Brigham and Women’s Hospital Surgical Critical Care Fellowship
Overview
The surgical critical care fellowship at Brigham and Women's Hospital is a one-year ACGME-accredited fellowship for residents with at least three years of ACGME-accredited general surgery training in the United States. The program provides surgical education of the highest caliber leading to American Board of Surgery certification in surgical critical care.
Surgical critical care training at the Brigham offers a diverse experience encompassing all elements of surgical critical care. Our program allows each surgical critical care fellow to obtain significant experience to develop independent responsibility in the postoperative care of a variety of complex surgical patients. In addition to the core ICU rotations our program uniquely offers an extensive array of electives and elective time in order to cater your education experience to your interests and gaps in knowledge. Each fellow also spends one month on the Trauma/ACS service where they oversee one of our teams. The program is designed to provide a highly academic and research-rich opportunity to set our fellows up for a successful academic career. There is a comprehensive list of electives below.
In addition, the program is designed to provide a highly academic and research-rich opportunity to set our fellows up for a successful academic career.
Program Structure
- Year 1: ACGME-accredited surgical critical care fellowship
- Year 2 (optional): Non-ACGME acute care surgery fellowship
- 4 fellows per year
Quick Facts
- 120 ICU beds, 44 operating rooms, Level 1 Trauma Center
- Affiliated with Boston Children’s Hospital and Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Core rotations in Cardiac ICU, Thoracic ICU, Surgical ICU, Trauma/Burn ICU, Med-Surg ICU
- Extensive exposure to VA/VV ECMO, lung/heart transplant, complex acute care surgery patients
- Daily protected fellow-level didactic sessions
- Significant elective time to allow for catered experience
- Established ultrasound curriculum with option for certification
Program Objectives
- Provide the highest quality critical care training for our fellows through evidence-based approaches to patient management in a high volume, high acuity center with multidisciplinary faculty who offer a broad range of perspectives.
- To train and mentor individuals interested in academic surgery and help develop the necessary skills in surgical research, education and/or administration leadership to jump start a successful academic career following fellowship.
- To maximize the trainee's exposure to complex critical care patients and optimize their abilities and responsibilities in patient management.
- To train and cultivate future critical care surgeon leaders.
Curriculum
In order to become experts in management of critically ill surgical patients, fellows spend the majority of time (weeks required by ACGME) providing care and supervising trainees in one of our core ICU units:
- Surgical Intensive Care (10 beds)
- Trauma Intensive Care (10 beds)
- Cardiac Surgical Intensive Care (20-24 beds)
- Medical-Surgical Intensive Care (10 beds)
- Thoracic Surgical Intensive Care (10-12 beds)
Our ICUs are staffed by a broad group of physicians including surgeons, anesthesiologists, emergency medicine physicians, obstetric-gynecologists, and interventional radiology intensivists. Within this model, patients and learners benefit immensely from a multidisciplinary approach to care and teaching.
We dedicate a total of 12 weeks to elective, to allow our fellows the flexibility to individualize their year of training. Elective opportunities include:
- International Rotations
- ECMO Team
- MEDFlight
- Neurosurgical ICU or MICU
- Boston Children’s Hospital Pediatric ICU
- Congenital Heart Defect Team
- Ultrasound/TEE
- Metabolic Support Service (Tracheostomies, Feeding tubes, lines)
- Infectious Disease
- Renal Replacement Therapy
- Airway/Anesthesia
- Palliative Care
- Geriatrics
- Burn Surgery
- Trauma/ ACS Service
Didactics
Fellows attend daily didactic seminars that are protected, exclusively for the surgical/anesthesia ICU fellows. Additional conferences include General Surgery M&M, SICU/MICU M&M, Journal club, Trauma/ACS surgery research meetings, and thoracic case conferences.
Research Experience
The Brigham is dedicated to patient centered research and innovation, which is also core to our division of trauma, burn, and surgical critical care. We expect our fellows to actively participate in research and join our divisions research efforts. We are fortunate to have one of the most productive surgical public health research centers, The Center for Surgery and Public Health (CSPH) housed within the Brigham which is a joint initiative with Harvard Medical School and the Harvard. T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Most of our faculty are actively involved at CPSH (including the current Director of the Center, Dr. Zara Cooper).
We also are very proud of our Gillian Reny Stepping Strong Center for Trauma Innovation, whose mission is to catalyze multidisciplinary collaboration to inspire groundbreaking innovation, effective prevention and compassionate intervention to both civilians and military heroes who endure traumatic injuries and events. Fellows are welcome to join the current initiatives or propose their own ideas.
Our Institution and Faculty
Brigham and Women’s Hospital is an academic, clinical, and scientific powerhouse with a long history of firsts. We foster a shared commitment to predict, prevent and treat the world’s toughest diseases. Our affiliation with the Dana Farber Institute, a world leader in cancer treatment and research, as well as Boston Children’s Hospital, named the number one children’s hospital in the country for the past decade, offers our fellows the opportunity to take care of some of the sickest and most complex patients in the world. Fellows are active participants in multidisciplinary discussions that often are on the cutting edge of medicine.
