Triple Board Training – Resident Life + Benefits

Health, dental, and vision insurances are all subsidized (including spouse and family) based on salary bracket. Plans are comprehensive and cover care at Longwood-area hospitals as well as Tufts Medical Center.

Malpractice insurance is provided through the training program and covers all clinical sites as well as some moonlighting sites.

Life insurance and long- and short-term disability insurance are available.

Boston Children’s Employment Benefits

• Academic expenses stipend, play therapy supply stipend (PGY 4-5)
• Partial board exam reimbursement
• License application and renewal fee reimbursement
• Subsidized childcare center in the Longwood Area
• Childcare assistance - $2,400 per year
• Discounted parking in hospital lots, plus free night and weekend parking in the BCH patient parking garage
• Discounted public transportation pass
• Loan repayment assistance with matched payments of up to $200 per month
• Reimbursement of Massachusetts Medical License fee
• 403B Retirement account with employer contribution of 4% after 2.5 years employment
• Taxi voucher program for late-night shifts or fatigue after work

Tufts, Boston Children’s, and Boston overall offer an incredible variety of extracurricular academic, service, teaching, and learning opportunities. Some opportunities our trainees can take advantage of include

• Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute fellowship in child psychoanalytic psychotherapy (subsidized)
• Poster presentation or talk at annual AACAP meetings
• Clinical Educator Track jointly through Boston Children’s and Tufts
• Collaborative ADHD clinical education on Native American reservations
• Physical Diagnosis class teaching at Tufts Medical School (compensated)
• Massachusetts General Hospital Psychiatry Academy
• American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Systems of Care fellowship
• McLean Hospital Gunderson Personality Disorders Institute seminars in DBT, mentalization-based therapy, and transference-focused therapy
• Clinical and quality improvement research at Tufts and Boston Children’s
• Health literacy teaching opportunities in local public schools

Internal moonlighting starting in PGY 2 is available at Boston Children’s through Additional Training Opportunities (ATOs). ATOs are open shifts, pager coverage needs, or extra clinical coverage needs that are compensated on an hourly pay scale.

External moonlighting is an option starting in PGY 4 if residents choose to obtain their full Massachusetts medical license at that time. Residents have found lucrative opportunities picking up inpatient psychiatry shifts in nearby hospitals, pediatric urgent and primary care, and newborn nurseries and NICU.

All moonlighting must be officially approved by program leadership and must comply with duty hour requirements.

Our residents and faculty have a deep commitment to personal mental health care. Residents in our program find time, despite busy schedules, to schedule their own individual therapy. Confidential resources are available for seeking mental health providers.

Trainees also benefit from the confidential Office of Clinician Support at Boston Children’s Hospital, which offers short-term support with personal- and work-related issues and referrals to longer-term care.

Parental leave policies are set by Boston Children’s Hospital. 8 weeks of leave, not using vacation, with 100% pay are provided for birthing, non-birthing, and adoptive parents. Residents can additionally benefit from the Massachusetts Paid Family Leave program, which allows for 12 weeks of partially-paid parental leave for birthing, non-birthing, and adoptive parents, and additional partially-paid medical leave (i.e., related to pregnancy and delivery). Residents may take up to 8 weeks of leave without extending residency training.

Child care subsidies are provided by Boston Children’s for up to $2,400 per year for children under 6 years old.

Private lactation facilities, including safe, temperature-controlled storage of milk, are available at both Tufts Medical Center and Boston Children’s Hospital. Hospital-grade pumps are available for use at both clinical training locations. Accommodations for pumping breastmilk at all points in training. On-site RN lactation consultants are available at Boston Children’s, and discounted pumps and pumping supplies can be purchased at the hospital.

Parenting is supported at all stages of training, and residents’ colleagues, supervisors, and mentors are available at every step of the way. Residents in the program have welcomed children in all PGY years, and we are thrilled to have mini-Triple Boarders join our family. Additional parenting support and social groups are offered through Boston Children’s.

Retreats are scheduled throughout the year by the BCRP at Boston Children’s, adult psychiatry at Tufts, and child psychiatry at Tufts and Boston Children’s. Additionally, Triple Board trainees enjoy two full-day retreats to bond with their fellow triple board resident colleagues. These retreats have included picnics, game days, days at the beach, museum tours, food tours, and boat trips. Resident retreat days typically conclude with a casual dinner with program leadership after spending the day with resident colleagues.

Additional resident events are held throughout the year, both by individual departments and by the Triple Board program. After-work dinners in Chinatown are common amongst adult psychiatry residents, and Triple Board “happy hours” are held in between Tufts and Boston Children’s for any trainees who would like to join after work. Barbecues at Triple Board faculty houses, a clam bake during the BCRP orientation, and other fun events are scattered throughout the year. Graduations are held yearly by BCRP, child psychiatry, and adult psychiatry. Triple Board residents are included in graduations of each of the three programs.

Lunches are provided daily during BCRP noon conferences at Boston Children’s and Boston Medical Center, with food coming from a selection of local eateries. Additionally, a call (weekend/holiday/night) based meal stipend is attached to residents’ Boston Children’s ID cards for use in the cafeteria, which is open from early morning until evening. There is also a 24/7 Panera Bread conveniently located in the hospital, where residents can use their meal stipend to purchase food or coffee at all times of day or night, including holidays.

Tufts Medical Center has both a cafe and a cafeteria located within the hospital that offer food, pastries, and coffee during daytime hours. Another food retail space in the hospital is currently undergoing renovations and will soon house a 24/7 cafe from which residents on call can grab food or coffee during the day, on nights, on weekends, and on holidays. Tufts is also located within Chinatown, and is surrounded by a host of fantastic restaurants and take-out eateries. Popular options include phở, bánh mì, sushi, ramen, hot pot, Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, and a number of other cuisines. There is also a nearby, popular bakery cafe where residents and nearby college students are often found grabbing a coffee, pastry, salad, or sandwich.

Trainees find time outside of work to enjoy all that Boston and New England have to offer. Within the city itself are a number of distinct neighborhoods to explore, each with their own character. The North End (Boston’s Little Italy) is a popular spot to see old Boston architecture and enjoy some incredible food. Jamaica Plain and the South End are great spots to enjoy food, bars, and cafes. Boston is also home to several museums, many of which grant access at no charge to trainees through their affiliation with Harvard University. Be sure to visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, site of an infamous art heist that remains to be solved.

Venturing outside of Boston and into greater New England has its perks, too. Cape Cod and its stellar beaches is only a couple hours’ drive away. Make the extra trip, or take the ferry, and you will end up at the pinpoint of the Cape, in Provincetown. Within an hour’s drive north or west, you can find endless choices for hiking and other outdoor activities. Further flung, but well worth the drive, are Montreal, Canada, about 5 hours north, and Acadia National Park, Maine, about 5 hours northeast.

Boston Logan Airport is easily accessible to the city by public transport and by car.