University of California San Diego (UCSD) Department of Pathology is located in beautiful Southern California at the Hillcrest Medical Center in San Diego and the UCSD medical campus in La Jolla, with new hospital facilities opening in La Jolla in the near future. We have a growing Division of Anatomic/Surgical Pathology with a large proportion of gastrointestinal specimens.
The Gastrointestinal Pathology Fellowship at UCSD is designed to provide rigorous diagnostic training with the opportunity for graduated, independent sign-out responsibilities for gastrointestinal, hepatic, and pancreaticobiliary surgical pathology cases. The program takes advantage of USCD’s large volume of diverse cases with a considerable proportion of high-complexity and esoteric cases, including but not limited to the categories of neoplastic and non-neoplastic GI mucosal biopsies and resections, liver explants, medical liver biopsies including transplant biopsies, pancreatic surgicals, and outside consultation cases. Areas of expertise are myriad and include inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, fatty liver disease, liver transplant pathology, and a variety of neoplastic diseases, including pancreatic cancer.
In addition, the Fellowship experience is enhanced by exposure to pediatric and community-based cases through participation in 2 elective rotation months at sites outside of the Division of Anatomic/Surgical Pathology that include Rady Children’s Hospital and Kaiser Pathology. To further strengthen training in academic gastrointestinal pathology, each Fellow is required to complete at least one clinicopathologic research project (clinical, translational, or basic science) related to gastrointestinal disease and will have close mentorship from the faculty.
Currently, the program supports one Fellow per year and is interviewing for positions starting in July 2014 and July 2015. The position is a 12 month commitment. The ideal candidate for the Fellowship is proactive, motivated, and demonstrates the ability to work well with a diverse team; has a great sense of humor, positive mental attitude, strong work ethic, and superb communication skills; and finally, demonstrates diagnostic rigor with attention to detail and has a record of academic interest and achievement.
Primary Fellowship Responsibilities:
– Prepare cases for GI and Liver subspecialty-based sign-out
– Present at Multidisciplinary Tumor Boards and conferences
– Teach rotating medical students and pathology residents
– Research a clinicopathologic topic related to gastrointestinal disease
– Review Consultation/Slide Review cases
– Perform intraoperative consultations (frozen section diagnosis)
– Develop sophistication in written and oral communication of diagnostic results