MOBILE, Ala. – Infectious disease pediatrician Haidee Custodio, M.D., FAAP, who also serves as an associate professor of pediatrics at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine, was recently named director of the pediatric residency program for the University of South Alabama’s health system.

“We are delighted Dr. Custodio accepted this important role,” said Gul H. Dadlani, M.D., professor of pediatrics and chair of USA Health Pediatrics. “Her passion to train and mentor the next generation of healthcare providers is vital to maintaining — and improving — the quality of life for everyone we serve.”

This summer, the pediatric graduate medical education team at USA Health will welcome 12 first-year residents who join the program on July 1.

“We have new partners joining our community,” Custodio said of the most recent class of medical school graduates seeking career paths as pediatricians. “Our program’s mindset is to recognize the importance of collaborating and partnering with these new physicians as they continue their medical education. They bring a new set of skills, interests, and enthusiasm that we can tap into in our mission of taking care of the children and meeting the needs of the community.”

By training in teaching hospitals and at medical clinics, new physicians can learn in an environment that integrates education, research, and patient care — an experience offering benefits to the healthcare staff and those they care for. Research shows patients treated in teaching hospitals had up to 20% higher odds of survival, compared to those treated at non-teaching hospitals, noted the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Custodio joined USA Health in 2011 and previously served as associate director of the USA Health pediatric residency program. She completed medical school in the Philippines before moving to New York to complete a pediatric residency at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow. She completed a pediatric infectious diseases fellowship at the University of Florida/Wolfson Children’s Hospital/Shands Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida.

Custodio, certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, also serves on the board of the Alabama Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) as CME chair and as a member of the AAP national committee on Continuing Medical Education.