Welcome from the Program Director

Welcome, and thank you for your interest in the Gastroenterology Fellowship Program at the University of Rochester Medical Center. We are delighted that you are considering our program as the next step in your professional journey.

At the University of Rochester, our fellowship program is built on a strong foundation of academic excellence, clinical rigor, and compassionate care in a collaborative and collegial environment. As a fellow in our program, you will be immersed in a supportive and intellectually stimulating environment where education, patient care, and scholarly activity are seamlessly integrated. Our program is a fully accredited 3-year training program with 12 total fellows practicing at the University of Rochester Medical Center and Highland Hospital. Our primary emphasis is on providing excellent training in clinical Gastroenterology (GI) and Hepatology. The diverse and robust breadth and depth of clinical cases at the University of Rochester provides a comprehensive exposure to the required content outlined in the national core curriculum in Gastroenterology and Hepatology training. Our faculty are nationally, and internationally recognized experts committed to clinical medicine, mentorship, innovation, and your success. Our fellows learn from the knowledge and experience of multiple advanced endoscopists, transplant hepatologists, inflammatory bowel disease specialists, as well as general gastroenterologists which includes experts in motility, nutrition and obesity and hereditary GI cancer syndromes.

Our mission is to train outstanding gastroenterologists who are not only clinically proficient but also leaders in research, education, and advocacy. Our program aims to 1) provide excellent training in clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2) serve the multiple programmatic requirements to support consultative services and education in Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Advanced Endoscopy for University of Rochester Medical Center and the Upstate New York region; and in doing so, 3) produce gastroenterologists with interest and experience in education and scholarship, for academic practice needs at UR medicine and other academic centers and finally 4) serve as a source for the recruitment and retention of future faculty in order to meet the needs of URMC in the face of its expanding and evolving footprint.

The University of Rochester Medical Center is the only tertiary care facility in the region, providing exposure for the GI trainee to a busy academic Med-Surg Hospital, Cancer Center and Children’s Hospital. Fellows are exposed to patients at a busy large regional referral Emergency Department; intensive care units in medicine, surgery, cardiovascular and pulmonary medicine, and burn/trauma; VAD program, bone marrow and Transplant Institute with kidney, liver and heart transplants including a dedicated liver transplant service line; and overall, a rich exposure to a highly diverse patient population. The clinical and endoscopic exposure is top-notch, and the environment in which to live and train cannot be beat!

Just some of the unique highlights of the educational and supportive environment of the fellowship include 1) protected conference time on Wednesday mornings to focus on learning while free from clinical responsibilities, 2) a bi-monthly Steering Committee where all fellows and program leaders discuss the current and future needs of the program in a relaxed confidential setting, 3) robust collaborative APP support on the inpatient and outpatient GI services at URMC and Highland Hospital, 4) an immersive combined inpatient and outpatient Transplant Hepatology experience, 5) special curated electives in Colorectal Surgery, IBD with intestinal ultrasound, and hereditary cancer syndromes, 6) diverse exposure to urban, sub-urban and rural clinical medicine at both a large academic referral hospital and a smaller community hospital, 7) frequent exposure to medical students and residents and 8) a fantastic work-life balance with an emphasis on wellness.

Finally, one thing we are most proud of is the culture at Rochester, which is an essential part of this ecosystem, and we are proud of the camaraderie and lifelong friendships that form here. Whether your career goals lie in academic medicine, clinical practice, or beyond, our program is committed to helping you achieve them. I encourage you to explore our website, learn more about our current fellows and faculty, and reach out with any questions you may have. Don’t forget to also check out our Instagram page and our videos, which describe our program in more detail. Our fellowship program coordinator is Anne Groth and she can be reached by email at Anne_Groth@urmc.rochester.edu.

Thank you again for considering the University of Rochester. We look forward to the opportunity to meet you and share more about what makes our program special.

Warm regards,
Brandon Sprung, MD
Program Director, Gastroenterology Fellowship
University of Rochester Medical Center