Pediatric Advanced Care Team (PACT) | Harvard Interprofessional Pediatric Palliative Care Fellowship: Nurse Practitioners

The mission of the Pediatric Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital is to train future leaders in pediatric palliative care by embracing interprofessional education and diverse perspectives to promote excellence in communication, teamwork, symptom management, and professional growth and resilience in caring for seriously ill children and their families.

The Pediatric Advanced Care Team (PACT) is an interprofessional care team dedicated to improving symptoms and quality of life in children with advanced illness, and their families. The team, which includes physicians, advanced practice nurses, a registered nurse, a nurse case manager, and social workers, provides services at Boston Children’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

PACT offers a full-time, 12-month Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Fellowship. The pediatric nurse practitioner fellow will train alongside two physician fellows and one social work fellow in this distinctive interprofessional program. The fellowship includes mentored clinical supervision on PACT across settings (inpatient, outpatient, community, bereavement) in the care of children with serious illness and their families in the domains of communication, pain and symptom management, psychosocial assessment and management, advance care planning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and various delivery models in palliative care.

The pediatric and adult interprofessional palliative care fellows attend educational/training sessions together throughout the year. The learning activities (and supervision) are intertwined with the clinical work. The fellowship starts in July with intensive summer didactics that focus on the fundamentals of palliative care (e.g. a core curriculum of symptom management, communication, advance care planning, working on inter-professional team). In the fall, fellows have half-day didactic sessions once or twice per month in addition to clinical work/academic projects distributed across the fellowship year.

Academic requirements

• Quality improvement curriculum and project
• Presentation at Palliative Care Grand Rounds
• Abstract submission and attendance at Annual Assembly for HPNA/AAHPM 
• Nursing-specific seminars that are held throughout year (e.g. exploring imposter phenomenon, nursing research, preparing for HPNA certification, and career planning)
• Retreats: Teaching, resiliency, and leadership retreats (each 1 day in duration)

Clinical requirements

• Inpatient clinical service rotations
• Outpatient clinical service rotations
• Community-based clinical service rotations
• Elective rotations

Mentorship

Mentoring by nurse preceptors and interprofessional faculty enhance the fellow’s integration of concepts into specialty nursing practice. Mentors share their expertise, offer advice, and help the mentee develop skills and insights relevant to their personal and professional growth.

Applications will be accepted through Boston Children’s Hospital at this webpage: https://sjobs.brassring.com/TGnewUI/Search/home/HomeWithPreLoad?PageType=JobDetails&partnerid=368&siteid=5205&Areq=77524BR#jobDetails=3616823_5205.

The PACT NP Fellowship Application timeline for the upcoming academic year that begins July 2025 is as follows:

• Nov. 1, 2024, to Jan. 3, 2025: Applications accepted
• February to March 2025: Interviews
• March 2025: Applicant selection announced

Qualified candidates will have:

• Master of Science in Nursing from an accredited program.
• Board certified or board eligible by Jan. 31, 2025: Pediatric Primary Care, Pediatric Acute Care, or Family Nurse Practitioner
• Licensed as an advanced practice registered nurse in Massachusetts prior to the start of the fellowship in July 2025, with the authority to prescribe controlled substances to all ages. Prior experience as a nurse or nurse practitioner preferred.

Interested candidates should submit:

• Application via Boston Children’s Hospital: https://sjobs.brassring.com/TGnewUI/Search/home/HomeWithPreLoad?PageType=JobDetails&partnerid=368&siteid=5205&Areq=77524BR#jobDetails=3616823_5205

Required Supplemental Materials should be sent to Jenna Freitas, Fellowship Director, at jenna.freitas@childrens.harvard.edu.

1. Resume/CV
2. Unofficial graduate school transcript
3. Personal statement describing your interest in palliative nursing, learning objectives for the fellowship year, and goals for advancing palliative care in the nursing field (500-word limit)
4. Three letters of recommendation that include at least one clinical and one academic reference.

For more information about the PACT NP fellowship please contact Jenna Freitas, MSN, RN, CPNP, BCH/DFCI Pediatric Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner Fellowship Director, at jenna.freitas@childrens.harvard.edu.