Background
ASCO advocates that the integration of palliative care be accomplished throughout the course of cancer treatment, regardless of prognosis, because patient outcomes are improved. Since 2008 when hospice & palliative medicine became formally recognized as a subspecialty, 630 physicians have obtained dual certification in both oncology and hospice & palliative medicine. In the intervening years, residents have independently sought training in both fields in a sequential fashion, however, there have been requests for a combined training option. Starting with the 2022 fellowship match cycle, ASCO is facilitating an approved ACGME pilot of a combined Hematology & Oncology and Hospice & Palliative Medicine Fellowship with 4 institutions.
Purpose
The goal of the Combined Oncology and Hospice & Palliative Medicine Training is to pilot an efficient pathway for fellows to be dually certified in medical oncology (with or without hematology) and hospice & palliative medicine. The program targets trainees wanting to further their palliative care skills to be able to deliver high-quality cancer care with palliative/supportive care integrated across the continuum of care.
Program Description
The program offers the option to decrease the total duration of training by 1 year by omitting some elective or research time from standard medical oncology or standard hematology/oncology training and by providing training months that fulfill requirements for both subspecialties.
Current ABIM Training Time Standards
Medical Oncology |
24 months total: |
12 clinical months |
Hematology / Medical Oncology |
36 months total: |
12 clinical months |
Hospice & Palliative Medicine |
12 months total: |
12 clinical months |
Medical Oncology is currently 24 months (2 years) in duration. Hematology and Medical Oncology is currently 36 months (3 years) in duration. Hospice & Palliative Medicine is 12 months (1 year) in duration. Currently, physicians wanting training that includes hospice and palliative medicine must pursue this training consecutively.
Proposed Training Time Standards
|
Months |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
|
Option 1 |
Combined Onc/HPM Year 1 |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
24 months total clinical training |
Combined Onc/HPM Year 2 |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
||
|
||||||||||||||
Option 2 |
Combined HemeOnc/HPM Year 1 |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
CO |
36 months total |
Combined HemeOnc/HPM Year 2 |
CH |
CH |
CH |
CH |
CH |
CH |
ER |
ER |
ER |
ER |
ER |
ER |
||
Combined HemeOnc/HPM Year 3 |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
CHP |
Key: CO = clinical oncology months; CH = clinical hematology months; CHP = clinical hospice and palliative months; ER = elective/research months
Option 1 offers a combined training program in medical oncology and hospice & palliative medicine of 24 months total duration. Those 24 months are all clinical and do not represent a reduction in total clinical training in each discipline. A half-day continuity outpatient clinic experience is required throughout the duration of fellowship training.
Option 2 offers a combined training program in hematology/oncology and hospice & palliative medicine of 36 months total duration. Only 6 months of the 3-year training scheme are devoted to elective or research time. A half-day continuity outpatient clinic experience is required throughout the duration of fellowship training.
NOTE: each participating institution will offer one of the above options. Some of the participating institutions also offer an additional research year.
View the full Combined Oncology and Hospice & Palliative Medicine Training proposal.
Please view the participating institutions in the table below. To join the program or for questions, please contact Jamie Von Roenn, MD, FASCO.
Institution |
Location |
Match Cycle Begins |
Hematology/Oncology Program Director |
Palliative Care Program Director |
---|---|---|---|---|
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center |
New York |
2022 |
Adriana Malone, MD |
Mollie Biewald, MD |
The Ohio State University |
Ohio |
2022 |
Beth Christian, MD |
Erin Scott, MD |
Fox Chase Cancer Center with Temple Health |
Pennsylvania |
2022 |
Jessica Bauman, MD |
Dylan R. Sherry, MD |
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center |
Pennsylvania |
2022 |
Annie Im, MD |
Ethan Jaffe Silverman, MD |
Harvard Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center |
Massachusetts |
2023 |
Deepa Rangachari, MD |
Jonathan Yeh, MD |
Indiana University |
Indiana |
2024 |
Ahmad Al-Hader, MD |
Lyle Fettig, MD |