Duke’s Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders division has been training fellows since 2004, producing academic neurologists and clinician specialists in approximately equal numbers. Over half of our former fellows have been hired as academic faculty after fellowship and have collectively authored hundreds of publications. Former fellows have used their experience at Duke to enable them to train future generations of Movement Disorders fellows as fellowship directors and division directors, members of the Parkinson’s Study Group and Huntington Study Group, expert reviewers of scientific publications, and as leaders in Parkinson’s Foundation and HDSA Centers of Excellence.

Our division includes 6 clinical faculty and 3 research faculty. We have actively been increasing our neurology faculty. In line with this growth and the training opportunities it presents, we have also grown our fellowship program in size and scope, placing an even greater emphasis on training physician-scientists. In the 2022-2023 academic year, our fellowship expanded from one to two years. In 2024-2025, we are expanding again, from one fellow per year to two fellows per year (4 total). Fellows are chosen through the SF Match.

The two-year fellowship emphasizes clinical experience in the first year, and transitions to an increased research focus in Year 2. Fellows are involved in all aspects of patient care, including diagnosis, ongoing management, botulinum toxin injection, and deep brain stimulation. Fellows also gain critical experience with our inter-disciplinary team approach and educational outreach programs; these are Duke program strengths that have been recognized through Center of Excellence support from the Parkinson’s Foundation, Tyler’s Hope for a Dystonia Cure, and the Huntington’s Disease Society of America.

For research training, fellows benefit from active mentoring, opportunities for collaboration with internationally-recognized research scientists, and access to outstanding institutional support targeted for physician-scientist trainees. Clinical and research mentoring is provided throughout the fellowship in monthly meetings with the Program Director and quarterly meetings with the Division Chief. Fellows work with their faculty mentors to develop research projects based upon their areas of interest, and a research mentoring team is formed during their first year.

The Duke Neurology Department recognizes that diversity is a necessary component of its mission of world-class patient care, education, and research. Our program is committed to building and maintaining a diverse and inclusive community where all members thrive in a welcoming and engaging environment. Read more about our diversity and inclusion efforts across the Department here.

Prerequisite: Successful completion of an approved neurology residency.

Initial salary level: PGY-5

For more information contact the Program Director, Kathryn Moore, MD, MSc.

A core strength of the Duke training experience is the depth of mentored clinical care exposure that trainees receive. Fellows spend approximately four days per week engaged in clinical care during the first year, including 1 day in the operating room with 1-2 DBS implantations per week. Fellows will then transition to 1-2 days of clinical work per week in the second year as they increase effort on their research project. Fellows will see both new and return patients, averaging 8 new patients and 12-16 return visits per week in year 1, and approximately a quarter of that volume during the research year.

Fellows will be trained to perform injections of botulinum toxin (with and without EMG guidance) and will gain comprehensive experience in evaluation and management of patients for deep brain stimulation, including on/off testing, surgical planning, intraoperative electrophysiology, and post-operative DBS programming. At a minimum, fellows are expected to see at least 1000 patients during their two years of training, including 200 patients for injection of botulinum toxin, and 150 patients for DBS management. Fellows will participate in at least 45 implantations of deep brain stimulation systems and will have the option to participate in 90 or more implantations. It is also notable that the intraoperative DBS training at Duke provides a unique level of responsibility to the attending neurologist and movement disorders fellows, as the neurology team directly plans the surgical target and electrode trajectory, then performs the microelectrode recording and intra-operative test stimulation.

Our commitment to excellent care includes an interdisciplinary care team approach, and fellows benefit from weekly interdisciplinary meetings with PT, OT, speech therapy, pharmacy, social work, and chaplain for both Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease. Fellows will also participate in our educational outreach programs for patients and caregivers, and our comprehensive care model has been recognized with Center of Excellence recognition from the Parkinson’s Foundation, the Huntington’s Disease Society of America, and Tyler’s Hope for a Dystonia Cure.

