FAQ

How many pediatric residents are in your program?
We are a medium-sized program and accept 14 residents per year. We have two Pediatric Chief Residents who are graduates.

When did your residency program start?
Our program has been in existence since 1972. We are fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

How many of your residents pursue a career in primary care versus fellowship training upon graduation?
Approximately 50% of our residents pursue general pediatrics and 50% pursue fellowship training. Advocate Children’s Hospital sponsors three fellowship programs - Pediatric Critical Care and Neonatalogy/Perinatology in Park Ridge and Pediatric Cardiology in Oak Lawn.

Where do your residents live?
A third of our residents live in Chicago and two thirds live in the Chicagoland suburbs.

Is your program affiliated with a medical school?
Advocate Children's Hospital has an affiliation with three major medical schools:

• Rosalind Franklin University of Health Sciences - The Chicago Medical School
• University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine
• Midwestern University - The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine

Medical students from these schools rotate through the ACH for both core and elective rotations. Our residents are highly involved in both the formal and informal training of these students. As PGY1 residents, medical students are assigned to your team on the inpatient units. In addition to our major affiliations, medical students from all over the country come to ACH-PR for elective rotations during their M4 year of training.
If you are a student who is interested in an elective rotation at ACH-PR, contact Tara Murphy in the Medical Student Office at Phone 847-723-6479.

Advocate Children's Hospital - Park Ridge - pediatric electives and descriptions

What type of pathology will I see at ACH-PR?

Over the past 25 years, ACH-PR has evolved from a community hospital to a major referral and trauma center for all of Northwest Illinois and Southern Wisconsin. We have pediatric subspecialist in virtually all medical and surgical specialties as well as a large general academic pediatric faculty. There are over 4000 deliveries per year and 450 admissions to our 54 bed NICU annually. The Advocate Children's Hospital has a state-of-the-art Pediatric Intensive Care Unit composed of 19 beds and handles 900 admissions per year. Our general pediatric floor is composed of 46 beds, and an additional 10 observation unit.

Despite our evolution into one of the largest hospital networks in Illinois, Advocate Children's Hospital-Park Ridge remains true to the community philosophy inherent to our early beginnings. Each patient needs to be evaluated within the context of their family and the community in which they live.

Will all of my weekly continuity clinics be on site?
The resident continuity clinics are all on site at the Advocate Children’s Hospital Outpatient Center in the Yacktman Children's Pavilion, adjacent to the hospital and on the ACH-PR campus. Our primary care clinic follows the Patient Centered Medical Home model that promotes patient continuity. We pride ourselves on the broad experience that you will receive in general pediatrics clinic, following your own panel of patients and caring for both sick and well children. Our continuity clinic experience is enhanced by our 3+1 schedule, our Healthy Steps program and our Centering Parenting Program.

Can I be involved in research? 

Absolutely! At ACH-PR, we want our graduates to understand basic principles of research and be provided with practical experience in conducting research.

Every resident in our program participates in a group quality improvement (QI) project during each year of residency training. These projects are presented annually at Pediatric Grand Rounds, as well as local and national academic conferences. Additionally, residents have the option to pursue an independent, faculty-mentored project and are encouraged to get involved in ongoing faculty research.

At ACH-PR, research is an integral part of our resident curriculum. All residents participate in a monthly journal club, which is organized in a fashion that lends itself to a critical appraisal of the literature, thereby impacting clinical decision-making. Additionally, a series of research specific sessions are conducted by staff from the Advocate Center for Pediatric Research and are embedded in our resident curriculum each year.

For more information visit the Center for Pediatric Research. 

How does your program train residents on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion?

Our program truly values diversity, equity and inclusion. We acknowledge that the quality of healthcare a patient receives may be different in some communities. Therefore, our goal is to produce pediatricians who pledge to provide equitable care for patients of every race, religion, socioeconomic status, family status, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability and educational level.

We have a dedicated DE&I task force led by residents and faculty who are dedicated to bringing awareness to issues surrounding DE&I. This academic year, we are beginning our Diversity, Equity, Identity, and Inclusion Curriculum which will include targets related to Education, Support, Outreach, and Study. Our curriculum includes a longitudinal lecture and discussion series, a support network for minorities in medicine, opportunities for advocacy, and quality improvement projects related to minority and/or underserved populations. We are dedicated to creating an equitable and inclusive environment, recruiting and retaining a diverse medical staff, and supporting diverse learning and teaching opportunities.