The Jack Cary Eichenbaum Summer Scholars Program in NYU Langone’s Division of Neonatology started in 1999 and provides medical and undergraduate students a unique opportunity to participate in neonatology research projects and clinical observational rotations. The goal of the eight-week program is to foster and encourage students’ interest in the importance of medical research and provide an introduction to the medical profession by allowing them to explore various aspects of neonatology.

Through the program, students are paired with a faculty member and a neonatal–perinatal fellow who mentor them to perform basic science or clinical neonatology research. Many of these projects are used in future publications, and more than 95 percent of the scholars pursue careers in medicine and healthcare. The program also provides an introduction to patient care and ethical issues in neonatal medicine and offers various events for networking and professional growth.

The program directors are Pradeep N. Mally, MD, and Sean M. Bailey, MD. For more information, contact Lorayny Rodriguez at Lorayny.Rodriguez@NYULangone.org or 212-263-7286.

Program Application

The Jack Cary Eichenbaum Summer Scholars Program is open to first-year medical students and undergraduate college students interested in a career in medicine. Undergraduate students should be actively enrolled and in good standing at their college or university at the time of application.

We appreciate your interest in our program. Our 2025 program dates will be announced in December 2024.

Past Scholar Projects

The following research projects were conducted in 2024.

Higher Caffeine Dosing Effects on BPD and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes

By Hrithika Ravuri and Tamera Moinuddin

It is standard practice in the NICU to treat all infants born at less than 34 weeks gestation with caffeine to treat apnea of prematurity. Caffeine has subsequently been showed to decrease rates of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) and improve neurodevelopmental outcomes. In recent years, there has been a change in practice to give a higher dose of caffeine to those infants born at less than 28 weeks gestation. These infants are known to be at highest risk for BPD and poor neurodevelopmental outcomes. In this research project, we aimed to evaluate if higher doses of caffeine improve rates and severity of BPD, as well as improve neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants born at or less than 28 weeks gestation

Pediatrics Palliative Care Consultation on Neonatal End-of-Life Care Outcomes

By Taylor Kiernan and Olivia Bosworth

Limited but existing evidence suggests that infants with serious illness and their families benefit from services offered by specialty pediatric palliative care, which include relief of suffering, support for shared decision-making and advance care planning, care coordination, and supporting quality of life. The specialty pediatric palliative care team at NYU Hassenfeld Children's Hospital is called the Pediatric Advance Care Team (PACT). The main aims of this research are to evaluate differences in the medical and demographic characteristics of deceased infants who received PACT vs. no PACT consultation and to evaluate the impact of PACT consultation on end-of-life outcomes including care utilization, psychosocial/spiritual support, communication support, symptom management, and goal concordant care.

ECHO, Clinical Features and Long Term Developmental Outcomes in Preterm Infants with PDA

By Daryn Ezikeuzor, Lizzie Fu and Jordan Bryan

Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in very low-birthweight (VLBW) preterm infants by significant left-to-right shunting, which leads to pulmonary edema/hemorrhage, intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), acute renal failure (ARF), necrotizing enterocolitis and chronic lung disease. The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of a hemodynamically significant PDA on the long term developmental issues in a cohort of very premature neonates.

Neurodevelopmental Outcomes of Extremely Premature Infants who Received Dexmedtomidine a First Line Sedation

By Yareliz Ramos, Goldstein and Cheryn Aouaj

Preterm infants may require intubation due to premature lung disease, and sedation is sometimes used to minimize agitation and unplanned extubation. Dexmedetomidine is a drug that has become more popular in recent years for sedation in preterm babies, given its superior side effect profile compared to traditional sedation agents such as opiates and benzodiazepines. Little is known, however, about the effects of this drug on long-term neurodevelopment of preterm babies. Our study is a retrospective chart review comparing neurodevelopmental outcomes, as assessed by Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, of preterm infants who did and did not received dexmedetomidine during their NICU course.