Boston Children’s Hospital is dedicated to making the referral process as easy and seamless as possible. Our physicians see more than 2,500 international patients from about 100 countries each year. Our Global Medical Services team is dedicated exclusively to the needs of patients from around the world. We have the processes and resources in place to support international physicians as they seek to refer patients to us.
Boston Children’s offers clinicians around the world the opportunity to learn about the latest developments in pediatric health care with in-person, virtual, and hybrid learning programs customized to meet the unique needs of international audiences.
The Observership Program at Boston Children’s provides knowledge of best practices to improve pediatric care worldwide and promotes a collaborative environment for the exchange of ideas. Observerships are informal learning experiences and do not constitute formal training or patient contact. They are offered to health care providers across a number of departments and can range from one to 12 weeks, although most programs limit the duration to four weeks.
As part of the curriculum, observers may shadow clinical activities and procedures and attend daily rounds, lectures, seminars, and other interdisciplinary conferences in the hospital.
Currently available programs:
To be eligible for an Observership Program, applicants must be fluent in English and be one of the following:
OR:
Acceptance into the Observership Program is based on eligibility and learning goals, as well as the availability of an Observership block for your specific area. English fluency is required for all observers.
Observerships are reserved for fully trained physicians or actively training residents and fellows. Medical students are referred to the HMS Clerkship Exchange Program. For inquiries, please email exclerks@hms.harvard.edu.
After applying:
Your application will be reviewed by both the International Health Education program and your desired clinical department.
Our International Health Education team will reach out to you once the review of your application has been completed. This generally takes four to six weeks.
If your observership is approved, you will:
The week before your start date, you’ll receive an email with instructions on how to obtain your Boston Children’s ID badge and where to report on your first day. (We cannot issue your ID before your start date.) On your first day, you’ll receive more details about your schedule.
After the program, you’ll receive a certificate of participation and be eligible to join the alumni network.
Boston Children's offers customized educational programs through seminars and courses. These programs, offered in-person or virtually, are typically requested by hospitals or organizations (rather than individuals) and are tailored to specific disciplines and desired levels of experience.
The curricula incorporate knowledge of clinical, educational, and management practices, often featuring lectures and discussions by Boston Children's physicians, nurses, and administrative clinical leaders. By sharing the latest updates, best practices, and evidence-based clinical guidelines, the programs aim to provide valuable knowledge in subspecialty clinical areas.
Additionally, Boston Children's invites teams of pediatric health care leaders to visit the institution and learn about their management and operations, including the behind-the-scenes infrastructure required to run a high-quality pediatric institution. This allows teams to gain a comprehensive understanding of Boston Children's approach to governance, safety and quality, education and training, and more.
Simultaneous translation may be available for some of our group courses and programs.
To request a customized program, please contact the Director of International Health Education and Business Development, Cynthia Garibaldi, at Cynthia.Garibaldi@childrens.harvard.edu.
Through the generous support of the New World Group Charity Foundation, physicians from China are selected to receive a scholarship to spend up to 12 weeks in the Boston Children's Observership Program. Qualified candidates demonstrate:
The Scholarship Program is supported by Mr. Adrian Cheng, Executive Vice President and General Manager of New World Development Company Ltd. Between 2017 and 2025, Boston Children’s has hosted 18 Adrian Cheng New World Observers across seven specialties. These physicians have transferred skills acquired at Boston Children's to their hospitals in China.
For additional information please email our office at Observership.Program@childrens.harvard.edu.