Pediatric Medicine Residency

The Pediatric Residency program at MetroHealth provides residents with a comprehensive, well-balanced three-year experience.

MetroHealth Medical Center offers a pediatric residency program with an emphasis on community and primary care. Our residency program includes daily teaching conferences in primary care pediatrics, subspecialty pediatrics, practice management and quality improvement. The goal of the program is to develop strong pediatricians ready for the community. 

We achieve this by integrate pediatric behavioral and mental health training, develop cultural competency of our diverse patient population, and manage patients with acute and chronic illness.

What Sets Us Apart

Integrated pediatric behavioral training: Our primary care and subspecialty clinics have an integrated model of care with onsite pediatric psychologist and pediatric psychology residents embedded within each clinic and a fast track psychiatry assistance. This has enhanced patient care and the experience and learning of residents in common and complex behavioral problems which affect about 40% encounters.

Pediatric Hispanic Clinic: MetroHealth  treats a significant number of Hispanic pediatric patients, from different cultures and medical needs. The residents have a unique experience as part of their learning process and this will enhance their knowledge and skills in outreach and child advocacy.  

Comprehensive Care Division: This is a unique division which cares for children with special health care needs. These include complex patients, genetic syndromes, etc. The multidisciplinary clinic meets their needs at home including home ventilator management, Home TPN, etc. Training in our program imparts confidence in handling these problems when practicing in the community.

Acute illness management, managing codes: The program prides in having a robust acute illness clinic that manages from cold to codes preparing them for independent practice even in remote areas. Serial Mock Code and Procedural Simulation prepares them for clinically deteriorating patients in different clinical scenarios, and procedural simulation to practice a variety of procedures including suturing, lumbar punctures, intubation, intra-osseous line placement, etc.

Promote critical thinking and systems-based practice: The faculty-mentored Research Curriculum, mandatory for all residents, is a scholarly project walking them through the process of design to analysis to presentation. It is complemented with the addition of a research methodology course started this year delivered in a four-part series introduction to research design, methodology and practice. The monthly journal clubs and Evidence Based Medicine series presented by residents with faculty mentoring repetitively makes them practice critical thinking and critique publications.

Aims

Our Pediatric Residency Program strives to provide the clinical experiences and the curriculum necessary to achieve the following educational goals: 

  1. Develop a strong primary care foundation for practicing in resource limited settings.
  2. Develop pediatricians competent to care for children with behavioral and common mental health disorders.
  3. Train physicians who are proficient in managing acute illness in young children, stabilize critically ill patients and provide preliminary care for subspecialty disease process.
  4. Train the next generation of physicians to be able to identify patient safety vulnerabilities and experiential learning to develop competence to identify causes and institute sustainable system changes through continuous quality improvement.
  5. We aim to train the next generation of pediatricians to practice innovative, evidence-based, multi-disciplinary medicine.

Testimonials from Alumni and Current Residents

“As a recent graduate of MetroHealth's pediatric residency program, I have enjoyed many aspects of my training here. Training at a public hospital helped me feel well prepared for the unique challenges of urban underserved practice. The mid-sized program provides a nurturing learning environment with a personalized learning experience. For example, the program provided rich exposures to pathologies and patient presentations to reinforce learning, such as in muscle clinic, comp care, Hispanic clinic, and PRIDE clinic, to name a few. I was quickly able to identify a mentor early on in residency, and likewise the size of the program allowed for close bonds with many of the faculty who provided guidance in areas such as career planning, leadership development, and other life matters. The faculty are extremely supportive, and through the program I was able to personalize my learning experience to include a variety of areas that interest me, such as population health, community engagement, IDE, and leadership. Overall, I have enjoyed my learning experience, and think everyone should consider training within our institution.”

Christina Randolph, DO, MPH

“What makes me love our program the most is the people: our program leaders are dedicated to helping residents pursue their career goals; our faculty shows expertise in their fields and are enthusiastic about teaching and learning. I always feel supported in the program and I know help is there whenever I need it. I also enjoy the opportunity of working closely with Med-Peds and the Family Medicine residents. Our class is a close-knit group and we share outside activities together from board games, movie nights, hiking through to, something close to my heart, exploring new food together. Furthermore, the people we serve are very diverse and the hospital has many activities to reach out to the community. I am proud to be part of our friendly, professional, and caring program”

Emily Le, MD

"There are many great and reputable hospital systems in the state of Ohio, and we have some of the best pediatric hospitals in the country. However, MetroHealth specifically resonated with me during my residency application cycle due to the populations it works so diligently to serve. As someone who wishes to provide pediatric care to underserved and marginalized communities, the mission and vision of MetroHealth align directly with my own. MetroHealth tirelessly and innovatively works to break down barriers to accessible, affordable, and available healthcare for all individuals and their families. This allows MetroHealth to stand out from other providers. Because of this, I am proud to be a resident physician at MetroHealth—an institution that values, empowers, and advocates for patients regardless of their social determinants of health."

Nick Lehan, DO

"My name is Mehul and I was born and raised in India. I went to medical school at Seth GS Medical College in Mumbai. The transition from being a medical student to a resident coupled with switching continents is not easy however everyone here at Metro has made this transition seamless making it my new home away from home. It is a privilege be a part of this amazing team at MetroHealth Pediatrics. The culture of our program where us residents and faculty work in such a clot knit environment has helped me grow professionally as well as personally. I believe the biggest strengths of our program are: Truly practicing graduated autonomy and Diversity of our residents and faculty. For these reasons, I would choose Metrohealth if I were ever to do this again!"

Mehul Thakkar, MD

"The best part of the Pediatric department at Metrohealth is the environment. We are a big multicultural family, that you easily feel a part of, even after only a few months working here. We are a very welcoming and friendly group, with diverse origins, and backgrounds. The close proximity relationship makes all the staff physicians easily approachable by residents and medical students. The fact that the specialties have no fellows, also facilitates the direct relationship with the attendings. I can say that I truly feel I am part of the Department, which makes it easier to perform our daily job and duties, and to give our best everyday for our patients."

Paula Mari, MD

"I came to MetroHealth for the first time as a medical student, and I was hooked. Sometimes you go somewhere new, and you just get a feeling that you're where you're supposed to be. However, I try to make big decisions, like where to go for residency, logically and not emotionally. Even still, Metro won out compared to the other hospitals I interviewed with in regards to one on one interactions with attendings, opportunities for procedures, a solid foundation for outpatient pediatrics, and an opportunity to have a home base at a tight knit smaller program, but be able to experience life as a resident in bigger programs at surrounding institutions in the Northeast Ohio area. The people, the environment, the culture, and the aims of the hospital - to focus on preventative care in an inclusive community, are reasons that I liked Metro to start with, and continue to stay here”

Jessica Easdale, DO