Surgical Critical Care Fellowship earns GME accreditation
Dec. 18, 2025
Contact:
Nathan Aamodt
Sanford Health Media Relations
(701) 200-6080/nathan.aamodt@sanfordhealth.org
FARGO, N.D. – The University of North Dakota and Sanford Health Fargo Surgical Critical Care Fellowship has obtained accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
The Surgical Critical Care Fellowship is based at Sanford Medical Center Fargo, the only Level I Adult Trauma Center in North Dakota. The fellowship is designed to provide comprehensive, hands-on training for physicians seeking expertise in managing critically ill surgical patients. The program lasts for one year, and beginning in August 2026, one fellow will be accepted annually.
Achieving accreditation for the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship is a major milestone for both the program and Sanford Health. It validates the quality and rigor of the training process, ensuring that fellows receive education that meets national standards. Accreditation enhances the program’s credibility, attracts top-tier applicants and strengthens partnerships with the University of North Dakota and other academic institutions. Most importantly, it reinforces Sanford Health’s commitment to excellence in patient care, education and research, positioning the fellowship as a leader in surgical critical care training in the region.
“Sanford Fargo is pleased and proud to take the next step in training surgeons for trauma and critical care with the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship,” said Sheryl Sahr, M.D., program director of the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship. “Our mission is to train trauma surgeons for the Level 1 and Level 2 Trauma Centers of the Great Plains, improving trauma care in rural communities served by these centers. As the only Adult Level One Trauma Center between Billings, Mont. and Minneapolis, Minn., we are able to provide a wealth of experience in trauma and critical care from rural and austere environments. I hope to see many of our graduates practicing in the smaller cities of the Great Plains, as well as here at our home facilities in Fargo and Sioux Falls.”
In addition to hands-on training, the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship offers fellows the chance to engage in meaningful research and scholarly activities. Fellows can participate in clinical trials, quality improvement projects and outcomes research, with mentorship from experienced faculty.
Graduates of the program are expected to strengthen local patient care, improve outcomes in high-acuity cases and contribute to the growth of multidisciplinary teams.
About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 55,000 employees and serves over 2 million patients and nearly 425,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 57 hospitals, 288 clinic locations, 147 senior care communities, 4,000 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 1,500 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to 78 specialties. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.
