AdventHealth East Orlando
The AdventHealth East Orlando Global EM Fellowship is built around three areas of concentration (Administration, Education, and Research), each with compulsory and optional elements tailored to the fellow's career goals. Compulsory scholarly work across all tracks includes a longitudinal quality improvement or research project tied to an international partner site, IRB submission, grant writing, conference presentation, and pursuit of peerreviewed publication. Fellows lead Global EM didactics and simulation for the EM residency and medical student clerkships, contribute regularly to weekly GME conference, and serve as mentors for residents through the Global EM Scholarly Track. Graduate degree coursework is protected and may be focused in administration (MHA), education (MPH with health education emphasis), or research methods (MS in Global Health or equivalent).
International partner sites include facilities in Peru, Mexico, the Philippines, Ethiopia, and many others, all operating in resource-limited environments that require creative adaptation of clinical decision-making. Fellows complete a minimum of six to eight mission rotations over two years, including three visits to a chosen longitudinal partner site and at least two missions outside the Americas. A comprehensive milestone-based evaluation system with 360-degree feedback assesses fellows across all core Global EM competency domains throughout the two-year program.
Fellowship Experience
The Global EM Fellowship at AdventHealth East Orlando provides a rich, multi-dimensional training experience spanning clinical care, international fieldwork, graduate education, research, and teaching leadership. At the home institution, fellows maintain a robust clinical presence at AdventHealth East Orlando's Emergency Department, a 295-bed community hospital with approximately 80,000 ED visits annually, fully integrated with the EM Residency Program. Fellows work approximately 110 clinical hours per month during non-mission months and approximately 80 clinical hours per month during mission months, ensuring continued clinical competency and meaningful integration with the residency program throughout the fellowship. The ED provides robust exposure to high-acuity diagnoses including STEMI, stroke, and sepsis, alongside residents, medical students, and attending faculty.
Internationally, fellows complete six to eight mission trips over two years through AdventHealth Global Missions, spending approximately three months abroad in total. Fellows complete three visits to a chosen longitudinal partner site, selected based on personal preference and career goals, and at least two missions outside the Americas (South and Central).
Primary longitudinal partner sites include but are not limited to:
Peru: Clinica Adventista Ana Stahl (33-bed facility, Iquitos) and community health clinics along the Amazon River; participation in Operation Sunshine, Salud Total, and Helping Mothers and Babies Survive programs; teaching opportunities with Universidad Peruana Union
Mexico: Hospital del Sureste (36-bed facility, Villahermosa) and rural primary care clinics adiliated with Asociación Civil Filantrópica y Educativa
Philippines: Adventist Medical Center Manila (150-bed facility, ~300 outpatients/day) and a partner hospital in Pangasinan; collaboration with Adventist University of the Philippines
Ethiopia: Kalala Health Center (primary care clinic at 7,726 ft elevation, ~7,000 patients/year)
All international sites operate in resource-limited environments with variable availability of diagnostics, laboratory testing, medications, and specialty consultation. Additional elective sites may also be pursued. Second-year fellows who are board-certified in emergency medicine may serve as supervising attending physicians for AdventHealth residents participating in global missions. Each fellow is assigned a dedicated Field Mentor at every international site, and receives additional mentorship from AdventHealth Global Missions Executive Director Monty Jacobs and Director of Operations Michelle Gross.
Fellowship Curriculum
The fellowship curriculum is structured around graduate-level coursework, a robust didactic series, and experiential learning at home and abroad. Fellows pursue a graduate degree (MPH, MHA, or MS in Global Health) with protected time for coursework, with the degree focus tailored to their area of concentration. The core didactic curriculum covers global health systems and policy, tropical medicine and infectious diseases, disaster medicine and humanitarian ethics, cultural competency and cross-cultural communication, travel and field medicine, research methods and grant writing, human tradicking and abuse detection and response, and leadership development. Site-specific pre-departure orientation is provided before each international rotation, covering endemic disease epidemiology, available resources, and local clinical protocols. At the home institution, fellows deliver regular lectures and simulation sessions to the EM residency, lead the Global EM Scholarly Track for residents, and participate weekly in GME conference.
