A Deep Dive into Rhode Island’s Primary Care Crisis

Division Of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, & Nutrition

The UAB Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Children's of Alabama provides comprehensive multidisciplinary evaluation and management of all pediatric gastrointestinal, liver and nutritional problems. These may include such common conditions as inflammatory bowel disease, liver transplants, metabolic diseases and nutritional disorders. The division provides both inpatient and outpatient consultative services. State of the art gastroenterology laboratory and endoscopy facilities perform a number of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures which include: upper and lower endoscopy with biopsies, polypectomies, variceal sclerotherapy and banding, foreign body removal from upper GI tract, dilations, percutaneous liver biopsies, pH probe, hydrogen breath testing and anorectal motility testing.

Multidisciplinary patient-centered care is the focus of the Division. Close interaction with Pediatric Surgery, Radiology, Pathology, Anesthesiology and Nutrition services provide ample opportunity for optimizing patient care. Special interests of the division members include GER, abdominal pain, motility disorders, liver disease, lipid disorders, functional GI disorders, childhood obesity, and inflammatory bowel disease. An ACGME accredited subspecialty training program offers subspecialty residents a wide range of clinical experience.

Faculty & Staff Division Director

Sandeep Gupta, M.D.

Faculty List

GI Faculty

Advanced Practice Providers Suzanne Hammett, CRNP

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner specializing in general Gastroenterology and Eosinophilic disorders. Employed by Children's of Alabama for over 20 years.  Certified by the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board and member of the CHS Advanced Practice Council.    Adjunct Faculty for the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing Master's program.   

Research

1.  Effectiveness of Video Education for Children with Constipation and Encopresis

2.  Eosinophilic Esophagitis:  Are their differences between gender, race or age?

3.  Eosinophils and Inflammation 

Michelle Hindman, CRNP

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner certified by the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners. Over 25 years of nursing experience including over 20 years as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. Strong experience working in GI and primary care and over 10 years of general GI experience. 

Taylor Knight, CRNP

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Megan Moseley, CRNP

GI Inpatient/ General GI    

Corie Segrest, CRNP

GI Inpatient Services 

Laurel Williams, CRNP

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner specializing in general Gastroenterology. Employed by Children's of Alabama for over 25 years. Certified by the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board and member of the CHS Advanced Practice Council.  

Staff

Nichole BurnettAdministrative Supervisornicholehoward@uabmc.Edu(205) 638-9873

Pediatric Gastroenterology Fellowship

Clinical Training

Fellows receive training in clinical gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition, in gastrointestinal endoscopy and liver biopsies, and have ample opportunities for mentored research. We care for patients with significant complex disease and have excellent collaborative relationships with pediatric surgeons, transplant surgeons, GI pathologists, psychologists, radiologists, dietitians, nursing, pharmacists, and social workers to help us provide world-class care.

The primary clinical site for the program is the SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital. 

Take a Virtual Tour of the Hopsital

Our fellows also have opportunities to rotate with our adult gastroenterology group at Saint Louis University for additional didactic and endoscopy experiences. 

Fellowship Training

The fellowship spans three years. The applicant must be board-certified or board-eligible in pediatrics. Our training program is flexible and will be tailored to the needs of the individual trainee. 

SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital is the primary site for the training of the fellowship and is the primary pediatric teaching program of the Saint Louis University School of Medicine

Cardinal Glennon is a free-standing 190-bed children's hospital across the street from the SLU School of Medicine. The hospital includes Level I Pediatric Trauma Center, Level III NICU and an active liver transplant program.

Curriculum

(Can be tailored to meet individual fellow needs)

Fifteen to eighteen months of direct patient care in inpatient and outpatient settings. The majority of the clinical experience occurs during the first year of fellowship.

Pediatric gastroenterology inpatient service

The fellow leads a primary gastroenterology/hepatology service team with progressive autonomy under supervision of a gastroenterology attending physician

The fellow provides direct consultative services for pediatric inpatients

The fellow is the first-line consultant through the Cardinal Glennon Access Line, a direct-to-specialist consultant phone line available to pediatricians around the region.

