Sleep Medicine Fellowship

The sleep fellow will participate in the multidisciplinary care of patients with sleep and circadian disorders, acquire detailed knowledge of the entire spectrum of pediatric and adult sleep and circadian rhythm disorders and manage patients in the inpatient and outpatient settings. As part of the training, the fellow will gain expertise in other areas related to sleep medicine, including sleep-related basic science, epidemiology, pulmonary medicine, behavioral medicine, neurology, pediatrics, psychiatry and otolaryngology. The curriculum includes:

• 12 months: Interdisciplinary Sleep Clinic (rotations include Neurology and Pulmonary Sleep and Circadian Medicine Clinic; two to three half-days per week)
• 12 months: Sleep Fellow Clinic (one half-day per week)
• 12 months: PSG reading/interpretation (five half-days per week)
• 6 months: Pediatric Sleep Medicine Clinic (two half-days per week)
• 3 months: Behavioral Sleep Medicine (one half-day per week)
• 9 months: Elective (one half-day per week, which may include time for psychiatry, rehabilitation, dental, ENT/snoring, additional pediatric sleep medicine exposure, neurophysiology, child neurology, clinical research and academic time)

Fellows will be educated in the use of a variety of diagnostic tests, including PSG, MSLT, MWT, actigraphy, salivary melatonin sampling and home sleep tests. In addition, fellows participate in a weekly lecture covering the core curriculum, present at monthly case presentations and journal clubs and attend weekly research meeting in Phyllis Zee’s lab.

Fellows are required to participate in ongoing clinical research or to initiate new projects. The goal will be to see this project through to presentation at one or more national meetings and publication in a peer-reviewed journal. In addition to databases from investigator-initiated and funded projects at Northwestern, the program has access to other databases from large national, multi-site studies.

Fellows are also required to participate in a patient safety and quality improvement (PS/QI) project. The goal of the project is to gain experience in processes in PS/QI, a skill necessary for future practice. Projects can be extensions of previous projects or new projects completed individually or in groups and are supervised by a faculty mentor.

The Northwestern Memorial Hospital (NMH) Sleep Disorders Center is fully accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. NMH is the highest-ranked hospital in the Chicago metropolitan area and the state of Illinois. It is also ranked 13th nationally, and the Department of Neurology is ranked in the top-ten programs in the nation.

Approximately 4,000 patients visit the interdisciplinary sleep clinic each year. The patients present a breadth of cases that span the spectrum of sleep and circadian disorders. The primary diagnosis for the patients generally breaks down as follows:

• Sleep apnea: 45 percent
• Insomnia: 30 percent
• PLMD/RLS: 9 percent
• Hypersomnia/narcolepsy: 8 percent
• Parasomnia: 2 percent
• Circadian rhythm sleep disorders: 4 percent

These clinical opportunities provide ample exposure to sleep medicine over a one-year training program.

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine seeks to attract inquisitive, motivated fellows and is committed to providing them with every opportunity for success. We encourage a diverse and inclusive work environment that allows each trainee to achieve their personal goals.

For more information on Northwestern’s commitment to diversity, please see the Northwestern McGaw Underrepresented Residents & Fellows Forum and Feinberg School of Medicine Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

The Neurosciences Health, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (HEDI) Committee was developed to foster a culture of diversity and inclusion in the Neurosciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Learn more about our work.

To be eligible, applicants must have completed an accredited residency in internal medicine, neurology, psychiatry, pediatrics or family medicine.

Residents are selected for the sleep medicine fellowship based upon their preparedness, ability, aptitude, academic credentials, communication skills and personal qualities. No discrimination is made based upon sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, disability or veteran status. Approximately 10 percent of eligible applicants are invited for personal interviews.

The Sleep Medicine Fellowship program participates in the AAMC’s Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) and the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) Match. The program will begin accepting applications for the 2025-2026 academic year in July 2024. Interviews will take place between August and October. For information on submitting an application, visit the ERAS for Applicants website.

Required documents include:

• CV
• Personal statement
• Three letters of recommendation
• Copies of USMLE scores

Interviews will consist of meeting with our faculty and key sleep medicine team members.

Housestaff training through McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University provides diverse and challenging clinical experiences and world-class education located in the heart of the beautiful city of Chicago. Learn more via the links to the McGaw website below.

• Why Northwestern?
• Diversity & Inclusion

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