Each of the fellowship's three areas of concentration includes both compulsory and optional scholarly elements:
Administration: Fellows develop resource-appropriate policies, protocols, triage algorithms, emergency nursing training programs, and QI initiatives at international partner sites. Scholarly projects are submitted to a major national EM or Global Health conference and pursued for peer-reviewed publication. Optional: MHA degree with coursework in operations management, strategic planning, health economics, and healthcare analytics; leadership participation in SAEM's Global Emergency Medicine Academy, AAEM, ACEP, and IFEM committees.
Education: Fellows develop global EM curricula for the AdventHealth EM Residency (didactics, simulation, skills workshops, gamified curricula, casebased learning) and create training materials for international partner sites adapted to local scope of practice and disease epidemiology. Educational scholarly projects may include evaluations of simulation-based training edectiveness, studies of knowledge retention and skill transfer, or investigations of barriers to EM education in low- and middle-income countries. Optional: MPH with health education focus; education-focused international opportunities (e.g., Nepal).
Research: Fellows develop research proposals, submit protocols to the AdventHealth IRB or partner IRBs, and complete longitudinal QI projects tied to international partner sites. Research may include epidemiologic studies,
QI interventions, or educational research. Fellows write and submit individual grant and funding proposals. All work is submitted to a major conference and pursued for peer-reviewed publication. Optional: Research-focused graduate degree with training in biostatistics, epidemiologic methods, systematic review, and site assessment.
Projects
| Project Name & Description | Details |
|---|---|
| Operation Sunshine |
Partnering with the Florida-based nonprofit My Neighbor's Children, Operation Sunshine sends AdventHealth volunteers on medical relief missions to conduct annual pediatric checkups for children living in orphanages and children's homes.
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| Salud Total (Total Health) |
Based in the Amazonian rainforest of Peru, this program addresses the severe lack of primary care access in remote villages where preventable illnesses such as dysentery and anemia are public health threats.
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| Helping Mothers and Babies Survive (HMBS) |
This evidence-based program equips healthcare workers with hands-on skills to provide life-saving care to mothers and newborns during childbirth.
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| Education Programs |
AdventHealth Global Missions coordinates an annual Global Nursing Conference, international leadership conferences, and simulation training initiatives at affiliated nursing schools and partner sites worldwide.
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| Chair the Love & First Sight |
Global Missions partners with Chair the Love (providing wheelchairs and mobility aids to individuals in need) and First Sight (delivering on-the-spot vision screenings and customized eyeglasses within minutes) to extend whole-person care to underserved communities.
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Contacts
Other Documents - Program Specific Requirements
Applicants must submit a complete application through the SAEM Application Portal. Required materials include a personal statement describing fellowship goals, global health interests, and career objectives; a current curriculum vitae; letters of recommendation; and medical school transcript and board scores (if applicable). Candidates must be eligible for a Florida trainee or full medical license. AdventHealth Global Missions handles all international credentialing, liability coverage, and emergency travel insurance. Board-certified applicants may serve as supervising attending physicians on international rotations; pre-certification fellows participate fully in all mission activities.
Additional Application / Interview Information
Application Criteria
- Emergency medicine board eligibility (ABEM or ABOEM)
- Residency program leadership letter of recommendation
- Personal statement
- CV or resume
- Remainder of GEMFC application material
Application Process
Applicants submit their SAEM-GEMFC application which is reviewed by our fellowship director and faculty. The fellowship director will reach out directly via email to set up an interview, which may be virtual, in-person, or both, depending on applicant preference. Also if desired, the applicant may attend the AdventHealth East Orlando EM Residency weekly conference the morning after the in-person interview day, and is more than welcome to teach a session for the residents, medical students, and residency faculty.
Important Dates
October 15, 2026: Application deadline
October 28, 2026: In-person interview day
October 29, 2026, Optional: Attend AdventHealth East Orlando EM Residency's Halloween Conference and deliver a guest lecture (encouraged)
Application Deadline
Interview Date
Eligibility
Applicants must have completed or be in the final year of an ACGMEaccredited Emergency Medicine residency program. Candidates must be eligible for medical licensure in the State of Florida. Prior global health experience is welcomed but not required. AdventHealth East Orlando is committed to building a diverse fellowship and encourages applications from candidates of all backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences.
