The fellowship consists of five rotations.

A. NEUROMUSCULAR EVALUATION ROTATION (NMM Clinic)

• Three-month longitudinal rotation located in the Landon Center on Aging, Veterans Administration Medical Center and the University of Kansas Hospital.
• Fellows are involved in the evaluation and management of patients with a neuromuscular disease with close faculty supervision.
• During this rotation, the fellow is exposed to a wide variety of diseases in the outpatient and inpatient settings.

B. ELECTROMYOGRAPHY ROTATION (EMG Lab)

• Three-month longitudinal rotation located in the Landon Center on Aging and the Kansas City VA Medical Center.
• With close faculty supervision, fellows are involved in the supervised performance and interpretation of the following:
  • Inpatient and outpatient electromyography
  • Nerve conduction studies
  • Single fiber EMG, IOM and autonomic nervous system testing

C. MUSCLE, NERVE AND SKIN PATHOLOGY ROTATION

• Two-month longitudinal rotation located in the Landon Center on Aging and Support Services Building.
• With close faculty supervision, fellows are involved in the performance and interpretation of tissue biopsies,

D. REHABILITATION MEDICINE ROTATION

• The Rehabilitation Medicine rotation is integrated in the two-month longitudinal exposure throughout neuromuscular rotations at the Landon Center on Aging.
• Fellows work in conjunction with a range of other professionals, including:
  • Physical therapists
  • Occupational therapists
  • Speech therapists
  • Respiratory therapists
  • Nutritionists
  • A seating clinic specialist
  • A respiratory health care representative
  • A social worker from the multidisciplinary ALS Association and MDA clinics

E. NEUROMUSCULAR RESEARCH ELECTIVE ROTATION

• Two-month longitudinal rotation throughout the year located in the Landon Center on Aging and the Clinical Translational Science Unit (CTSU).
• Fellows are involved in the design, conduct and result interpretation of studies with close faculty supervision with direct longitudinal involvement throughout the year in all KU Medical Center investigator-initiated studies and in other neuromuscular research studies.
• During this rotation each fellow works in conjunction with the neuromuscular research faculty to gain knowledge in neuromuscular research trials; endpoint measures; and their applications, benefits and limitations.

During this training experience, we cover a variety of neuromuscular medicine topics using a combination of educational activities.

• Inpatient and outpatient clinical experiences
• Basic neuromuscular conferences
• EMG/neuromuscular disease conferences, such as:
  • Autonomic testing
  • Quantitative sensory testing
  • Single fiber EMG
• Evidence-based Medicine
• Muscle, Nerve and Skin Biopsy Conference
• Journal Club
• Case Presentations
• Grand Rounds

Fellows also are expected to participate in the Introduction of Biostatistics for Clinical and Translational Researchers and Introduction to Clinical Research courses offered through the University of Kansas School of Medicine.

Mondays

• 7:30-8 a.m. - Neuromuscular Research Checklist meeting
  • Conference call available

Tuesdays

• 7-8 a.m. - Neuromuscular Lecture Series
  • Zoom meeting 

Wednesdays

• Neuromuscular Journal Club
  
  • Fellows and neuromuscular faculty present and critically review an article, analyze study design, statistical methods and conclusions using the principles of evidence-based medicine.
  • 2nd Wednesday of each month
  • Required attendance

Thursdays

• 7-8 a.m. - EMG Case Discussion
• 8-9 a.m. - EBM Lecture Series

Fridays

• 7-8 a.m. - Case Presentations
• 8-9 a.m. - Neurology/Neurosurgery Grand Rounds
• Fellows present once a year

* Attendance is required.

The Neuromuscular Medicine Fellowship's research elective is a one-to-two-month rotation located in the Landon Center on Aging located on KU Medical Center's main campus and the General Clinical Research Center (GCRC) in Fairway.

Fellows are involved in designing, conducting and interpreting the results of studies with close faculty supervision. They also engage in research with direct longitudinal involvement throughout the year in all KU Medical Center investigator-initiated studies and other neuromuscular research studies. During this rotation, our fellows work in conjunction with our expert research faculty to gain knowledge in neuromuscular research trials, endpoint measures and their applications, benefits and limitations.

Fellows are required to participate in the four-week course, Introduction to Biostatistics for Clinical and Translational Researchers, offered through FRONTIERS: The Heartland Institute for Clinical and Translational Research.

Fellows also are expected to become familiar with the following online courses and sources of information that are designed to help investigators understand clinical research and develop proposals/grant submissions for potential funding:

• Introduction to the Principals and Practice of Clinical Research (IPPCR). A lecture in real-time with archived videos available. The course runs from October-March and the previous year's course is available at any time.
• University of Iowa Institute for Clinical and Translational Sciences (ICTS). The Clinical Research Professionals Basic Certificate course is offered through ICTS Virtual University and provides a basic introduction to clinical research. Other courses on bioethics, genetics and pharmacology also are available. Participants are required to create an account and establish login information.
• National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grants and Funding - About Grants. This site provides investigators with grant writing guidance, strategy and instruction.
• CTSpedia. This is a collaborative vehicle for the Clinical and Translation Science Awards (CTSA) Program's Biostatistics/Epidemiology/Research/Design (BERD) Online Resources and Education Task Force that identifies and shares resources across the national consortium with a worldwide community of researchers. BERD educational materials link to biostats course materials, searchable by keyword, format, audience, etc., submitted by many consortium institutions.
• NIH Ethical and Regulatory Aspects of Clinical Research. This resource provides full links to the course including syllabus, readings, videocasts and podcasts of lectures. Registration for the next year's course opens in the summer.
• CTSA Central Education and Training resources. This provides links to various resources at CTSA consortium institutions.

The goal of the K30 program is to develop clinician scholars with a strong foundation in patient-oriented research principles and methods. Benefits of program participation include:

• Formal training in research skills that can lead to a master's degree (Public Health or Clinical Research)
• Access to nationally recognized researchers via the Distinguished Visiting Scholars series
• Interaction with other researchers in the Clinical and Translational Research Seminar series
• Mentored research training experiences
• Access to biostatistical consultation, mentorship and funding opportunities

The program supports two levels of trainees - the novice and the transitional investigator. The program for the novice offers a structured learning process for trainees with demonstrated interest, but little training in patient-oriented research. The core of this experience is formal coursework. The program for the transitional investigator provides support for more advanced scholars who need mentoring and specific additional knowledge and skills. Participants have the option of completing a master's degree (MPH or MS-CR), but this is not required. Overall, the program is designed to increase the number of clinical scholars who receive funding from patient-oriented research at both the career development and individual investigator levels.