Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship | Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine | Department of Internal Medicine | UC Davis Health

• To foster the development of Internists into competent, experienced and tested Pulmonologists and Intensivists.
• To train specialists competent to perform the procedures expected for practice in the subspecialty.
• To graduate fellows with a strong understanding of respiratory physiology and its assessment in health and disease.
• To graduate fellows competent in scientific literature interpretation and clinical application.
• To graduate fellows capable of scientific research and authorship.
• Specific areas of study and skill acquisition include:
  • Clinical care and management of the critically ill patient.
  • Diagnosis and management of respiratory diseases in adults.

The majority of clinical activities are located at the University of California, Davis Medical Center. This tertiary care hospital is the site of outpatient clinics and inpatient management. Rotations at this site include Medical ICU, pulmonary consultations, critical care management, exercise and physiology testing, and subspecialty pulmonary clinics. Additional clinical experience is obtained at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Mather.

Fellows are expected to participate in one or more subspecialty-focused areas, in addition to the core clinical activities. The subspecialty-focused areas commonly included are advanced lung disease, cystic fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis, granulomatous diseases, neuromuscular/respiratory diseases, sleep medicine, pulmonary hypertension, and interventional bronchoscopy.

Core Rotations/Experiences:

• Orientation: All incoming fellows spend 24 days in education and simulations prior to patient-based learning. Orientation includes a review of pulmonary physiology, simulation experiences and “nuts and bolts” training to prepare for the patient based learning in the upcoming months. Near the Thanksgiving break, fellows are given an additional block of training time to hone procedural skills, consider research projects, and initiate an individualized learning plan.
• UC Davis Medical Center Medical Intensive Care Unit: The MICU is a closed unit managed by the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care. It has over 1,300 admissions per year and, as a tertiary care center, receives patients from Northern California and sections of Nevada. Fellows complete at least 6 months of service leading two teams of learners from Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Emergency Medicine, and Anesthesiology.
• UC Davis Medical Center Pulmonary Consults: Fellows complete inpatient pulmonary consult training at the University of California, Davis. Fellows will complete all new inpatient and emergency room consults, and round on established patients. As a teaching service, the fellow will work with one or two residents and a medical student. Emergent procedures (e.g. bronchoscopies) are completed under the supervision of an attending.
• VA of Northern California, Mather: At this site, fellows gain experience through inpatient ICU management of combined medical/surgical/critical care, and provide inpatient and outpatient pulmonary consultations. The VA rotation encompasses the full range of inpatient, outpatient, and procedural experiences.
• Critical Care Management: The critical care rotation focuses on critical care consults as well as participation in the Cardiothoracic ICU, with the progression of responsibility based on the fellow's level of experience. Fellows also receive their ECLS experience during this rotation. As fellows progress in experience, the CTICU provides training experiences in ECMO. For interested fellows, there is the opportunity to rotate through the Neurocritical Care ICU.
• Pulmonary Outpatient Clinics: In the second and third year, all fellows have two half-day pulmonary clinics (at UC Davis Medical Center and VA Mather). In addition, two week outpatient clinic blocks allow fellows to experience subspecialty clinics in advanced lung disease, cystic fibrosis, sleep medicine, pulmonary hypertension, lung cancer, and interstitial lung disease. In the third year, fellows have the opportunity to spend 6 months of their half day clinics in the subspecialty clinic that best fits with their practice goals.
• Procedures: Fellows at UC Davis have the opportunity to learn and practice a variety of procedures. These include intubations and advanced airway management, percutaneous tracheostomy, surgical and small bore chest tubes, and advanced bronchoscopy. Initial training for most procedures takes place at the UC Davis Medical Center Simulation Suite.
• Fellow Didactics: Weekly didactic conferences are a key part of the learning experience and establish relationships between faculty and fellows. The weekly fellows didactic on core topics in pulmonary and critical care medicine anchors the schedule. Additional chest case conference, journal clubs, both within the program and also among all the critical care programs in the hospital (including our Veterinary Medicine colleagues), pathology, CQI, and ethics conference round out the didactics offerings.

The annual fellow schedule for the UC Davis Pulmonary and Critical Care program combines pulmonary, critical care, and research activities over three years. The Fall of the first year emphasizes inpatient clinical activities at UC Davis Health. A 2-week period of non-patient-based activities punctuates the first year. The remainder of the year reflects expansion of clinical autonomy and progression of responsibility at the VA Medical Center-Mather, UC Davis MICU nights, and scholarly and research activities. Fellows in their 2nd and 3rd years of the program start to decrease the amount of time on clinical service and are able to focus on creative projects.

Generic Schedule Breakdown

All fellows receive 28 vacation days (20 weekdays with weekends) and 4 education days a year. Vacations are scheduled in two week blocks based on individual fellow requests.

Support is available for to for travel and registration expenses for regional and national conferences if a fellow is presenting his/her research.

First year fellows receive 4-6 weeks of research/creative time, and each subsequent year the amount of research/creative time increases to total 30 weeks. Each fellow will work with a mentor and the program director to develop a customized scholarly activity curriculum. Collaborations are typically within and among division faculty and established faculty collaborators from the main campus. Fellows have the breadth of opportunities to work in bench research, educational program development and/or CQI development.   

