Penn State University Hershey Medical Center

Program Director	Program Admin
Yusheng Zhu, PhD, DABCC (CC, TC, MB), FADLM	Jessica A. Lawson
Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine	Program Coordinator
yzhu@pennstatehealth.psu.edu	jlawson@pennstatehealth.psu.edu
(717) 531-5123	(717) 531-8615

About the Program

PSHMC, a major medical center of Penn State Health, located in Hershey, Pennsylvania is a comprehensive academic medical center comprised of University Hospital, Cancer Institute, and Children’s Hospital. There are 4 additional hospitals in Penn State Health. Fellows will have exposure to pediatric, elderly, transplant, psychiatric, cancer, OB/GYN, ENT, and ophthalmologic patients. The mission of this program is to prepare exceptional individuals with doctoral degrees (PhD, MD) for careers in Laboratory Medicine. The program focuses on clinical chemistry that includes general clinical chemistry, endocrinology, toxicology, therapeutic drug monitoring, nutrition, serology and immunology, urinalysis, pharmacogenetics, proteomics, and molecular diagnostics. The principal professional opportunities are directors, educators, and scientists in clinical chemistry in hospital laboratories, public health laboratories, pharmaceutical /diagnostics industry, and commercial reference laboratories.

The Fellowship Program requires two years for completion. Candidates are not only trained in all sub-disciplines of modern clinical chemistry, but also in basic, clinical, or translational research, laboratory management, and teaching. Our goal is to prepare candidates with sufficient practical experience and theoretical knowledge in clinical chemistry for a career in academic medicine, clinical practice, or industry. We will also prepare candidates for board certification by national boards including American Board of Clinical Chemistry, National Registry of Certified Chemists, and American Board of Toxicology etc.

Program Requirements

To be considered for the program, prospective fellows must have:

1. earned a doctoral degree (PhD, MD) at accredited institutions.
   • Individuals with doctoral degrees in Clinical Chemistry, Biochemistry, Medicine, Molecular Biology, Toxicology, Pharmacology, Physiology, Genetics, Chemistry, and other doctoral degrees in life sciences are strongly encouraged to apply.
   • Applicants possessing an M.D. degree must be diplomates of the American Board of Pathology in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology or have met the requirements to take the Board examination.
2. satisfactorily completed a minimum of 30 semester hours (or equivalent) of undergraduate and/or graduate level biochemistry, chemistry, or other courses taken at institutions acceptable to the Board that meet the combined criteria established by each of the ABCC certification disciplines as shown in Table 1 on the ABCC website.
   • Applicants with education obtained at institutions outside the U.S. or Canada must, at their expense, have their credentials evaluated by the International Education Research Foundation, Inc., or acceptable equivalent.
3. Applicants should have strong interests in laboratory medicine and research.
4. Excellent communication and personal-interaction skills are required.

To Apply

Applications should be submitted to Dr. Zhu. The Trainee Selection Committee composed of all teaching faculty members will review the package and use the Applicants Initial Evaluation Form screen the candidates. The Program Director will select 5 – 10 candidates for a telephone interview. Following the telephone interview, the Program Director will select 3-4 candidates for an on-site interview. Selected candidates will be asked to provide a scientific presentation and several short meetings with faculty, residents, fellows and managers. Following the interview, faculty, residents, fellows and mangers will provide an evaluation of the candidate. The program director will then make a final decision.

The application packet must include:

1. Letter of interest
2. Curriculum vitae
3. Transcripts (undergraduate and graduate)
4. Three letters of recommendation

Training Level

Postdoctoral Training Level
Number of positions available per year: 1 every other year
Duration of program: 2 years
Approximate annual salary or stipend: PGY Scale
Source of funding: Department Funding, Research Funding
Current number of trainees: 1
Number of past graduates: 3

Faculty

Ina E. Amarillo, PhD	Clinical Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics
April M. Bobenchik, PhD, D(ABMM)	Microbiology, Infectious Disease
Michael H. Creer, MD	Biomarkers, Pharmacogenetics, Mass Spectrometry, Point-of-Care Testing, Coagulation
Elizabeth M. Garrett, Ph.D., D(ABMM)	Diagnostic Virology
Melissa R. George, DO	Transfusion Medicine, Apheresis, Hematopathology, and Graduate Medical Education
Olajumoke Oladipo, MD	Hematology, Coagulation, Chemistry
Evelyn Potochny, DO	Transfusion Medicine, Apheresis
Hiroko Shike, MD	Histocompatibility, Transplant Immunology, Molecular Biology
Yusheng Zhu, PhD, DABCC, FADLM	Clinical Chemistry, Toxicology, Hemoglobinopathy, Electrophoresis, Molecular Diagnostics, Pharmacogenomics, and Clinical Application of Mass Spectrometry