Allergy and Immunology Fellowship Program

Main (Program Overview/Mission/Vision/Aims)

Overview

The SAUSHEC Allergy/Immunology Fellowship Program is an ACGME fully accredited two-year fellowship. Fellows are prepared to provide the highest level of clinical care with a focus on patient safety and the individual needs of their patients. In addition, the SAUSHEC Allergy/Immunology Fellowship includes a unique curriculum designed to provide an understanding of allergy, immunology, and immunizations in the active duty military population.

Mission/Vision

The mission of the SAUSHEC Allergy/Immunology Fellowship Program is to provide the clinical experience, educational resources and mentorship that produce exceptional physicians who deliver high quality, ethical, and compassionate care to patients.

Aims

The goal of the SAUSHEC Allergy/Immunology Fellowship Program is to develop patient-centered Allergist/Immunologists who provide evidence-based medical care in support of military medicine and the war fighting force. Our mission focuses on the key concepts of knowledge, innovation, and leadership applied to the military unique environment.

• Knowledge: Produce knowledgeable allergists that are uniquely qualified to serve our patients throughout the world.
• Innovation: Develop innovative approaches to the care of patients. Allergy/Immunology specific research and military specific quality improvement initiatives focus on advancing the care of our service members, dependents and military retirees in medical treatment facilities and deployed environments.
• Leadership: Develop the next generation of military and Allergist/Immunologist leaders through formal didactics, mentorship, and faculty development initiatives.

Curriculum /Rotations/Locations/Partnering Institutions

This two-year fellowship trains from 1-5 internal medicine and/or pediatric physicians per class in the field of Allergy and Immunology. During training, physicians will become experts in areas including asthma, allergic rhinitis, food/drug/vaccine/insect allergy, immunizations, urticaria/angioedema and immunodeficiency. Graduates will be proficient in procedures including prick and intradermal skin testing, immunotherapy administration and management, asthma testing, food and drug challenges, patch testing, and drug desensitization. Upon completion of training, physicians are board-eligible and boast a 100% board pass rate since 1995.

The majority of training is conducted at Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center (WHASC) with inpatient consultation through the Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC). During the second year of training, fellows will additionally attend Immunodeficiency Clinic through University of Texas (UT) Health San Antonio and will have 2 months of electives.

Time spent during the Allergy/Immunology Fellowship is divided with 50% devoted to patient care activities, 25% devoted to scholarly activities/research and 25% devoted to other educational activities. Didactics include daily educational conferences attended by faculty and fellows, weekly clinical case conferences, weekly live or video faculty/guest lecturers, and monthly journal clubs and immunodeficiency conferences. Fellows have the opportunity to attend national specialty conferences during their training with research submission/approval.

Military Relevance (military relevance of specialty/how program prepares trainees to be ready for military mission & first assignment)

The fellowship program develops active duty military physicians who have a solid foundation in the principles of basic immunology, allergy and immunization fundamentals and are able to understand and manage clinical disorders. The fellowship is designed to provide the base for career development in academic medicine and/or clinical practice. In addition to fellows, we educate internal medicine, pediatric, and transitional residents during their rotations on evaluation and treatment of allergic and immunologic diseases they may encounter in clinical or deployed settings. Additionally, our fellows evaluate basic military trainees for allergic/immunologic conditions which may impact their fitness for entry into military service. Our curriculum also includes military medical standards.

Air Force Allergists deploy only when activated in their primary specialty as Internal Medicine or Pediatric physicians. As a result, specific training for deployed wartime Allergy/Immunology assignments are not currently applicable to our specialty. In addition, humanitarian missions and medical readiness exercises (e.g. MEDRETEs) are supported whenever possible.

Briefings on military relevant topics are given throughout the year as part of our regular curriculum. The curriculum includes military career development, academic career development, academic faculty development, medical billing/coding, AFIs/DHAPIs as they apply to Allergy/Immunizations, and a series of lectures on “Life as an Air Force Allergist/Immunologist After Fellowship”.

Application Instructions (Eligibility/Interview Process/Program Application Details)

Eligibility

Active Duty Air Force Medical Corps officers who are currently completing their ACGME approved Internal Medicine and/or Pediatrics residency training programs as well as those whom have graduated from an ACGME approved Internal Medicine and/or Pediatrics residency are eligible to apply.

Interview Process

Active Duty Air Force Medical Corps officers who are interested in interviewing for the Allergy/Immunology Fellowship Program are to contact the Program Coordinator to request an interview. The Program Coordinator will request a current CV from the applicant and schedule an interview with the Program Director/Associate Program Director.

Application Details

Applicants must follow service specific guidance for application and submit application along with all supporting documentation by submission deadline in MODS.