Inside the Tufts Medical Center infectious diseases fellowship experience

As a fellow at Tufts Medical Center, you'll gain deep, hands-on experience across the full spectrum of infectious disease care. Our training is designed to help you build confidence, sharpen your clinical judgment and explore the areas of ID that matter most to your career.

You’ll rotate through three core training sites—Tufts Medical Center, Lemuel Shattuck Hospital and Lahey Hospital & Medical Center—where you’ll care for a wide range of patient populations with both common and complex infections. Clinical rotations at these hospitals provide a rich and diverse experience in infectious diseases. Fellows encounter a wide variety of fascinating cases during their clinical training. Each hospital's infectious disease board-certified faculty supervises fellows in all inpatient and outpatient settings.

Our fellows rotate through inpatient and outpatient clinics to gain comprehensive experience in geographic medicine and infectious diseases. You’ll complete at least 12 clinical months, including 24 months of outpatient continuity clinic, ensuring you develop strong, lasting patient care skills.

Night and weekend on-call duties are distributed among clinical fellows to cover Tufts Medical Center. There is no in-house overnight call.

You’ll also receive at least six months of protected research time, tailored to your interests, along with structured mentorship and formal training to develop your skills as a clinician educator. The program supports your growth with regular didactics, case conferences and journal clubs to keep you current on emerging science and best practices.

Additionally, every fellow has the opportunity to attend at least one major infectious disease meeting to present and network.

You can select one or more specific areas of concentration to focus your training, including:

• Transplant ID
• HIV
• Antimicrobial stewardship
• Infection prevention
• Wound care and hyperbaric oxygen therapy
• Clinical educator development

Because we’re a mid-sized, high-volume academic center, you’ll never feel lost in the crowd, but you’ll still have access to specialty experiences and research opportunities that rival larger programs.

Application process for hospice + palliative medicine fellowship at Tufts Medical Center

Thank you for your interest in the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program at Tufts Medical Center. All applications should be submitted through the ERAS website. Tufts Medical Center will accept qualified applicants from any of the hospice and palliative medicine-sponsoring primary specialties (e.g., neurology, psychiatry, emergency medicine, surgery) in addition to internal or family medicine.

Please include the following in your application:

• Common application
• Personal statement
• CV
• Minimum of three letters of recommendation (including residency program director)
• Transcripts
• USMLE board scores (or COMLEX for DOs)
• Photograph

Completed applications are reviewed by the Tufts Medical Center Hospice + Palliative Medicine Fellowship selection committee in August and early September. Qualified applicants will receive invitations for virtual interviews held in September and October.

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Training compassionate leaders in serious illness care + end-of-life support at Tufts Medical Center

Our team is made up of dedicated experts who bring diverse backgrounds and a shared passion for hospice and palliative medicine. We include experienced physicians, nurse practitioners, social workers, and educators who work closely with fellows to provide compassionate, culturally sensitive care.

Our faculty mentors are committed to supporting your growth as a clinician, teacher and scholar. They guide fellows through clinical experiences, research projects and professional development, helping you build the skills to lead in palliative medicine.

We value collaboration, respect and lifelong learning as the foundation of our community. Together, we strive to improve quality of life for patients and families facing serious illness.

Educational + scholarly opportunities in hospice + palliative medicine in Boston

Our fellowship offers a wide range of clinical rotations and research projects designed to prepare you for a successful career in hospice and palliative medicine. You’ll gain hands-on experience working with diverse patient populations while engaging in meaningful scholarly activities that advance the field.

Educational + scholarly opportunities

Our program provides a robust curriculum to develop clinical knowledge, communication skills and leadership. Fellows participate in weekly didactics, team meetings and clinical teaching roles. Scholarly activity is strongly encouraged, with mentorship to help develop projects that contribute to the field.

• The core curriculum covers symptom management, communication and integration of palliative care principles.
• Fellows can serve as teaching assistants for medical student electives, enhancing their educational skills.
• Many fellows engage in research or quality improvement projects with faculty guidance, presenting their work at conferences and publishing findings.
• Advanced training options are available for fellows interested in further specialization in education or research.

These opportunities ensure fellows graduate as well-rounded clinicians, educators and innovators in hospice and palliative medicine.

For their elective, the palliative care fellow can choose to function as a teaching assistant for the 4th-year medical student elective in end-of-life care. In this role, students read literature relevant to end of life from a variety of fields including ethics, sociology and medicine. The hospice and palliative medicine fellow helps facilitate the class with Dr. Tamara Vesel and Dr. Klemens Meyer.

Clinical opportunities + rotations in hospice + palliative medicine in Boston

You will rotate through diverse clinical settings that expose you to the full range of palliative care needs. These experiences allow you to develop skills in symptom management, communication, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Each rotation offers unique learning opportunities and support from expert faculty to guide your growth.

Each clinical experience is designed to build competence and confidence in providing palliative care across settings and patient populations.