Pediatric Anesthesia

The Pediatric Anesthesia experience at UIC includes a rich and diverse exposure to two very different pediatric hospital environments: UIC Children’s Hospital within a Hospital and Shriners Hospital for Children Chicago.

At UIC hospital, residents participate in the full spectrum of pediatric surgical care, from 1kg NICU babies with patent ductus arteriosus or necrotizing enterocolitis to infants with Pierre Robin requiring mandibular distraction, spanning all the way up to obese adolescents with obstructive sleep apnea and tonsillar hypertrophy.  With abundant occasions to anesthetize children needing both routine and complex orthopedic, ophthalmologic, otolaryngologic, craniofacial, dental, general surgical, and urologic care, residents learn to fine-tune their manual dexterity and procedural skillset, with placement of small IV and arterial lines, management of challenging airways, and performance of caudal epidural blocks.

At Shriners Hospital for Children Chicago the experience is vastly different but certainly no less stimulating.  Shriners is an internationally renowned children’s plastics and orthopedic surgical hospital.  It remains one of the world’s greatest medical philanthropic organizations, of which we at UIC are enormously privileged to be a part.  Residents rotating at Shriners will have the unique opportunity to care for pediatric patients possessing rare and complex pathology such as neuromuscular scoliosis, arthrogryposis, muscular dystrophy, cleft lip and palate, cerebral palsy, osteogenesis imperfecta, myelomeningocele, spinal cord injuries, and a multitude of craniofacial syndromes resulting in extremely difficult airways.  The anesthetic planning for these involved procedures is complex and richly nuanced, often incorporating residents’ growing familiarity with advanced airway equipment and use of ultrasound for regional anesthesia techniques and vascular access.

A committed division of ten fellowship trained and subspecialty board certified pediatric anesthesiologists enthusiastically guide residents through the rotation, with a dedicated morning lectures series 2-3 times a week as well as defined intraoperative topics discussed throughout the day.  Our pediatric faculty encourage rotating residents to engage in quality improvement projects and enjoy serving as mentors for abstracts and posters on interesting pediatric cases at national pediatric anesthesia conferences.  Several members of our division  also participate in international mission trips and facilitate inclusion of interested residents when openings arise.

Pediatric Anesthesiology Faculty:

Richard Banchs MD
Helen Lee MD, MPH
Pilar Mercado MD
Fredrick Ntumy MD
Sarah Oswald MD
Katherine Ovsevitz MD, MPH
Leelach Rothschild MD
Farheen Sultana MD
Nicole C. P. Thompson MD, FAAP
Polina Voronov MD