Didactics

Our structured didactic curriculum is deliberately created and planned to focus on the content our residents need to know to prepare for the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) General Pediatrics Certifying Examination after graduation. We are proud to share that our Board Pass rate for first-time test takers is consistently over the national average (87%).

Each Spring, we hold monthly competitive “Board Review Bowl” led by our fearless chief residents, with overall points tallied for a most coveted end-of-year surprise! 

Additionally, all residents have free access to the AAP PediaLink Board Prep Questions.  

RCHOC Pediatric Grand Rounds occur weekly on Wednesday mornings, Residency Morning Report occurs weekly on Friday mornings, and Noon Conference occurs daily with both lecture style and case-based learning (CASE = clinical admitted subspeciality exploration).  

Primary care ambulatory rotations, Behavioral and Development, Adolescent Medicine, Mental Health rotation, Advocacy, Community Pediatrics and Teaching (ACT) rotation all have carved out, protected time for rotation-specific lectures in addition to the structured didactic curriculum.

Brief weekly lectures hosted in continuity clinics with discussions led by attending physicians and residents. This curriculum is based on Yale primary care modules and reviews high-yield general pediatric topics focused on outpatient medicine.

Regular teaching opportunities exist as our residents engage with medical students from UCI, as well as students on visiting rotations.

Residents use centers at Miller Children’s, CHOC and UCI, participating in mock codes and procedure workshops with state-of-the-art, computer-controlled manikins, which replicate sights and sounds one might encounter in real-life situations.

The ACT Rotation (Advocacy, Community Pediatrics and Teaching) is designed to cultivate community leaders and effective child health advocates by immersing residents in comprehensive, hands-on learning experiences focused on health equity and social determinants of health. Through a blend of asynchronous trainings, interactive discussions and direct engagement with community partners, such as schools and local public health agencies, residents deepen their understanding of child poverty, environmental health, trauma-informed care and legislative advocacy. Key components include completing a health equity worksheet, an advocacy portfolio, and participation in virtual and in-person lectures covering topics from population health to patient-family-centered care. Residents gain practical skills through home visits, involvement with community outreach programs like Wellness on Wheels and Team KiPOW, and opportunities to collaborate with leaders in advocacy, policy and healthcare communication. This rotation empowers pediatricians-in-training to champion systemic change, address barriers to care, and elevate the voices of children and families in their communities.

The rotation also offers residents a unique opportunity to apply their medical expertise by creating public-facing medical content for CHOC’s marketing platforms. Residents contribute to developing educational materials, ranging from blogs and condition fact sheets to podcasts and school nurse webinars. This hands-on experience allows residents to engage in advocacy activities that enhance community health education.

The clinical learning environments in which our residents train provide natural opportunities for addressing health inequities at all sites, especially during inpatient ward, required ambulatory rotations and resident continuity clinics, where residents frequently advocate on behalf of patients and families to address their unique health needs as they navigate diverse payor systems and access care for children with a broad array of diagnoses.

Our residents receive training in cultural competency relevant to the patient population served by our clinical sites. Our mission is for housestaff to practice medicine in a culturally competent manner within the frame of reference of the patient and his/her community of interest so that delivery and access to care are optimized. Residents receive this training in multiple locations. First, as part of their weekly clinic lecture series, the fourth lecture of the month is always dedicated to cultural sensitivity and DEI topics. Additionally, there are multiple noon conferences throughout the year dedicated to this, which include topics such as: “Patient communication and health literacy,” “ACEs training" and “Trauma informed care and de-escalation techniques.” Residents attend multiple CHOC Grand Rounds that relate to cultural sensitivity, including “Helping families to reduce health risks and promote well-being for LGBTQ children and youth” and “Overcoming the mental health shadow – diagnostic overshadowing for clinicians, patients, and their families."