The Brown Rheumatology fellowship program is a two-year ABIM-accredited program with one to two fellows-in-training, alternating years. Our fellowship is a unique program, where we collaborate with the Roger Williams Medical Center Rheumatology fellowship program (three fellows in training; two in one year, one in the other), share faculty, conferences, and clinical training sites. The fellows in each program follow a combined rotation schedule and call responsibilities.

The Brown Rheumatology fellowship program is designed for individuals interested in careers as clinical or academic-clinical rheumatologists. Our Rheumatology fellowship is offered to physicians who have completed three years of post-graduate training in Internal Medicine or two years under the ACGME research residency “short-track”. All applicants are expected to be Board Eligible in Internal Medicine when beginning the Rheumatology fellowship. It is expected that all Rheumatology Fellows will have passed USMLE I, II, and III as requirements of their internal medicine training.

Waivers to this requirement may be granted on an individual basis. Details regarding certification for ABIM candidates may be found on the ABIM website.

Brown University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and welcomes applications from minority candidates.

We use the application process provided by ERAS and participate in the National Resident Matching Program.

Message from the Division Director

Welcome to the Brown University Division of Rheumatology Fellowship Program. We take great pride in educating the next generation of clinical rheumatologists. Over the past 50 years our program has trained numerous fellows to be compassionate clinicians, superb diagnosticians, and lifelong learners. They are given the tools, resources, and opportunities to embark in careers in clinical care, academics, or industry. Our graduates have gone on to hold academic and research positions as well as practicing in the community across the United States. Since 2005, the Brown University Fellowship Program has partnered with the Rheumatology fellowship program at the Roger Williams Medical Center, an academic affiliate of Boston University. We have functioned as a single training program with integrated faculty, training, and research opportunities. The full details of the fellowship are outlined on this website.

We welcome all qualified candidates interested in pursuing a career in Rheumatology to apply to our Training Program.

Message from the Program Directors

Thank you for your interest in our Rheumatology fellowship program at Brown University. This website contains information about the educational program, faculty, and facilities. Rhode Island Hospital is the principal teaching hospital of The Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University. Our program collaborates closely with the rheumatology fellowship at Roger Williams Medical Center, an academic affiliate of Boston University. Both programs have been fully accredited by the ACGME.

Our goal is to train exceptional specialists in clinical rheumatology while providing excellent care for our patients. We have the privilege of training in five major teaching hospitals, each serving diverse communities, immersing our fellows in a wide variety of rheumatologic disorders. Our faculty is committed to helping each of our trainees develop the clinical skills needed to manage complex rheumatologic patients. This is accomplished through scheduled didactic lectures and case conferences with an emphasis on the care of patients with a wide variety of rheumatologic disorders in the both the outpatient and inpatient settings. We also have focused clinics where our trainees experience the management of complex patients in a multidisciplinary approach with our colleagues from dermatology and internal medicine/obstetrics. Our trainees have the opportunity to learn and develop their ultrasound skills with a dedicated course and hands-on sessions. Our faculty also provide mentorship on clinical research projects.

Many graduates of the Brown Rheumatology fellowship program currently practice in both academic and private practices in the state of Rhode Island, other New England states and throughout the country.

Thank you for your interest in our program. We hope this website gives you a sense of the character of our program and we are happy to answer any questions that you may have.

Our combined fellows rotate through our five major teaching hospitals and three outpatient continuity clinics. Information for each is provided in this site.

Fellows are also able to see patients in specific multidisciplinary clinics throughout our teaching hospitals. Information for each is provided in the expandable sections below.

These experiences are supplemented by a variety of academic conferences. Faculty and fellows regularly attend conferences.

• A summer Rheumatology Program runs through the first eight weeks of our the Rheumatology Fellowship, designed to introduce the fellows to musculoskeletal examination, principles of immunology, and an overview of rheumatologic diseases.
• Weekly Case Conference: Fellows are expected to present cases seen in their outpatient clinics and consultation experiences. Discussions of each include background reading with evidence based literature review.
• Didactic Lecture Series: Taught by our attending faculty on specific rheumatologic topics to the fellows throughout the year.
• Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Didactic Lectures and Hands-on Session: See the expandable section below for more information.
• Monthly Journal Club: Fellows and faculty discuss recent articles published. Our journal club concerns disease mechanism and treatment of rheumatic diseases.
• Rheumatology Grand Rounds Series: Invited speakers present forefront research or updates in clinical topics for the benefit of fellows, faculty and community rheumatologists
• Boston-InterCity Rheumatology Rounds: Fellows are encouraged to attend the Boston InterCity Rheumatology Rounds, which are held once a month in the evening at a Boston teaching hospital (including Boston University Medical Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center)
• Multidisciplinary Conferences: Several multidisciplinary outpatient clinical conferences (Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) and Dermatology-Rheumatology Conferences) have been developed to provide integrative care to our complex rheumatologic patients, which enhance our rheumatology fellows’ educational experience. Fellows have the opportunity to present cases in each conference and lead a discussion on patient care between the different specialists.
• Rheumatology Guidelines: Fellows and Attending review current guidelines for rheumatic diseases.
• Board Review Conference: Fellows and Attending review CARE questions for ITE and rheumatology board exams.

Additional educational opportunities are provided to our fellows outside the rheumatology fellowship-learning environment.

