• The resident will learn to work closely with primary care physicians.

• The resident will learn the neuroanatomical and neuropathological
   underpinning of the full array of neurological diseases in children.

• The resident will learn about the wide variety of diagnostic techniques
   used to facilitate neurological diagnosis, and the indications for ordering
   these different diagnostic techniques. They will also learn functional
   neuroanatomy and neuropathology and clinical-neuropathological
   correlations.

Year Three

During the third year of training, the resident will build on earlier experiences in the pediatric neurology outpatient clinics, as pediatric neurological consultant in the pediatric emergency room and on the inpatient floors, including well-baby and intensive newborn nurseries. This will include several months as pediatric neurology chief resident at Boston Medical Center. The third year will also include in-depth training in epilepsy and clinical electrophysiology, behavioral pediatric neurology and elective experiences dedicated to further sub specialized training and/or research.

The primary objectives of year three:

• The resident will expand his or her understanding of normal and
   abnormal  development, from preterm and full-term newborns, through
   infancy, early and later childhood, adolescence and early adulthood.

• The resident will learn to obtain detailed developmental and neurological
   histories and to complete detailed developmental and neurological
   examinations at each stage of development.

• The resident’s exposure to the full spectrum of neurological disorders
   seen in children will be expanded, along with the fostering of further
   library work and critical reading of related literature.

• The resident’s ability to manage acute neurological problems in children,
   including those seen in the emergency room and the pediatric intensive
   care units, will be expanded to include treatment of refractory status
   epilepticus and acutely increased intracranial pressure.

• The resident will learn to recognize normal and abnormal EEG patterns and aquire the ability:

   o To identify normal EEG patterns at each developmental age
   o To understand the interpretation of various EEG montages used
   o To recognize normal and abnormal background EEG rhythms,
       including those seen in the various stages of sleep
   o To recognize artifacts, spikes, sharp waves and other EEG
       abnormalities
   o To recognize EEG patterns typical of the many childhood epilepsies
       and epilepsy syndromes
   o To recognize traumatic, metabolic, toxic, infectious and other
       encephalopathies
   o To become fully familiar with the criteria needed for the clinical
       diagnosis of brain death.

• The resident will learn to interpret evoked response neurophysiological
   studies, visual, auditory and somatosensory evoked responses.

• The resident will be encouraged to develop one or more clinical and/or
   laboratory research projects for presentation and publication.

• The resident will learn to conduct comprehensive and stimulating
   didactic teaching conferences.

• The resident will become knowledgeable in the use of the many
   anticonvulsant medications and non-medication treatments for epilepsy,
   including the ketogenic diet and vagal nerve stimulator.

• The resident will learn clinical neuropharmacology and clinical
   indications for the use of SSRI medications, typical and atypical
   antipsychotic mediations, drugs for Tourette syndrome and its co-morbid
   conditions, medications for autistic spectrum disorders, oppositional,
   conduct and aggressive behaviors, and attention deficit hyperactivity
   disorder.

• The resident will learn to perform a psychologically-oriented mental
   status examination, and will develop skills to facilitate the accurate
   diagnosis of childhood depression, anxiety disorders, other mood
   disorders, childhood psychoses, psycho-physiological disorders and
   behavioral disorders and will gain familiarity with the different treatments
   used for these disorders, including the many medications used in their
   management.

• During a pediatric rehabilitation rotation, the resident will learn how to
   carry out detailed evaluation of children with neuromuscular disorders, and
   will learn different means to manage abnormalities of muscle tone,
   including spasticity, hypotonia and dystonia. This teaching in management
   will include applications of physical therapy, use of orthotics and other
   appliances, drug treatment, botox and phenol injections, use of the
   baclofen pump and surgical interventions.

View a sample curriculum