Parking
A key access card for convenient parking is provided at no charge.
Lab Coats
One embroidered lab coat is provided, if desired.
Meals
Fellows are given $70 every week for use in the hospital cafeteria.
Relocation expenses
The hospital provides reimbursement for initial relocation expenses, up to $1,000, subject to current tax laws.
Smoke, Electronic Cigarette and Tobacco Free Campus
Akron Children’s is a tobacco-free healthcare system. Prospective employees who test positive for nicotine will have their offer of employment rescinded and will not be permitted to start work.
Our fellows select from a wide array of projects, ranging from clinical care and quality improvement to medical education, enabling them to make impactful contributions across various facets of hospital medicine. Some of our recent accomplishments include:
- 100% of recent fellows have peer-reviewed publications in prestigious journals such as Pediatrics, Hospital Pediatrics and Journal of Pediatric Infectious disease
- 100% of fellows present their projects at national conferences
- Two award-winning regional quality improvement projects recently
- Development and successful implementation of clinical pathways and educational tools
Here’s a look at recent work by our fellows:
Peer-reviewed publications
Elena Dingle, MD
- Resource Utilization and Cost in Management of Febrile Infants After the 2021 Clinical Guideline, Pediatrics, 2025
- Trends in Resource Utilization of Well-appearing Febrile Infants Journal of Medical Sciences at NEOMED, 2024
Farimah Shariati, MD
- MRI Findings of La Crosse Virus Encephalitis in the Pediatric Population; Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, 2025
Kathryn Bakkum, MD
- Hospital Variations and Temporal Trends in Procalcitonin Use for Patients with Bronchiolitis Hospital Pediatrics, 2024
- A Quality Improvement Initiative to Reduce Duplicate Inflammatory Marker Use; Pediatric Quality and Safety, 2024
Anna Brown, DO
- Prolonged Fever, Diarrhea, Abdominal Pain, and Joint Pain in a 9-Year- Old Boy, Pediatrics, 2020
Danielle Klima, DO
- Clinical Characteristics and Etiology of Community-acquired Pneumonia in US Children, 2015-2018, Pediatric Infectious Disease, 2022
Inga Aikman, MD
- Microcephaly, Hypotonia, and Intracranial Calcifications in an 11-Week-Old Boy; Pediatrics, 2020
Quality Improvement Projects, Clinical Pathways and Educational Work
Melissa Walker, MD
- Inpatient management of adolescents experiencing opioid withdrawal and transition to long-acting injectable naltrexone: A Case series
- Improving utilization of constipation treatment plans: A Quality Improvement project
- Pathway development for constipation
Elena Dingle, MD
- Improving inpatient disease specific order set use: A Quality Improvement Project (1st Prize, APA Regional Meeting, Cleveland 2025, Poster presentation, PAS 2025, Hawaii)
Farimah Shariati, MD
- Pathway development for febrile seizure management at Akron Children’s Hospital
- Improving appropriate admissions for febrile seizures: A Quality Improvement Project (Poster presented at PAS)
Kathryn Bakkum, MD
- Lab stewardship through procalcitonin and inflammatory marker reduction
Anna Brown, DO
- Resident Early Warning System (REWS): Improving timely feedback to interns (poster presented at APA Region 5)
- MEDRITESS: Medication reconciliation to reduce errors (1st Prize, APA Region V/VI, PAS 2022)
Danielle Klima, DO
- Improving inpatient vaccination rates in hospitalized children: A Quality Improvement project, (poster presented at PAS 202)