• First year fellows have the opportunity to attend the yearly “First-Year Rheumatology Fellows Regional Conference at University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA.
• First year-fellows are also encouraged to attend the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium (SOTA) Meeting and second-year fellows attend the ACR annual meeting
• Fellows and faculty often travel to participate in the bi-annual New England Rheumatism Society (NERS) gatherings.
• First and second tier fellows are encouraged to present at the Clinical Conference in Rheumatology (CCR) and ACR annual meeting.
• Second year fellows may attend the New York University (NYU) Seminar in Advanced Rheumatology or the Harvard’s Advances in Rheumatology.

Multidisciplinary Clinics

Fellows rotate through the five teaching hospitals performing inpatient consultations to the various hospital services.

Outpatient clinical responsibilities are interspersed through the standard monthly rotations. Fellows have their own panel of patients that they follow longitudinally during their half-day continuity clinics at the Chapman Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic at Rhode Island Hospital (Mondays) and the Providence VA Medical Center (Tuesdays and Thursdays). Fellows also see patients in specific multidisciplinary outpatient clinics at the Center for Skin and Musculoskeletal (SAM) Clinic (Wednesdays), SCIP Clinic (second Friday of each month), and Fellows also assist on Wednesday RWMC longitudinal clinic. Information on each can be found in the Curriculum section.

Fellows who are not on an inpatient consult service rotation have the opportunity for research or elective rotation.

Elective opportunities:

• Musculoskeletal Ultrasound
• Musculoskeletal Radiographic Imaging
• Pediatric Rheumatology
• Orthopedics
• Neurology – EMG Interpretations
• Ophthalmology
• Endocrine – DEXA Interpretation
• Podiatry
• Physical Therapy
• Private Rheumatology Practices

Clinical Sites

The Brown Rheumatology fellowship is associated with five major teaching hospitals.

Rhode Island Hospital is a 719-bed tertiary care center in Providence and is the principle teaching hospital of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. It is also affiliated with Hasbro Children’s Hospital, Rhode Island’s only hospital dedicated to pediatric care.

The inpatient consult service provides extensive experience in the diagnosis and management of patients with complex rheumatic disorders. Fellows have the opportunity to experience diverse rheumatologic presentations, from the medical wards to the ICU setting. Fellows can also gain experience with musculoskeletal ultrasound at this site.

Fellows have one of their outpatient rheumatology continuity clinics located here. The fellows are supervised by the Rhode Island Hospital rheumatology attendings.

The Providence VA Medical Center (PVAMC) is a 100-bed teaching hospital affiliated with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

The inpatient consult service provides care to a special population and fellows gain much experience with diagnostic arthrocentesis and joint injections as well as seeing a variety of rheumatologic disorders. Fellows also develop their musculoskeletal ultrasound scanning and procedural skills, both in the inpatient and outpatient settings.

Fellows have their second outpatient continuity clinic located here and are supervised the Providence VA rheumatology attendings. Monthly combined Dermatology/Rheumatology clinics are scheduled to give the fellows an opportunity to experience multidisciplinary patient care and clinical teaching.

Hasbro Children’s Hospital is Rhode Island’s only hospital dedicated to pediatric care. It is the pediatric teaching facility of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

Fellows have an opportunity to rotate with the pediatric rheumatologist in the outpatient clinic as well as on an inpatient basis during their elective time. Fellows gain experience diagnosing and managing pediatric rheumatologic conditions.

Roger Williams Medical Center (RWMC) is a 220-bed community teaching hospital affiliated with Boston University School of Medicine and is located in one of Providence’s oldest neighborhoods.

Inpatient consults at RWMC give the fellows an opportunity to see a wide range of rheumatologic diseases that range from acute gouty arthritis to systemic vasculitis and lupus.

The core of this rotation is at the rheumatology outpatient practice at University Medical Group (UMG) on the campus of RWMC. The fellows see patients under the supervision of the RWMC attendings. This rotation provides fellows with a broad exposure to common and complex rheumatologic issues with patient continuity and extensive clinical teaching.

Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island is a Care New England hospital affiliated with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. It is one of the nation’s leading specialty hospitals dedicated to the care for women and newborns.

Women and Infants Hospital Specialty Care in Pregnancy program (SCIP) takes place here. It is a monthly multidisciplinary conference and outpatient clinic between the Center for Obstetric and Consultative Medicine at Women and Infants Hospital and our Rheumatology department. Additional information can be found in the Curriculum section.

Applications for fellowship positions are accepted through ERAS, the Electronic Residency Application Service. Application requirements are: medical school transcript, USMLE/COMLEX scores, 3 letters of recommendation, a current photo along with a CV and a personal statement. We participate in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). We will consider J1 Visa holders for our program and under certain circumstances will consider H-1B visas holders. Please contact the GME office for details.

If you are interested in our training program please consider submitting an application. You may apply through ERAS, by visiting http://www.aamc.org/eras.

If you would like to speak with someone from the fellowship program please contact Zainab Sanni, fellowship coordinator for the rheumatology division, at (401) 444-2248 or e-mail zsanni@lifespan.org.

The administrative office of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University Rheumatology Fellowship is located at the Medical Office Center 2 Dudley Street, Suite #370 at Rhode Island Hospital.