Interventional Cardiovascular Diseases Fellowship

Overview from the program director

The cardiology fellowship at the University of Kansas Medical Center is a three year program to train for a career in academic as well as clinical cardiology. The program is ACGME accredited and fulfills requirements for training as indicated in the July 1, 2007 ACGME Program Requirements for Graduate Medical Education in Cardiovascular Diseases. There are currently thirty-eight cardiovascular physicians at the KU Hospital with active interventional cardiology and electrophysiology services, including subspecialty fellows in these disciplines.

The University of Kansas Hospital is a 456-bed academic tertiary care referral center for the Kansas City metropolitan area, western Missouri, and eastern Kansas. It includes a 72-bed Center for Advanced Heart Care that opened in 2006. KU Hospital and clinics feature a robust electronic medical record system, O2, a product from Epic Systems Corporation.

There are three cardiac catheterization laboratories with procedure volume (2008-09) of 3,602, including 891 PCIs, 409 peripheral vascular procedures, and 68 PFO closures. There are three active electrophysiology laboratories with a procedure volume (2008-09) of 532 EP studies, 425 advanced (3D) mapping procedures, 268 SVT ablations, 203 atrial fibrillation ablations, 26 VT ablations, 313 ICD implantations, 257 pacemaker implantations, 127 biventricular pacemaker implantation, and 127 lead extractions.

The Kansas City Veterans Administration Medical Center is part of VA Integrated Service Network 15 (VISN 15). The Kansas City VA opened in 1952 and currently has 156 beds with two cardiac catheterization laboratories, where cardiac catheterizations and percutaneous coronary interventions are performed and permanent pacemakers and ICDs are implanted. With approximately 2000 admissions per year, it serves as a referral center for Topeka and Leavenworth VA hospitals and 7 Community Based outpatient clinics.

The Cardiovascular Research Institute offers state-of-the-art facilities and infrastructure for basic, clinical, or translational cardiovascular research. A number of physicians within the division are actively engaged in numerous investigator-initiated projects. Fellows are strongly encouraged to initiate and participate in innovative projects, present at conferences, and publish.

The first year of training includes rotations in coronary care unit, cardiovascular consultations, cardiac catheterization, nuclear cardiology, echocardiography, and electrophysiology at the University of Kansas Hospital or at the Kansas City Veterans Medical Center. Additional rotations during subsequent years include cardiac CT and magnetic resonance imaging, noninvasive peripheral vascular imaging, cardiothoracic surgery, and pediatric cardiology. Research rotations commensurate with the need (up to a maximum of twelve months) are made available to fellows interested in such pursuits. Once the required rotations are accomplished, the fellowship program administration is very flexible in modifying fellow activities and rotations to fit their future career goals.

All fellows have a half-day continuity clinic at the University of Kansas Hospital or one of it local clinic sites with staff cardiology mentors. Current night call is a night float rotation. With the current program size (nine fellows), first year fellows have night float for 10 weeks, second year fellows for 4 weeks, and third year fellows for two weeks. On-call fellows can easily contact on-call cardiac sonographers, staff cardiologists, electrophysiologists, and interventional cardiologists.

Conferences are held at 7 AM, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. The Internal Medicine grand rounds is held on Wednesday mornings at 8 AM. There is a separate noninvasive imaging conference at noon on Thursday and research conferences every third Wednesday of the month at 7 AM. The division supports attendance at a major national meeting at each year of fellowship.

Faculty

	Kamal Gupta, M.D., FACC, FSCAI, R.P.V.I. Program Director Associate Professor of Medicine - Cardiology Director, Vascular Medicine Program Mid America Cardiology
	Matthew B. Earnest, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I. Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine - Cardiology
	Randall E. Genton, M.D., F.A.C.C. Associate Professor of Medicine - Cardiology
	Ashwani Mehta, M.D., M.B.B.S., F.A.C.C. Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine - Cardiology
	Peter N. Tadros, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I., F.A.S.E Assistant Professor of Medicine - Cardiology
	Mark A. Wiley, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I Assistant Professor of Medicine - Cardiology