The goals of the Pediatric Clerkship are to introduce medical students to the specialty of pediatrics, and to give them the opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills in this field by means of clinical experiences and didactic learning under expert guidance.

Students will work in small groups and will be assigned to a variety of clinical activities at Oishei Children's Hospital and its related facilities, Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, and community-based primary care sites. Students will have the opportunity to see pediatric patients and their families in various inpatient and outpatient settings including pediatric wards, newborn nurseries, pediatric subspecialty clinics, well-child clinics, and community pediatric practices. Throughout this rotation, students will be assigned patients to evaluate and follow and present them to the teaching staff for comments and evaluation. Emphasis will be placed on having students fully involved in the comprehensive care of pediatric patients for a more thorough understanding of this specialty. Students will perform one shift of weekend duties during this rotation. A clinical problem-based curriculum will enable students to focus on common pediatric problems. This pediatric clerkship includes regularly scheduled seminars, discussions, and lectures, as well as teaching rounds with faculty and resident staff. Pediatric residents and attendings will arrange for talks and seminars related to case material and pertinent subjects. Audiovisual and library facilities are available for self-education.

The clerkship is divided into three separate 2-week blocks: inpatient at Oishei Children’s Hospital, outpatient at a primary care pediatric site, and pediatric subspecialty (possible assignment include neonatology, critical care, pediatric emergency medicine, hematology/oncology, nephrology, gastroenterology, pulmonology, diabetes/endocrinology, infectious diseases, and cardiology).

At orientation on the first day of the clerkship, each student will receive detailed online course materials describing clerkship objectives, responsibilities, course curriculum, and student evaluation.

Prerequisite: MS3 (this is a required MS3 clerkship)

Blocks: 1-4

Clerkship Director: Wayne Waz, MD  

Clerkship Coordinator: Sue Quirk