The Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Subspecialty Residency Program, based at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, offers a two-year residency in Pediatric Gastroenterology. Training is provided in the diagnosis and management of children with gastrointestinal, nutritional, hepato-biliary, and pancreatic disorders.  A third year of training may be organized according to the trainee's interests.
The Montreal Children’s Hospital (MCH) moved to the Glen Campus in May 2015, which offers training in a state-of-the-art pediatric institution. The Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition at the MCH includes seven staff physicians, as well as supporting clinical and endoscopy nurses, nutritionists, a psychologist, endoscopy and secretarial staff.
The subspecialty residency programs' strengths include the integration of both in-patient and out-patient exposure, in addition to gastrointestinal (GI) diagnostic procedures: upper and lower endoscopies (including interventional procedures; e.g., esophageal dilatation and variceal ligation), esophageal pH recording, exposure to video-capsule endoscopy, and reading of manometry studies.
Clinical, research, and academic rounds take place regularly in conjunction with the Departments of Surgery, Radiology, and Pathology at the MCH and with the Adult Gastrointestinal Residency Training Program in the Department of Medicine, Â鶹AV.
Eighteen months of the program are devoted to clinical training, including rotations in Nutrition, Adult Gastroenterology, and Adult Hepatology. Longitudinal care and managerial skills are developed through the Resident Continuity Clinic, which begins in the second half of the first year of training. A minimum of one month is devoted to research activities. The trainee may take advantage of the Division’s clinical research activities, particularly in the field of inflammatory bowel disease. The remaining elective blocks are tailored to the individual trainee’s needs and may include electives in Radiology, Pathology, Motility, Advanced Endoscopy, Â鶹AV graduate courses in Epidemiology, and/or further clinical research. Residents emerge from the Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Subspecialty Residency Program as capable, well-rounded clinical pediatric gastroenterologists with clinical research experience.
Program length: 2 years
Average number of trainees per year:Â 1
Training Requirements
The Pediatric Gastroenterology Subspecialty Residency Program follows the training requirements set by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (RCPSC).
The two-year subspecialty residency program consists of 26 four-week blocks. Rotations are assigned as follows:
- 13 blocks of pediatric gastroenterology (the trainee is exposed to both in-patient and out-patient gastroenterology consultations and follow-ups; is taught endoscopic procedures; and is provided with increasing responsibility and autonomy).
- 3 blocks of adult gastroenterology (the trainee becomes proficient in endoscopy and emergency endoscopic procedures).
- 3 blocks of adult hepatology (the trainee is exposed to chronic liver failure, liver transplantation, and therapies for chronic liver disease).
- 1 block of clinical nutrition (the trainee will have more direct involvement in ordering parenteral nutrition; the selection of enteral formulas and diets, and special dietary needs and requirements for select patient populations).
- 1 block of research (first block scheduled early in the training period to enable the trainee to develop a research project(s) based on his/her interests that may be completed during the course of the two-year program; research may involve the fields of inflammatory bowel disease, hepatobiliary disease, pancreatic disorders, and disorders of motility).
- 3 blocks of elective rotations tailored to the trainees' career goals (i.e. pathology, epidemiology, motility, endoscopy, research, etc.).
The Resident's Continuity Clinic is initiated in the second half of the first year of training.
Protected Teaching Rounds take place primarily on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, although trainees are encouraged and liberated to attend other pertinent sessions, including CanMEDSÂ competencies development workshops.
The Home Call Schedule is based on the provincial residents'Â collective agreement, with 9 days call per 28-day block (5 weekdays and 4 weekend days). There is no in-house call.
Training Sites
The primary training sites for the Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Subspecialty Residency Program include:
- Montreal Children’s Hospital, within the Â鶹AV Health Centre
- Jewish General Hospital (Adult Gastroenterology)
- Royal Victoria Hospital, within the Â鶹AV Health Centre (Adult Hepatology)
Elective/optional training locations include:
- CHU Sainte-Justine, University of Montreal (Pediatric Gastroenterology; Hepatology)
Division Director
Dr. Terry Sigman
Postgraduate Medical Education
Residency Program Director
Dr. Sylviane Forget
Advanced Inflammatory Bowel Disease Fellowship Program Director
TBD
Administrative Staff
Residency Program Coordinator
Programadmin.pedsgastro [at] mcgill.ca
MUHC Administrative Assistant
valerie.cameron [at] muhc.mcgill.ca (Valerie Cameron)
514-412-4400 ext. 22437
MUHC Administrative Assistant
caroline.lamorgese [at] muhc.mcgill.ca (Caroline Lamorgese)
514-412-4474