The fellowship consists of five longitudinal rotations.

A. NEUROMUSCULAR EVALUATION ROTATION (NMM Clinic): 3 months

Locations: Landon Center on Aging, Veterans Administration Medical Center, University of Kansas Hospital

• Evaluate and manage patients with a neuromuscular disease with close faculty supervision.
• Gain exposure to a wide variety of diseases in outpatient and inpatient settings.

B. ELECTROMYOGRAPHY ROTATION (EMG Lab): 3 months

Locations: Landon Center on Aging, Kansas City VA Medical Center

• With close faculty supervision, perform and interpret 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: 2 months

Locations: Landon Center on Aging, Support Services Building

• With close faculty supervision, perform and interpret the results of tissue biopsies,

D. REHABILITATION MEDICINE ROTATION: 2 months

Location: Landon Center on Aging

• 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: 2 months

Locations: Landon Center on Aging, Clinical Translation Science Unit (CTSU)

• Design, conduct and interpret results 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.
• Work 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, covering:
  • Autonomic testing
  • Quantitative sensory testing
  • Single fiber EMG
• Evidence-based medicine lectures
• Muscle, nerve and skin biopsy conferences
• 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 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 Clinical and Translational Science Institute.

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 are also 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.