The first year of fellowship is intensive with the fellows spending most of their time with the core faculty in the clinical evaluation of patients as well as in the performance and interpretation of diagnostic studies. The subsequent years are designed to enhance the fellow’s role as a consultant in higher level subspecialty cardiology practice. Six months of dedicated research time and an elective month are reserved during the second and third years of training. The fellow is also expected to assume the roles of a junior attending to the rotating residents, interns and students.
The rotations can be tailored to fit the learning needs of the trainee. By the end of the 3 years of training, each fellow will typically have had performed more than 300 cardiac catheterizations, 75 transesophageal echocardiograms, interpreted over 500 echocardiographic studies, and performed an ample number of diagnostic studies that easily meet the basic ACGME and COCATS requirements. In addition, fellows are also given the opportunity to achieve higher level training in cardiac device implantation as well as to participate in catheter-based interventions and electrophysiological studies.
As a core competency requirement, each fellow will conduct his or her own half day continuity clinic each week. A minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8 (average of 6) patients are seen in the fellow’s clinic each week. The continuity clinic is also a venue for the fellow to follow the patients who were personally seen or in whom they performed procedures on during inpatient consultation.
Richard Kiel, MD
