This training will enable residents to practice in this subspecialty with a high level of skill.

In coordination with the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, this program has full accreditation from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Residents must have completed three years of core pediatrics or internal medicine at an approved institution to be eligible for this program.

Our fellowship training program provides academic consultants in pediatric hematology/oncology with a high-level of skills to practice in their subspecialty. The core subspecialty training program provides two clinical years and a third year intended for research or other formalized training in an area of focus in hematology/oncology.

Upon completion of the program, trainees will have:

• Necessary clinical skills to diagnose and manage hematologic and malignant diseases in children
• Knowledge to teach at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels
• Ability to conduct clinical and/or laboratory research

All Canadian trainees satisfactorily completing the program are eligible candidates for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Pediatric Hematology/Oncology examination.

The Division of Hematology/Oncology is an institutional member of the Children’s Oncology Group, a consortium of more than 200 institutions across North America, Australia and Europe.

Related links

• CaRMS
• Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
• Professional Association of Residents of Ontario (PARO)

The core program introduces the resident to the discipline of hematology/oncology. The training is both clinical and laboratory-based, lasting 24 months.

In the third year, focus is on research and/or further formalized training in an area of focus on pediatric hematology/oncology. Examples include further training in pediatric stem cell transplantation or neuro-oncology. Additional years of research training will be encouraged for those wishing to pursue an academic career.

Year 1 and 2 (Junior and senior fellow)

During the first two years, the resident will largely focus on the clinical aspects of pediatric hematology/oncology. At the end of two years, the resident will have spent 20 blocks on clinical service including a combination of:

• 13 blocks of inpatient and outpatient service
• 1 block in radiation oncology
• 1 block in adult thrombosis
• 1 block in pediatric palliative care
• 1 block in after-care (long-term follow-up)
• 3 blocks at the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto on the hematopoietic stem cell transplantation service

The resident will spend:

• 2 blocks in CHEO’s pediatric hematology and transfusion laboratory
• 2 blocks in adult hematopathology
• 1 block in transfusion medicine at the regional reference laboratory
• 1 block in pediatric pathology

The resident will also gain experience with hematology/oncology emergencies during the clinical rotations and during their at-home, on-call nights.

Year 3 (Junior attending)

Residents will have a minimum of 2 clinical blocks as a junior attending and will continue their continuity clinic at a reduced frequency. The rest of the year will be spent in research and/or formalized training in an area of focus, as described above.

The resident will work on clinical or basic science research projects, gaining an understanding of statistics, epidemiology and/or laboratory methodology. The resident will have covered most of the knowledge-based objectives by the end of the third year. The resident will continue with at-home, on-call nights.

• Academic Half Day: Residents are relieved of their clinical duties in order to participate in these weekly sessions. Some of these sessions will be shared with other hematology/oncology fellowship programs in Ontario via videoconferencing.
• University Symposia: The University of Ottawa provides a number of seminar series for residents/fellows with a focus on non-medical expert CanMeds roles
• Summer Research Seminar Series: The Emergency Medicine Fellowship program hosts a series of introductory lectures that provide an overview of research methodologies
• Microscopy/Laboratory Session (monthly) – Review of interesting laboratory cases
• Neuro-oncology seminar (occurs the fourth Wednesday of every month)
• CHEO Tumour Board (occurs every two weeks)
• Journal Club
• Divisional Continuing Medical Education Rounds (occurs every two months)
• Divisional M&M Rounds
• Team Rounds (weekly)

The Division of Hematology/Oncology diagnoses approximately 85 new oncology patients per year and manages a large patient population with hematologic abnormalities.

Inpatient care

Inpatient hematology/oncology is both an admitting and consulting service. Patients are admitted to 4North at CHEO under the attending hematologist/oncologist. In 2016, there were 675 patients cared for totaling 3545 days of inpatient care by hematologists/oncologists.

Outpatient care

Outpatient care is provided in the clinic located in the Gary Cardiff Wing. In 2016, there were a total of 8610 outpatient visits, 5527 in oncology and 3083 in hematology. Clinics occur daily with different sub-specialties including:

• Oncology
• Oncology aftercare (pediatric and adult)
• Ortho-oncology
• Bone marrow transplantation
• Neuro-oncology
• Hemoglobinopathies (Sickle Cell/Thalassemia)
• Benign hematology
• Hemophilia / von Willebrand
• Adolescent hematology/gynecology
• Thrombosis
• Home and school visits (Pediatric Interlink Community Nurse)
• Individual and group-based educational sessions

Clinical problems and diseases evaluated and followed

The Division of Hematology/Oncology deals with patients with cancer and blood disorders.

Related links

• Canadian Bioethics Society
• Canadian Paediatric Society
• Canadian Tri-council core skills tutorial for research ethics

• Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO)
• The Ottawa Hospital
• The Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre
• Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto

The Division of Hematology/Oncology is an integral part of the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO). Our 160-bed pediatric tertiary care teaching hospital serves Eastern Ontario, Western Quebec, Nunavut and parts of Northern Ontario covering a population of approximately 1.5 million people.

Radiation therapy is provided at The Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre, an adult, uOttawa-affiliated cancer centre attached via a walkway to CHEO. Stem cell transplantation is performed at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

There are multiple research opportunities for trainees within the program. All members of the Division of Hematology/Oncology are actively involved in clinical research. As well, there are many basic science researchers at the CHEO Research Institute and The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) involved in oncology research.

Applications to the program are made through the CaRMS process. To learn more about the process, visit the CaRMS website.