NYU Langone’s Lisa B. Malter, MD, and colleagues have launched a national introductory inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) course for first-year fellows. The course is offered as an annual one-day program, held in collaboration with the American College of Gastroenterology, in response to a growing need for gastroenterologists specially trained in IBD across the United States.

Course Offers IBD Primer for First-Year Fellows

IBD 101: A Primer for First-Year Gastroenterology Fellows, a daylong educational course that was held in person in September 2019 and virtually in September 2020, offers first-year fellows the opportunity to learn about the diagnosis and treatment of IBD in an intimate, interactive setting facilitated by national leaders in IBD clinical care, research, and education. The course features didactic roundtable sessions, case-based roundtable rotations, a career mentorship panel, clinical case simulations featuring standardized patients, and guidance on pursuing further education in IBD.

IBD 101 is part of a broad effort to establish a national standardized IBD curriculum for gastroenterology fellows in order to ensure consistent, high-quality training in IBD focused clinical management, research, and education, says Dr. Malter, associate professor in the Department of Medicine at NYU Langone and director of education at its Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center. In addition to Dr. Malter, the course is co-directed by a distinguished group of IBD experts, including David P. Hudesman, MD, associate professor of medicine and co-director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at NYU Langone; Sunanda V. Kane, MD, MSPH, chair of quality, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; and David T. Rubin, MD, chief of the Section of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at UChicago Medicine, in Chicago.

“Our course faculty offer not only IBD-specific clinical training, but also guidance on career pathways to consider as well as other educational opportunities in IBD.”—Lisa B. Malter, MD

The 2020 course featured more than 20 participating faculty from leading educational institutions across the country and enrolled its maximum capacity of 120 registrants, representing more than 70 participating fellowship programs. The course is designed to provide a basic overview on the diagnosis, treatment, and management of IBD, says Dr. Hudesman. “IBD is a complex disease for which therapeutic options—such as anti-integrins, interleukin-12/23 inhibitors, and Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors—are evolving rapidly,” he says. “It’s important to equip trainees with the most up-to-date clinical knowledge and management skills.”

Plans for 2021

The next IBD 101 course will be held virtually and is being planned for September 18, 2021. Registration will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis and will be open to 240 first-year gastroenterology fellows. “Our course faculty offer not only IBD-specific clinical training, but also guidance on career pathways to consider as well as other educational opportunities in IBD,” says Dr. Malter. “It is hoped that exposing participants to IBD early in their fellowship will allow them to make more informed career decisions and potentially consider pursuit of a subspecialty in IBD care.”

Disclosures: David P. Hudesman, MD, has provided consulting services or served on advisory boards for BMS, Janssen, Takeda, Pfizer, and AbbVie; he also received a research grant from Pfizer. Lisa B. Malter, MD, has received medical education grants from AbbVie, Gilead, Janssen, Pfizer, UCB, and Takeda and served on an advisory board for Gilead.