While the majority of our fellows’ clinical education occurs in the context of mentored patient care, fellows also participate actively in structured educational activities. Dr. Moore guides fellows through comprehensive learning milestones and objectives to ensure thorough educational exposure. Besides Neurology Grand Rounds, fellows will attend 1-2 Movement Disorder conferences weekly that include:

1. Journal Club review of research advances and clinical care guidelines, led by the fellows
2. DBS and Neuromodulation case conference
3. Neuromodulation research conference
4. Division Research in Progress meetings
5. Huntington’s Disease “lunch and learn” series
6. Dystonia “lunch and learn” series

Fellows have the opportunity to attend the Tele-Education At-Large in Movement Disorders series, chaired by program director Dr. Moore.  Fellows will attend the Movement Disorder Society’s Aspen course and an international scientific conference such as the Movement Disorders Society or American Academy of Neurology meeting. Assessment of the fellows’ progress and tailoring of the mentoring plan occurs through monthly meetings with the fellowship director, and through structured feedback given quarterly.

We have recently restructured our program to place an even greater emphasis on training physician-scientists. While fellows previously had the option to complete a second year of training if desired, the inclusion of a year focused on research is now an integral part of our program. Fellows will work with the Program Director and Division Chief during the first year to identify areas of interest and opportunities for collaboration, and to develop a mentoring team. The mentoring team will work with the fellow to establish a timetable and goals, and to guide the fellow through the research process. While the two year fellowship is guaranteed, all fellows are expected to apply for research funding. First-year fellows are expected to apply to one of the AAN research grants, typically due in mid-September.

Our faculty have broad interests including health disparities research (Mantri), the role of exercise and/or interdisciplinary care (Mantri), medical education (Moore) & the use of high-intensity focused ultrasound (Cooney). Basic science & translational opportunities are also extensive, including participation in projects supported by two $9 million ASAP projects, one evaluating the role of circuit connections and glia in survival of dopaminergic cells (Calakos), and the other the role of enteroendocrine cells in the pathogenesis of PD (Liddle). Dr. Andy West (PD/LRRK2 mechanisms) and Dr. Laurie Sanders (LRRK2/mitochondrial DNA repair) are leading highly translational programs that are well-integrated with our divisional activities. Duke has made major investments in its Movement Disorders programs in recent years, and we continue to enhance these programs with ongoing recruitment of clinical, translational, and basic science faculty.

Ongoing collaborations with the departments of Neurosurgery and Biomedical Engineering provide excellent opportunities for cutting-edge DBS neuromodulation research, including study of “closed-loop” DBS systems supported by a BRAIN Initiative UH3 grant (Turner, Grill, Cooney, Mitchell); Dr. Cameron McIntyre has expended opportunities for research into optimization of DBS. These additions greatly enhance our program’s training environment and support our mission to train physician-scientists with the skills necessary to expertly manage patients’ needs and to advance the scientific understanding of Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders.

In addition, the fellow has the opportunity to incorporate one or more of the following research and/or academic programs into their second year plan:

1. Medical Education Leadership Course (Duke GME program; fellow must apply in June before start of year 2. 
2. Health Services and Health Disparities Curriculum (Duke CTSI program runs Sept-June; fellow must apply in July of year 2)
3. Clinical/Translational Research Training coursework (Duke GME program; fellow must apply in spring of year 1. Additional funding required.)
4. Research Careers Ahead Virtual Series (free to register)
5. Other free initiatives and seminars from the Office of Research Initiatives
6. Neuromodulation studies (internal, Dr. Kyle Mitchell)
7. Duke also has a wide variety of other supplemental training opportunities towards which your mentors can guide you.

In summary, our goal is to train motivated fellows to be expert clinicians and leading scientists, and our interdisciplinary collaborations, extensive clinical training, and outstanding research opportunities ensure that our fellows will be poised to expand the clinical and scientific boundaries of Movement Disorders Neurology in the years to come. We look forward to receiving your application to our program!

Applications are processed through the SF Match for Movement Disorders, and the timeline for applications, interviews, and rank list submission is detailed on the SF Match website. We will consider applicants with J1 Visas, and other visas may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Please contact the Program Director, Kathryn Moore, MD, MSc, with any questions.