Pitt Pediatrics congratulates Catherine Polak, MD, FAAP, for recently being accepted into the Advancing Pediatric Educator eXcellence (APEX) Teaching Program for the 2024-25 year. Polak is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Paul C. Gaffney Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine and the Associate Program Director of the Pediatric Residency Program at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. She is also the Co-Director of the Advanced Practice Provider Pediatric Fellowship Program at UPMC Children’s. 
The APEX Teaching Program is a competitive longitudinal national program designed to help further the development of medical educating skills through highly interactive exchanges of ideas, best practices, and networking and mentorship opportunities.
As an educator in the program, Polak will have the opportunity to work with other motivated educators from across the country, engage with experienced educational mentors, and work with nationally recognized medical educators through conferences, workshops, and discussions.
Polak is a passionately dedicated educator and mentor to our residents. She is currently actively involved in the development of a general pediatric curriculum for advanced practice providers in clinical roles at UPMC Children’s, and facilitates the curriculum for Quality and Safety for the pediatric residency program. She also serves as an instructor for the Advanced Physical Examination course for medical students.
We are excited for this exciting and prestigious career development opportunity for Polak, and look forward to continue bringing the best pediatric and medical education curriculum to our students and residents.
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