Roughly 18 months devoted to research

Opportunities for scholarly activity with mentorship by national leaders in pediatric gastroenterology

Elective rotation opportunities with adult endoscopy, pediatric nutrition, hepatology, radiology

Conferences

There are multiple conferences available for fellows to attend. They include:

Fellows Lecture Series

Held from 9 to 10 a.M every Wednesday with the aim to cover core content in pediatric gastroenterology. Medical students and pediatric residents rotating on the GI service also attend this lecture series.

Pathology Conference

This is a weekly multidisciplinary conference held with pediatric pathologists to review and discuss GI histopathology clinical cases.

IBD Roundtable

Quarterly conference led by IBD Medical Directors to review quality and outcomes data in our robust pediatric IBD practice as well as an opportunity for case discussion.

Radiology Conference

Monthly conference led by pediatric radiologists to review interesting GI radiographic findings and learn rationale for specific radiographic tests and techniques

Application Process

You may apply for our GI fellowship position through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). We accept applications July 1-31 for each interview season. We review applications in early August and invite applicants to interview from September to October. All our positions will be filled through the National Residency Match Program (NRMP). We sponsor both H-1B1 and J-1 visas. All application requirements are listed with ERAS

Our Graduates   Related Links More Information

FREIDA Online, the AMA residency and fellowship database, provides detailed information on the fellowship program. Copy and paste our ten-digit code, 332-283-2066, into the search engine at the bottom of the page.

SLU Medicine Next Steps

Ready to take the next step? Request more information, apply for admission or make a gift to Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

Sincerely,Nisha Mangalat, M.D.Associate professor of pediatrics

PMC Expands Pediatric Services With Addition Of Gastroenterologist

Pikeville Medical Center has announced the addition of Dr. Samir Softic, a board-certified pediatric gastroenterologist, to the pediatric medical staff at the Mettu Children's Hospital. Softic began seeing patients on Jan. 2.

Dr. Samir Softic, pediatric gastroenterologist at Pikeville Medical Center's Mettu Children's Hospital, discussed advanced treatment options for children with gastrointestinal conditions, including fatty liver disease and inflammatory bowel disease during a recent event.

News-Express photo by Mycca Decker

"I have seen many patients from this region at my previous practice in Central Kentucky," Softic said. "I saw firsthand the hardships placed on families because they had to travel more than two hours for their child to receive medical care. This was one of the main reasons I decided to come to Pikeville. By doing this, I know I can alleviate at least one burden from their shoulders."

Softic specializes in treating conditions such as fatty liver disease, inflammatory bowel disease, eosinophilic esophagitis, food allergies and abdominal pain in children and adolescents. He is known for establishing the nation's first fatty liver disease clinic for children and teenagers and aims to develop a similar service at the Mettu Children's Hospital.

"In Eastern Kentucky, there are more instances of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in the pediatric population than anywhere else in the country," Softic said. "Now that I have officially begun seeing patients, I look forward to helping change the outcomes for children battling this and other related conditions."

In a statement, PMC Chairman, President and CEO Donovan Blackburn emphasized the significance of this addition. 

"The addition of Dr. Softic is another monumental step forward in our mission to elevate the level of pediatric services Pikeville Medical Center provides," he said. "Adding a pediatric gastroenterologist to our medical staff at the Mettu Children's Hospital will allow many more children and teenagers to receive specialized medical care close to home."

Softic noted that fatty liver disease in children often goes undetected because it does not produce specific symptoms in its early stages. He encouraged pediatricians to perform regular screenings for liver disease and other gastrointestinal (GI) conditions, particularly in children over the age of 10 with obesity or metabolic dysfunction.

"When we intervene early, we've had success in reversing liver steatosis," he said. "Most of the time, when kids present later on, they are already showing signs of liver cirrhosis. At that point, there's not much we can do other than a liver transplant."

Softic also discussed the importance of dietary and lifestyle interventions. 

"Gastroenterology deals with nutrition and digestion," he said. "The quality of food has a huge impact on how patients do. For example, in cases of metabolic dysfunction, limiting sugar and processed foods is essential. For other conditions, such as food allergies or inflammatory bowel disease, avoiding certain triggers can make a significant difference."

Softic said that his presence at PMC will help reduce the burden on families in the region by offering advanced procedures such as endoscopy, colonoscopy and suction biopsies locally.

Parents or guardians with children experiencing GI symptoms are encouraged to speak with their child's pediatrician. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Softic, call, (606) 430-2201.

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