Ellen Laves, MD is the Associate Medical Director of the ZSFG Children’s Health Center Urgent Care and Specialty Care, the ZSFG Pediatric Residency Site Director, and the Director of the Pediatric Residency Procedural Simulation Curriculum. As a clinician-educator, Ellen is most interested in Graduate Medical Education and specifically procedural education and learning. In her role as ZSFG Pediatric Residency Site Director, Ellen has led curricular and rotational changes at ZSFG and is responsible for program evaluation and improvement. Her research is primarily focused on how to enhance procedural education through curricula that instruct learners on both cognitive processes (e.g. problem solving, situational awareness) and behavioral steps. She uses information garnered through her research and the literature to inform the development of the Pediatric Residency Procedural Simulation Curriculum.

In her role as the Associate Medical Director of the ZSFG Children’s Health Center Urgent Care and Specialty Care, Ellen is responsible for clinic optimization through quality improvement projects, coordination with the ZSFG emergency department, and clinical guideline development. She is particularly interested in standardization of practice among providers through faculty development and quality improvement projects. To this end, she has made it a point to coordinate the ZSFG Pediatric Residency Performance Improvement Incentive Project in order to align it with clinic and inpatient goals.

Ellen completed her internship and residency in pediatrics at UCSF. In addition she has completed the UCSF Teaching Scholars Program. This additional training has enhanced her skills in teaching, curricular design and assessment, as well as educational scholarship. She is a member of the Academy of Medical Educators and has been awarded the UCSF Pediatric Residency Faculty Teaching Award. She was awarded the 2018 Holly Smith Award for her service to the UCSF School of Medicine