Our culture of providing excellence in patient care, teaching and research affords an exceptional environment for clinical training and participation in exciting advances in basic and clinical research.
Committed to teaching and mentoring the next generation of surgeons and leaders in medicine, our faculty is comprised of experienced clinicians who impart a breadth of knowledge and expertise during clinical rounds and in clinics. In addition, our faculty have a diverse array of academic interests and expertise that allows for successful mentorship relationships for our fellows. Meet our Faculty.
Acute Care Global Surgery Track
In partnership with The Harvard Program in Global Surgery and Social Change
Brigham and Women’s Hospital has a long history of meaningful global health engagement. Until his death in 2022, global health icon Dr. Paul Farmer considered Brigham his academic and clinical home.
The Harvard Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC) is a leader in the field of global surgery, training over 100 research fellows and research collaborators in global surgery since 2008, and the force behind seminal global surgery efforts including The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery. To this day, the PGSSC continues to be at the forefront of the global surgery movement, with a robust fellowship program, driving prominent policy and advocacy initiatives, and designated as a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Surgical Research and Policy.
The Brigham and Women’s Hospital Division of Trauma, Burns, Surgical Critical Care, and Emergency General Surgery, led by Dr. Ali Salim, is home to a high concentration of global health-focused acute care trauma surgeons. Dr. Robert Riviello has significant experience in global surgery partnerships and research and is Director of the Harvard PGSSC; Dr. Nakul Raykar is Fellowship Director of PGSSC and leads the Systems for Trauma and Blood and Global Surgery (STAB) Lab at PGSSC. Collectively, this team has extensive research, clinical, policy, and educational partnerships that designated Acute Care Surgery fellows can participate in during their time at BWH.
Global Surgery Track Components:
Harvard Program in Global Surgery and Social Change Partnership
In partnership with PGSSC, the Fellow will have the opportunity to join ongoing projects that align with their own interest. The Global Surgery Fellow will join PGSSC’s Morning Report, which is the weekly educational and research meeting that occurs every Thursday morning.
Listed below are a few of the possible opportunities for engagement within the PGSSC:
Riviello Lab
Centered around strengthening bi-directional partnership between the Center for Equity in Global Surgery at the University of Global Health Equity in Rwanda and the PGSSC. The lab supports the development and delivery of undergraduate educational curriculum for medical students and post graduate medical education.
STAB Trauma Systems Research Initiative
In collaboration with Sotero Del Rio (Chilé), Roosevelt Hospital (Guatemala), and the Indian Trauma Research Consortium (India), this lab focuses on trauma systems development, registry-based analysis, and development of educational initiatives.
Through the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE)
Fellows have the opportunity to participate and learn about surgical education and global health delivery at UGHE in the Butaro, Rwanda.
Brigham-Sotero Trauma Rounds Conference
The Hospital Sotero Del Rio in Santiago, Chilé, sees close to 30% penetrating trauma. Surgeons at Sotero specialize in trauma education. We host joint case-presentation-based rounds. Twice a year, Sotero presents penetrating trauma cases. Twice a year, we present critical care cases.
BWH/MGH/Groote Schuur Hospital /Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital Trauma Case Conference
In collaboration with MGH, Baragwanath and Groote Schuur Hospital, quarterly we have “International Trauma Case Conference” to discussing difficult cases and hot topics in trauma surgery.
Additional educational opportunities within the Harvard system:
Masters of Public Health at the Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health
Fellows are welcome to apply to the MPH program to follow their clinical time as a global surgery fellow.
Global Health Delivery and Humanitarian Response to Conflict Courses
Opportunity to participate in courses to expand knowledge on equitable partnerships and engaging in ethical and sound research practices.
(Optional if aligns with career goals)
Clinical Trauma Surgery Experience at Sotero Del Rio in Santiago, Chile
Fellows will have the opportunity to participate in an intensive period of trauma clinical and educational activities in Santiago, Chile.
Clinical Trauma Surgery Experience at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa
Increase trauma exposure by rotating at the 3rd largest hospital in the world with a significant amount of penetrating trauma. Learn from some of the most experienced trauma surgeons in the world.
How To Apply
Applications and Interviews
The surgical critical care fellowship program matches four fellows each year to the one-year clinical program. Fellowship positions are matched via the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). All applicants should apply submit via the SCC and ACS Fellowship Application Service (SAFAS).
If you have any additional questions about the application process or our fellowship, please contact Deirdre McLaren at dtmclaren@bwh.harvard.edu.
We require the following documents to be available for download through SAFAS for a complete application to be reviewed:
- Curriculum vitae (CV)
- Personal statement
- Three letters of recommendation
- USMLE transcript
- ABS in-training exam scores
Our deadline for receipt of your application and all supporting documents for the fellowship position starting August 1, 2028, will be July 1, 2027. Interviews are granted on a rolling basis by receipt date.
Each application is reviewed in its entirety with a focus toward a combination of overall academic excellence, leadership ability, career development potential and personal character.
We interview approximately 30-40 candidates for the program each year. Although we receive applications from many well-qualified candidates, it is not possible to interview all who apply. Those who are invited will be notified on a rolling basis based on the application receipt and review date for interview sessions in May, June and July. All interviews are held virtually.