Hi, I'm Shayla Bergmann.
I'm the program director for the
Pediatric Hematology Oncology
Fellowship here at the Medical
University of South Carolina.
I'd like to introduce you to
our team and to our program,
as well as give you a tour of our facilities.
I hate that we can't do this
in person, but let's go.
Our fellowship program is special
and unique and the opportunities that are
available for a fellow to learn both
oncology and full spectrum of cancers
in children and the full spectrum
of blood disorders in children.
Fellows are an absolute integral
part of our program.
You know we really take it very
seriously. When they graduate
we want them to be critical
thinkers to be able to handle all
the usual things that come up,
but also be able to what I say
critically think and also have.
Logical creativity for those
really tough situations that
there really is no standard of care.
Starting off, you have tons of support
everybody from ancillary staff to
nursing to co-fellows and attendings.
Everybody really looks out for you
and helps support you from day one.
MUSC in particular has somewhat of a small
program feel as far as the faculty being
very approachable and willing to sit down.
Always willing to take the time to teach,
but also with a medium to large size
volume and also a very strong bone
marrow transplant program which is
one of the things that attracted
me to the program itself. I was just
immediately drawn to how supportive
everyone seemed in the program.
They really seem to work really
well as a team working with kids
that are as sick as our kids are.
With the little experience that
I had had before fellowship,
I really knew how important
that was in their care.
Their coordination of care,
and so seeing how the attendings
work so well with the fellows and
the nurses and the social work.
The pharmacy team that was one
of the really big points that
drew me to this program.
We have a brand new Children's
Hospital that it was open this
year and we are
very excited. The feature
I like the most is the fact that
both outpatient and
inpatient are on the same floor.
We have a really specialized design on the 10th floor, our
cancer and blood disorders unit.
We're in a brand new facility with
beautiful views and our beautiful
Lowcountry with six transplant
rooms and everything we need to be
part of the state's only transplant program
And only immunotherapy program.
Every single room in our clinic and in
our inpatient unit has a view of the water.
The University recognized that our
patients stay in the hospital much
longer than other patients and we got
prime location on the 10th floor.
Seeing the building off in the distance
when you pull up is always something
that I don't know if I've ever get used to it.
The excitement of coming to work
is is definitely lifted up based
on how awesome the new facilities and everything are.
Our culture
is absolutely dependent on teamwork
and speaking up,
and so we really empower every single
team member,
fellow resident, nutritionist, pharmacist, Nurse, social worker, speak up
If you've got a concern, you're seeing something.
Speak up because that's how we
grow and get better together.
And that's how we drive those amazing outcomes that we have.
We've been consistently ranked in
the top 50 cancer programs by U.S.
News and World Report,
and then when U.S. News and World Report
breaks it down to outcomes alone
we're actually 15th in the country,
which is really phenomenal for the size
program. Additionally, for a blood and marrow
transplant program were ranked in
the top 10% in the country in terms
of outcomes as rated by the CIBMTR,
we are the states only immunotherapy
and Car T center, and we're very,
very proud to have a special clinic
for sickle cell patients and to be
offer a number of clinical trials
for both disease modifying therapy as
well as disease currative therapy.
What I really like about the program
here as they adapt and allow you
to kind of establish yourself and I
think I'm a person that really likes
autonomy and thrives in that environment.
And so I feel like my attending
did a great job of recognizing
that helping me still grow,
but allowing me to really have a
ton of autonomy moving forward.
It's really hands on,
and the fact that we are relatively
small program.
We really have a lot of interactions with
our attendings were all really approachable.
We have a really large variety of patients
and fellows have a lot of autonomy.
They're very involved in deciding
the care plans for their patients,
so I think that's pretty unique.
As I progressed through my fellowship,
you know I got
A lot more supervision in my first
year and as I went through my end of
my first year and into my third year, I find myself doing a lot more decision making.
Obviously with the support
and backup of my attendings,
but usually I'll have a plan
as opposed to an attending telling me.
I've been here for the last five years
now. I was a fellow.
The main reason I came to Charleston was,
especially This program was the kind of people I met.
while interviewing. We're
such a close-knit family and
we work like very well close together.
For me as a fellow.
You know everybody that you work with here,
they're not just your
coworkers or colleagues,
but also people that you can rely on.
They really are like an extension of your family
and I already feel like
a part of that, even
though I'm brand new.
I love this place.
That's why I became an attending here.
I trained as a fellow for three years
And I felt that
Fellows are very well
incorporated into the program.
Also,
as an attending I try to model the way
my attendings modeled for me to be
the best I can every day for them,
teach them and also give them the
opportunity for them to teach me.
This is a culture of family,
a culture of compassion.
I've been here 40 years since I was
an intern and I know every patient
and it's just been wonderful to have
the opportunity to care for children
from birth until their adult years.
I hope to share my knowledge and
experience with fellows that come in.
Train with us people that you get
to meet and work with every day.
They are incredibly smart,
incredibly passionate about what they do.
For the end of the day,
it does feel like a family and I wouldn't
trade that for anything in the world.