All fellows in the Division of Immunology at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics are supervised by faculty. Fellows are assigned to clinics that are staffed by a faculty member dedicated to that clinic. In addition, fellows have their own Pediatric and Adult Continuity of Care (COC) Clinics that are staffed by a faculty member. Fellows are given increasing responsibility for patient care as they progress through the training program, however, every UI Hospitals & Clinics patient seen by a fellow is also seen by a faculty physician in the Division. In the Allergy Clinic at the Iowa City VA Health Care System, all patients seen by a first year fellow must also be seen by the faculty member staffing that clinic. Patients seen by an upper level fellow in the VA Clinic are discussed with the faculty member staffing that clinic and in some instances will also be seen by the faculty member depending on the nature of the clinical problem.
All inpatient consultations during regular working hours are first seen by the fellow and then staffed by faculty members. Weekend and on-call consultations are first seen by the fellow and then staffed within 24 hours by the faculty on-call. A faculty member is always available for fellow supervision.
Policy on Duty Hours
The Division of Immunology policy regarding fellow work hours follows the guidelines set by UI Hospitals & Clinics and by ACGME. This policy applies to all Allergy-Immunology fellows. Work hours are not to exceed 80 hours per week and fellows have at least 1 full day out of 7 away from program responsibilities, averaged over a month’s time. Fellows do not take in house call. Evening and weekend call responsibilities are rotated among the fellows.
Fellows are actively involved in preparing the on call schedule, which is reviewed by the Program Director. Conflicts with this call schedule are directed to the Program Director for resolution. Note that the on-call fellow covers the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics adult and pediatric areas as well as the Iowa City VA Hospital.
Fellows are required to submit their duty hours on MedHub on a weekly basis, and this is monitored by the Program, the Department, and the GME office.