Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship
The SSM Health/Saint Louis University School of Medicine Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program offers training at a Level 1 pediatric trauma center, giving physicians the skills and experience they need to become leaders in their field.
A Message From the Program Director
Welcome to the Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program.
Our fellowship has a long tradition of preparing pediatric emergency physicians for successful careers as clinicians, educators, scholars and leaders. Based at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital, our fellows train in a busy, high-acuity pediatric emergency department and Level 1 pediatric trauma center, caring for a broad range of medical, surgical, acutely injured and critically ill children.
We offer a comprehensive, graduated training experience that includes pediatric emergency medicine, PICU, adult emergency medicine, anesthesia, radiology, transport and EMS, toxicology, procedures and research. From the beginning, fellows are active participants in patient care, teaching, scholarly work and quality improvement.
A defining strength of our program is the third-year experience. Senior fellows function in a hybrid faculty-fellow role, with meaningful clinical autonomy and real-time opportunities to supervise, teach and provide feedback to residents and students in the emergency department. This graduated responsibility helps our fellows transition confidently from trainee to independent attending.
We are equally committed to fellow development outside the clinical environment. Fellows participate in a structured didactic curriculum, mock codes, board review, simulation, regional boot camp and scholarly activity with dedicated research time and faculty mentorship.
Our goal is to graduate pediatric emergency physicians who are clinically excellent, thoughtful teachers, productive scholars and compassionate leaders. We are proud of our fellows, our faculty and the supportive learning environment we have built together in St. Louis.
The strongest endorsement of our program comes from our graduates, who consistently report that they enter their first attending positions feeling more prepared for independent practice than their peers hired alongside them.
Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions. We would be happy to tell you more about our program.
Scott M. Thomas, M.D.
Program director
Program Overview
Accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the pediatric emergency medicine fellowship is three years for pediatric residency graduates and two years for emergency medicine residency graduates. The program is flexible and can be customized to the interests of individual trainees.
Fellows train at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital.
- Core PEM (14 Months): high-volume, busy urban ED training
- Adult EM (Three Months): specialized training with SLU EM residency faculty
- Subspecialty Requirements (Six Months): rotations in anesthesia, PICU, radiology, toxicology and administration
- Customized Electives (Six Months): tailored training to pursue individual career interests
- Pediatric ICU (One Month): critical care experience with no overnight call
- Transport Medicine: integrated experience throughout the fellowship; transport call coverage (avg. 10 calls per month) during research, elective and subspecialty rotations
- Clinical Shift Requirements:
- PEM Service Months: 12–13 shifts per month (three on weekends)
- Research and Administrative Months: four shifts per month (two on weekends)
- Subspecialty and Elective Months: two shifts per month (both on weekends)
- Adult EM Months: 14 adult ED shifts (no pediatric shifts or transport call)
- Protected Time (Seven Months): dedicated to research ideas, IRB proposals and data analysis
- Comprehensive Research Curriculum: introduction to biostatistics, epidemiology, methodology and manuscript presentation
- Active Investigations: over 20 division research projects, including:
- Ultrasound
- Trauma medicine
- Disaster medicine
- Simulation applications
- Asthma protocols
- Laceration management
- Resident education
- Sedation outcomes
- Teaching Leadership: leading two noon conferences and two morning reports annually for pediatric residents
- Fellows’ Conference (Weekly): fellow-specific hour and collaborative faculty sessions:
- Board review series
- Journal club and case presentations
- M&M
- Procedure and radiology lectures
- Specialized Monthly Conferences:
- Trauma Conference: multidisciplinary review of trauma topics and M&M held with the Department of Pediatric Surgery
- Emergency Management Committee: quality-focused review of hospital-wide codes and resuscitations
- Division Meeting: discussion of practice guidelines, policies, finances and patient flow
Program Highlights
- Level 1 pediatric trauma center
- Flexible, customized curriculum
- Credentialing in moderate and deep sedation
- Seven months of dedicated research time
- Mentorship and teaching opportunities
- Financial support for national meetings/conferences
- Approved moonlighting
Fellows
Theresa Kunnel, M.D.
Residency: Pediatrics, UC Irvine/CHOC
Medical school: Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University
Academic interests: Medical education, health equity, ED throughput
Hobbies: Trying new restaurants, traveling, spending time with family and friends
Saloni Sinha, D.O.
Residency: Pediatrics, Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Medical school: Kansas City University
Academic interests: Medical education, injury prevention
Hobbies: Traveling, trying new restaurants, tennis
Griffin Young, D.O.
Residency: Pediatrics, Cook County Health System
Medical school: Des Moines University
Academic interests: Medical education
Hobbies: Reading, playing video/board games, playing music, learning foreign languages
Laila Azan, M.B.B.S.
Residency: Pediatrics, Cook County Health System
Medical school: University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica
Academic interests: Simulation, medical education, global health
Hobbies: Playing outdoor sports like golf, tennis and pickleball
Elizabeth Herrin, M.D.
Residency: Pediatrics, UT Soutwestern-Children's Health
Medical school: McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science
Center
Academic interests: Physician social media usage, injury prevention, advocacy
Hobbies: Exploring new and familiar cities, trying new restaurants, watching anime
with my husband, hanging out with my dogs and bird
Emilie Lohman Irwin, M.D.
Residency: Emergency medicine, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Medical school: Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Academic interests: Rural medicine, medical education
Hobbies: Spending time with family, reading, baking
Erin Lindholm, M.D.
Residency: Pediatrics, Texas A&M - Driscoll Children's Hospital
Medical school: Ross University School of Medicine
Academic interests: Pain-free wound closure, hyperbaric medicine, AI implementation
to help medical decision-making and aid in billing and physician efficiency
Hobbies: Spending time with family, scuba diving, scrapbooking, wake boarding
Elizabeth Newkirk, D.O.
Residency: Pediatrics, Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Medical school: University of Pikeville - Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine
Academic interests: Medical education
Hobbies: Video games, running, reading, traveling, spending time with my dog and wife
Tansyla Nicholson, M.D.
Residency: Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Orange County
Medical school: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Academic interests: Medical education and simulation, hospital administration
Hobbies: Disney, traveling, cruising
Apply
There are three fellowship positions available per year. Applicants must have completed or be in their final year of residency training in either pediatrics, internal medicine-pediatrics or emergency medicine. They can also be permanent U.S. residents or existing H-1B visa holders.
- Application deadline: Sept. 15
- Interview period: Aug. 15 to Oct. 30
The program participates in the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) and the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP).
Review the Application Process
About the SSM Health/Saint Louis University School of Medicine Graduate Medical Education Program
SSM Health proudly sponsors the Graduate Medical Education Program at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. This university-based training program offers a world-class academic environment that fosters clinical excellence, research innovation and compassionate care. All program participants are employed by SSM Health, ensuring a cohesive and supportive experience within a nationally recognized health system.