Weill Cornell Tri-Institutional Pain Fellowship

Weekly Teaching Time
Fellows have protected weekly teaching time throughout the year, regardless of their clinical responsibilities. 

Every Monday morning from 7:15-8:00 am, there are Pain Medicine Grand Rounds. We have invited speakers who present throughout the year.

In addition, every Thursday morning from 7:15-8:00 am, fellows have weekly didactic sessions. A wide array of topics are covered such as Board Review and Business Management. There is a lot to cover in one year and we try our best to give our fellows the full spectrum!

Journal Club is held the first Friday of the month from 7:15-8 am, and on the third Friday of the month Cadaver Workshop from 7:30-10:00 am that provides fellows with hands-on practice of various techniques. During these sessions, the Pain Medicine faculty or invited guest speakers help to cover interventional techniques for different regions of the body.  Journal Club and the Cadaver Workshop are hosted by the HSS faculty.

Finally, the fellows attend a month Anesthesiology Department conference for all the fellows in the department which covers non-clinical  topics such as QI, wellness, research, healthcare disparities, communication and cultural competency, etc.

Educational Allowance 
Fellows are given a generous educational allowance to help support their learning. Two Pain Management books are given at the start of the fellowship, and fellows receive additional reimbursements for presenting at conferences and for research published. 

Conferences
We encourage our fellows to attend local and national conferences in order to meet other leaders in Pain Medicine. We give our fellows protected time and reimbursement to attend the New York & New Jersey Societies of Interventional Pain Physicians' Pain Medicine Symposium, as well as The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Interventional Cancer Pain Symposium.

Some other conferences attended by fellows in the past include North American Neuromodulation Society Annual Meeting, American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine Annual Pain Medicine Meeting, and American Academy of Pain Management Annual Meeting. 

Rotations
During the 12-month cycle, each fellow rotates between NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Hospital for Special Surgery as follows: 

12-week rotation at Weill Cornell Medicine Center for Comprehensive Spine Care

12-week rotation at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center - Pain Department

12-week rotation at Hospital for Special Surgery - Pain Department

6-week rotation which is further subdivided working with both the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center – Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center – Neuroradiology Department. While working with the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, fellows have the opportunity to see patients in clinic, witness EMGs being conducted, be part of physical therapy sessions and custom orthotic fittings for patients. While working with the Neuroradiology Department, fellows have the opportunity to perform Vertebral Augmentation Procedures. This is a very hands-on experience much enjoyed by our fellows. 

6-week rotation which is further subdivided working at both the Weill Cornell Medicine Upper West Side office and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center – Psychiatry Department. While working at the West Side office, fellows see patients in clinic and perform interventional procedures daily in the en-suite fluoroscopy. While working with the Psychiatry Department, fellows have the opportunity to join the psychiatry team on inpatient rounding in the afternoon.  

A Typical Work Day

• NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center
  Your day starts at the Weill Cornell Medicine Center for Comprehensive Spine Care at 8am. One fellow is assigned to seeing patients in clinic while the other fellow is assigned to doing procedures with the en-suite fluoroscopy or with the ultrasound machine. There is a 30-60-minute lunch break. The day typically finishes by 5pm for clinic and procedures. Roughly 1-2 times per week, fellows also rotate at the main hospital or the DHK building for intrathecal pump trials, intrathecal pump implants, spinal cord stimulator trials (including DRG), spinal cord stimulator implants, kyphoplasty, cooled RFA, and intracept. During the rotation, the fellows will rotate holding the pager for the clinic on-call service to answer any emergency calls from patients. During the 12-week rotation, fellows take about one weekend call per month in which they round on acute and chronic pain inpatients from 8am-1pm. The pager is then signed out and covered by the inpatient PACU resident for the remainder of the call. During the week, the chronic pain inpatient service is covered by our pain NP’s. There is a morning lecture from 7-8am on Mondays and Thursdays throughout the year.
  
  You will also spend six weeks each at the Upper West Side clinic and the Lower Manhattan Pain Clinic. The day typically starts at 8 am, and finishes by 5pm. You will also have the opportunity to go to the OR 1-2 times per month. There is generally one call a month at HSS while on these rotations. 
  
  

• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center - Pain Department
  On the inpatient rotation, your day starts at 6:30am where you will perform regional blocks and thoracic epidurals for the first-scheduled OR cases. This is a great opportunity to learn and refresh your regional and ultrasound skills! After the blocks are done, you can get breakfast and meet with the inpatient NPs to discuss which patients may benefit from a block on the chronic pain inpatient service. You have the opportunity to join the IR team to do kyphoplasty several times during your rotation. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30am, you will perform CT- guided celiac plexus neurolysis blocks. There is a weekly conference on Tuesdays with the chronic pain and regional service where you will present 1-2 times during your rotation.
  
  On the outpatient rotation, the clinic fellows begin clinic at 8 or 9am. Both fellows see patients in clinic and perform procedures daily with the en-suite fluoroscopy or with the ultrasound machine. The day typically finishes by 5pm. While at MSKCC, fellows perform a wide array of procedures including regional anesthesia blocks, epidurals, cryoablation, peripheral nerve stimulator placement, spinal cord stimulator trials and intrathecal pump implantation. During the 12-week rotation, fellows take about 2-3 twelve-hour call shifts during which they are covering the inpatient pain pager for both acute and chronic pain patients.
  
  

• Hospital for Special Surgery - Pain Department 
  Your day starts at 8am at the Hospital for Special Surgery Outpatient Pain Office. The fellow on the rotation is assigned to work with two attendings each day. The fellow works in conjunction with the designated attending in clinic or the ambulatory center where they will perform procedures with the en-suite fluoroscopy or with the ultrasound machine. You have a 30-60 minute lunch break. The day typically finishes by 5pm for clinic and procedures. Once a week, fellows also see patients in the Medicaid Fellows Clinic and have designated fluoroscopy time later in the week to perform procedures on their patients so there is continuity of care. While at HSS, fellows have the opportunity to see a wide range of procedures ranging from acupuncture, prolotherapy, cryoneurolysis to DRG stimulation and DRG implantation.
  
  During the rotation, fellows take about 1-2 weekend calls per month in which they are helping to round on chronic pain inpatients and covering the pain pager from Saturday 7am till Sunday 7pm. The pager is then signed out to the covering NP for the night. During the week, chronic pain inpatients are covered by our pain NP’s. There is a Cadaver Lab and Journal Club hosted by the HSS attendings once a month throughout the year.

Application
Our Pain Fellowship program participates in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) for fellowships. Applications are accepted only through the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS). Applications are accepted on ERAS from December 6, 2024 to April 30, 2025.

Interviews will be held: June-July 2025
Rank list due on NRMP: September 17, 2025
Match results released: October 1, 2025

Required documents are:

• CV
• Personal statement
• Medical school transcript and Dean's letter
• 3 letters of recommendation
• Passport-size photo

Additional documentation accepted: ITE Exam Score, SAE and any other similar progress examinations (can be emailed to maa2010@med.cornell.edu).

Only J-1 visas are accepted for appointment at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine Pain Fellowship Program.

Please email all pain fellowship queries to Marlene Augustine, maa2010@med.cornell.edu.

Living in New York City
The Cornell campus of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

• Learn more about living in New York City. 
• View the subsidized housing offered to our fellows.