UCI-CHOC Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship
Contact Us
Program Coordinator
Karen Olson
[email protected]
Program Leadership
Mary Jane Piroutek, MD
Program Director, Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program
Natasha Li, MD
Associate Program Director, Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Theodore Heyming, MD
Division Chief, Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Welcome, and thank you for your interest in the University of California, Irvine and CHOC Hospital (UCI-CHOC) Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program!
We’re proud to train the next generation of pediatric emergency medicine leaders in a collaborative and supportive environment.
Please click below to learn more about our fellowship, our team, and training at UCI-CHOC.
Message From the Director
Thank you for your interest in the UCI-CHOC Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program. Our mission is to prepare our fellows for careers as outstanding clinicians, leaders in academic medicine, and contributors to research advancing the field of pediatric emergency medicine (PEM). We couldn’t be more excited to share information about our ED and fellowship program with you.
Mary Jane Piroutek, MD
Program Overview
The UCI-CHOC Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program is an ACGME-accredited program that provides extensive clinical exposure in pediatric emergency medicine while strongly supporting scholarly work in the field.
- Pediatric residency-trained fellows will complete a 3-year fellowship.
- Emergency medicine-trained fellows will complete a 2-year fellowship.
The Division of Emergency Medicine at Rady Children’s Health in Orange County includes more than 20 pediatric emergency medicine (PEM) physicians working alongside a highly specialized team of Magnet-recognized nurses, medical technicians, pediatric emergency pharmacists, child life specialists and mental health emergency services staff.
Emergency Department Highlights
- 100,000+ emergency visits each year
- Orange County’s only Level I Pediatric Trauma Center
- 1,000+ trauma patients treated annually
- EMS-designated base station for Orange County
Rady Children’s Health in Orange County
Rady Children’s Health in Orange County (formerly CHOC) is part of a pediatric health care system that includes two hospitals in Orange County, a hospital in San Diego, and a growing network of primary and specialty care centers spanning six counties. Uniting the trusted expertise of CHOC and Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego, Rady Children’s Health builds on a combined legacy of more than a century of clinical excellence and is dedicated to advancing children’s health through leading-edge research, innovative treatments and compassionate care.
Rady Children’s Hospital in Orange is an academic, community-based hospital that serves as the main training site for the fellowship. It has 386 beds, a Level I Trauma Center, Level 4 NICU and Level 4 Pediatric Epilepsy Center. Rady Children’s Health delivers care through more than 825,000 healthcare visits annually.
For virtual tours of Rady Children’s Hospital in Orange: choc.org/about/virtual-tour
University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine and the UCI Medical Center (UCIMC)
UCI School of Medicine is ranked among the top 50 medical schools in the nation for research by U.S. News & World Report. UCI School of Medicine has 24 departments, ranging from basic science research to clinical, medical and surgical specialties, and research, clinical, and teaching. UCI School of Medicine is the sponsoring institution and serves as a primary site for basic science and translational bench research opportunities. The UCI Medical Center in Orange serves as the main clinical site for the UC Irvine School of Medicine, integrating teaching, research, and patient care.
UCI Medical Center is a 459-bed acute care hospital providing tertiary and quaternary care, ambulatory and specialty medical, behavioral health and rehabilitation services. It is the primary teaching location for the UC Irvine School of Medicine.
Pediatric-Trained Fellows Schedule
PGY-4
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM): 4 months
- Adult Emergency Department: 1 month
- Cardiac ICU (CVICU): 1 month
- Obstetrics (OB): 1 month
- Emergency Medical Services (EMS): 0.5 month
- Research: 4 months
- Elective: 0.5 month
- Vacation: 1 month
PGY-5
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM): 4 months
- Adult Emergency Department: 1 month
- Cardiac ICU (CVICU): 1 month
- Obstetrics (OB): 1 month
- Emergency Medical Services (EMS): 0.5 month
- Research: 4 months
- Elective: 0.5 month
- Vacation: 1 month
PGY-6
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM): 4 months
- Adult Emergency Department: 1 month
- Research: 5 months
- Elective: 2 months
- Vacation: 1 month
Emergency Medicine-Trained Fellows Schedule
PGY-4
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM): 6.5 months
- Pediatric ICU (PICU): 1 month
- Neonatal ICU (NICU): 1 month
- Pediatric Anesthesia: 1 month
- Outpatient: 1 month
- Research: 0.5 month
- Elective: 1 month
- Vacation: 1 month
PGY-5
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM): 6 months
- Cardiac ICU (CVICU): 1 month
- Forensics: 0.5 month
- Outpatient: 1 month
- Research: 2 months
- Elective: 1.5 months
- Vacation: 1 month
Academic Curriculum
Fellows participate in a comprehensive academic curriculum designed to support clinical excellence, procedural competency and scholarly development.
- CHOC All Fellows Core Lecture Series
- PEM Core Lecture Series
- PEM Simulation Lab
- PEM Procedure Lab
- PEM Quality Improvement Curriculum
- PEM Journal Club
- PEM Toxicology Conference
- PEM Ultrasound Lab
- PEM Research Roundtable
- PEM Board Review Series
Scholarly Activity
During fellowship, each fellow will design, conduct and complete a pediatric emergency medicine scholarly project.
To support academic development, fellows will participate in:
- Meetings with a scholarly oversight committee twice per year
- A PEM Research Roundtable held quarterly (1–2 hours)
Quality Improvement
Fellows participate in a Quality Improvement or Patient Safety project during training.
Through this experience, fellows:
- Learn structured quality improvement methodologies
- Participate in interprofessional QI initiatives
- Gain experience improving clinical processes and patient outcomes
Annika Van Wieren, MD
Class of 2026
Residency: EM Ascension St John Hospital
Medical School: Wayne State
Saxony Busta, DO
Class of 2027
Residency: Peds Maimonides Medical Center
Medical School: Burrell COM
Peggy Kuo, DO
Class of 2028
Residency: Peds CHOC
Medical School: Western University of Health Sciences
Tiffany Chen, MD
Class of 2029
Residency: Peds CHLA
Medical School: Rutgers
Alana Barclay, DO
Class of 2029
Residency: Peds CHOC
Medical School: Nova Southeastern
Carla Alcid, MD
Raymen Assaf, MD
Tyler Ayalin, MD
Nelson Bansil, DO
Seth Brindis, MD
Chair of Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Megan Dickson, MD
Jasmin England, MD
Sarah Gomez, MD
Daniel Gromis, MD
Ultrasound Mentor
July Hedland, MD
Theodore Heyming, MD
Division Chief of Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Sonia Jarrett, MD
Dharshinine Jayamaha, MD
Gregory LaSala, MD
Medical Toxicology Mentor
Natasha Li, MD
PEM Fellowship Associate Program Director
Sonia Mehta, MD
Lilit Minasyan, MD
Divya Mirchandani, MD
Cynthia Orantes, MD
Raina Paul, MD
PEM Quality Improvement Mentor
Mary Jane Piroutek, MD
PEM Fellowship Program Director
Maureen Saint Georges, MD
Andrew Shieh, MD
Joshua Siembieda, MD
Michael Valente, MD
Eva Yuan, MD
PEM Simulation Mentor