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Our one-year program is designed to provide expertise in evaluating and treating pain in a multidisciplinary framework. We emphasize an interdisciplinary team approach, integrating expertise from various specialties including Anesthesiology, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R), and Pain Psychology.
As the flagship hospital of Cook County Health, we are the major tertiary referral center within the system and provide care to a diverse population. Our dedicated faculty and staff take pride in our hospital’s mission of delivering high quality care to all, regardless of financial circumstances.
The program’s core faculty consists of board-certified anesthesiologists who are further specialized in pain management supported by a Physiatrist and a Clinical Psychologist. Fellows also gain valuable experience through rotations in Acute Pain Service, Palliative Care and Neurology managing both inpatient and outpatient population with complex pain conditions.
Our dynamic clinic manages a wide range of pain disorders, including neck/back pain, cancer pain, chronic regional pain syndrome, neuropathy, post herpetic neuralgia, post–surgical pain, and post laminectomy syndrome. The program provides the full range of clinical training; from pharmacologic management to Fluoroscopic and USG steroid injections to more complex interventional procedures such as radiofrequency ablations, chemical neurolysis, spinal cord stimulation, intrathecal pumps, vertebral augmentation etc. A multimodal, multidisciplinary approach is central to our philosophy of pain management.
The fellowship offers a robust didactic curriculum for trainees. Daily morning conferences, weekly Grand Rounds by board-certified faculty, pain medicine board review series, MRI reviews, journal clubs and review of patient outcome discussions foster a strong educational environment. We are expanding our capacity to perform clinical research and have multiple ongoing projects. Our program encourages participation in ongoing research and supports the academic and professional development of the fellows.
Our graduates are well equipped to practice in any clinical setting, thanks to the diverse clinical exposure and rigorous academic training.
Taruna Penmetcha, MD
Program Director, Pain Fellowship Program
Chair, Division of Pain Management
Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management
John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital at Cook County
Program Requirements
The Pain Management Fellowship Program adheres to the minimum selection criteria as delineated in the Institutional Policy on Selection. All applicants for a fellowship must:
Application Process
Applicants are required to complete and submit the application and supporting documents to our Pain Medicine Fellowship Program via ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service) only:
The Pain Management Fellowship Program participates in the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP). On the NRMP website, there is a timeline for programs in the NRMP Match.
Applications are accepted from December until the end of June each year. Upon receipt of your completed application, the Selection Committee will review it, and you may be invited for an interview. Interviews will be conducted during the months of March to June. Final decisions will be made by the end of September.
Visa Information
All residents, clinical fellows, research fellows, and staff who are not United States citizens and do not have a green card must have the appropriate visa in order to receive an appointment at the John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County.
Our curriculum, overall, is highly innovative and structured and prepares graduates for both Board certification and practical knowledge and expertise.
Didactics include daily lectures covering all ACGME-required topics. In addition, we provide hands-on workshops, webinars, simulation sessions, in-training examinations, and board preparation series.
Interventional Pain Procedures
During this rotation, fellows will learn to manage all aspects to prepare for their scheduled patients’ procedures. Together with the attending, they will perform a full spectrum of blocks from peripheral nerve blocks to neuraxial interventional procedures. The pain management center has 2 fluoroscopy suites giving us the ability to perform all fluoroscopic guided neuraxial blocks including SCS (Spinal Cord Stimulation) trials. Final implants, Intra-thecal pumps, vertebroplasty and Osteo-cool among others, are performed in the main OR. Additionally, all patients’ rooms are fully equipped to perform all US guided blocks.
Outpatient Clinic
Our multidisciplinary pain clinic operates Monday through Friday, and it is staffed with 5 board certified attending physicians. Fellows are supervised on all patient encounters. Patients are referred for evaluation and treatment for the following pain conditions, including low back and neck pain, cancer pain, neuralgia, CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome), myofascial pain etc. We utilize multidisciplinary approach including non-pharmacologic, pharmacologic, and interventional management. We also collaborate with on- site PM&R, psychology and acupuncture teams on an ongoing basis allowing the fellow to experience the multimodal therapies and longitudinal improvement in their patients.
Inpatient Acute Pain Management
The fellows rotate through inpatient service and the assigned fellow will round daily with the acute pain management team. We receive consultations from different services including trauma, neurology, oncology, surgical and medical specialties. Acute pain team will be involved in evaluating and managing consults using pharmacologic and interventional approaches as indicated. Interventional procedures, if indicated, are done in the units with ultrasound guidance or patients are transported to clinic for fluoroscopically guided procedures. Acute pain service will also work in collaboration with anesthesia team to manage postoperative pain, epidurals, and peripheral catheters.
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