Scholarly Activities Projects

All fellows have the opportunity to select a research/creative project that interests them.  Projects have led to publications, abstracts, and poster presentations.  Those project topics include Cell Free DNA assay and Stage III/IV NSCLC as well as Ventilator Education Curriculum. 

Medical Education Experience and Projects

The Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship at UC Davis allows for a broad experience in medical education. These experiences include bedside teaching, opportunities to lead small groups and lecture in the Schools of Medicine and Nursing, and opportunities to participate in, or lead, mentored scholarly education projects.  Recent Fellow-Driven projects include curriculum in airway management, simulation based education, and mechanical ventilator education.

Research and Training Resources

All the fellows involved in basic and clinic research have the assistance of experienced researchers in the division as well as resources through UC Davis National Institutes of Health Funded Clinical and Translational Science Center. Clinical research opportunities include patient- and disease-oriented studies and epidemiologic investigations.

Research collaborations include the UC Davis Lung Center, UC Davis Medical Center, California National Primate Research Center, UC Davis Clinical and Translational Science Center, UC Davis Department of Engineering, UC Davis Health Informatics, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, and the UC Davis Children's Hospital. The UC Davis Lung Center is the home for our multidisciplinary research in the area of asthma, lung cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Our Division Fellows also have the opportunity to interact and participate the division’s clinic trials.

An optional fourth year of fellowship training may be available to those individuals desiring additional protected research time. For those fellows who do not have a strong interest in research, it is expected that the fellow and program director will together formulate an individualized plan of scholarly activities and additional clinical experiences to complete the training experience in lieu of dedicated research time. 

Travel support from the division is available for travel to present at national and regional conferences such as ATS, CHEST, and the California Thoracic Society.

NIH HL T32 Training Grant in Comparative Lung Biology

Fellows considering a career which includes research are invited to apply for the Division’s NIH funded T32 Training Grant in Comparative Lung Biology. Participation in this grant provides additional research training with our faculty at the Medical Center and on the main UC Davis campus.  Fellows who participate in the T32 extend their training for a 4^th year via a non-ACGME fellowship.

Teaching Opportunities

Numerous opportunities exist for those interested in clinical education (both didactic and simulation) through the UC Davis School of Medicine, the UC Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, and the Internal Medicine Residency Program.

Air Buds

This longitudinal mentorship program started in 2022 pairs a faculty member with a fellow from each class to form a mentorship group. Each group has quarterly get togethers to foster community, camaraderie, and encourage near-peer mentorship under the guidance of a core faculty member.

Other Degree Opportunities

Fellows have the option to take an additional year of research to work on an independent project or pursue additional degree training through UC Davis. Programs available to fellows include a Master's of Advanced Studies in Clinical Research and a Master's in Public Health.  Fellows start the program in their 3rd year and then continue in a non-ACGME fellowship role to complete the program. Training beyond the basic levels is available in molecular and cellular biology, genetics, biochemistry, physiology, immunology, clinical research, and informatics.

2027 Fellows

2026 Fellows

2025 Fellows

We have five first year fellowship positions in pulmonary and critical care available each year starting on July 15. Applications are accepted through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Our positions are filled through the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). For full consideration, please submit your application and supporting materials by mid-August. We begin offering interviews by the end of the 3rd week in August. Required application components to include in your ERAS application:

• Personal Statement
• Medical school transcript
• USMLE/COMPLEX transcript
• Medical school Dean's Letter (MSPE)
• Three (3) letters of recommendation from physicians who have served in a direct supervisory capacity
• Preferred: Letter of recommendation from a division head or department chair

Eligibility 

To be eligible for the Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship, you must have completed an ACGME or AOA accredited residency program in Internal Medicine. Plan to sit for the ABIM Board exam before or during your fellowship. Please review the complete eligibility requirements listed in the UC Davis Health System Eligibility and Selection Guidelines (PDF). Please review the eligibility for a California License.  Applicants must be meet eligibility requirements for a California Medical license.  

Visa Requirements

Non-US Citizens must have a J-1 Visa or Work Authorization permit to apply to the UC Davis Health System fellowship training program. UC Davis Health System does not accept H1-B Visas.  

Graduates of Foreign Medical Colleges

You must be eligible for a California state license. Please review the complete policy in Requirements for International Medical Graduates at UC Davis Health.

Interviews

We hold interviews on Tuesdays in September, October and November.

Contact

Lina Villegas
Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Fellowship Coordinator

lvillegas@ucdavis.edu
916-734-4597

Fax 916-734-7924 

Graduate Medical Education Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Information Sessions

Saturday, August 10, 2024, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., Pacific Time

• Current medical students and prospective fellows are invited to join us to meet and engage with the residents and faculty of historically underrepresented backgrounds. 
• Attendees will be able to hear from the UC Davis Graduate Medical Education leadership team, various resources to help residents/fellows thrive, application and interview tips, and networking opportunities with residency programs. 
• Sign up for a virtual session at https://health.ucdavis.edu/diversity/calendar-osrd.html 

Nick Stollenwerk, M.D.
Program Director  

Florence Chau-Etchepare, M.D.
Associate Program Director 

Lina Villegas
Program Coordinator 
lvillegas@ucdavis.edu 
916-734-4597

University of California Davis 
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine 
4150 V Street, Suite 3400 
Sacramento, CA 95817 

Fax 916-734-7924

For verifications, please send all requests to lvillegas@ucdavis.edu. We do not require payment for verifications.