Residency Training Program in General Pediatrics

Letter from the Program Director

Welcome to the Children's Hospital at SUNY Downstate Pediatric Residency Program website. Thank you for your interest in our program. 

We are proud of our longstanding tradition of training outstanding pediatricians who are committed to providing compassionate, evidence-based care for children and their families. The Department of Pediatrics is dedicated to excellence in graduate medical education, clinical care, research, scholarly activity, advocacy, and community service. Our diverse patient population reflects the rich cultural and ethnic communities of Brooklyn, providing residents with exposure to a broad spectrum of pediatric illnesses, from common conditions to complex and rare diseases, while fostering cultural humility and compassionate care. 

The Pediatric Residency Program at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Our program's greatest strengths include the diversity of our patient population, the depth of clinical pathology, a dedicated and accomplished faculty, and a training environment that emphasizes progressive autonomy, mentorship, and academic excellence. Residents train across multiple clinical sites, each offering unique patient populations and educational experiences that together provide comprehensive preparation for careers in general pediatrics, fellowship training, academic medicine, and community practice. 

The Children's Hospital at Downstate, located within University Hospital at Downstate (UHD), serves as a regional referral center for a broad range of pediatric subspecialty services. University Hospital at Downstate is designated by the New York State Department of Health as the Regional Perinatal Center for North/North Central Brooklyn and is home to a Level III-B Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). In addition to caring for children with complex medical conditions, the hospital provides comprehensive inpatient and outpatient pediatric care to families throughout Central Brooklyn. 

Kings County Hospital Center (KCHC) is one of New York City's largest public hospitals and serves as a major safety-net institution for Brooklyn. As a Level I Trauma Center and tertiary referral center, KCHC provides residents with extensive experience managing critically ill children and caring for patients from diverse cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds, including families from across the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. 

Maimonides Medical Center is one of Brooklyn's largest tertiary care hospitals and a nationally recognized academic medical center. Residents gain valuable experience caring for a diverse pediatric population across inpatient service. Maimonides offers a high-volume clinical environment with a strong emphasis on multidisciplinary collaboration, evidence-based medicine, and family-centered care, further enriching the breadth of our residents' training. 

South Brooklyn Health (formerly Coney Island Hospital) serves a culturally and socioeconomically diverse urban community. The hospital provides residents with extensive experience in ambulatory pediatrics, newborn care, and inpatient medicine while emphasizing continuity of care, preventive medicine, and the management of common pediatric illnesses within the community. 

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center is an internationally recognized leader in pediatric oncology. During their rotation, residents gain exposure to the multidisciplinary care of children, adolescents, and young adults with hematologic and oncologic disorders, learning alongside experts in one of the world's premier cancer centers. 

Our mission is to educate and inspire pediatricians who will become exceptional clinicians, advocates, educators, and leaders in their communities. We are committed to improving the health and well-being of children through clinical excellence, scholarship, and advocacy, with particular attention to addressing the health disparities and social determinants of health that affect children in urban and underserved communities. 

Our goal is to provide every resident with a strong foundation in general pediatrics through rigorous clinical training, outstanding mentorship, and meaningful educational experiences. Residents develop clinical judgment and procedural skills while assuming progressive responsibility under the guidance of experienced faculty. They play an active role in teaching medical students, participate in quality improvement and scholarly activities, and graduate well-prepared for successful careers in primary care, hospital medicine, pediatric subspecialties, academic medicine, and community practice. 

I encourage you to explore our website to learn more about our program, our faculty, our residents, and the exceptional training opportunities available at SUNY Downstate. We look forward to welcoming the next generation of pediatricians who are committed to advancing the health of children and serving the communities that need them most. 

 

Sincerely,
Abhilasha Ahuja, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics
Program Director, Pediatric Residency Program
Department of Pediatrics