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Advanced Cardiac Imaging Fellowship

The Advanced Cardiac Imaging Fellowship Program at The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano is a 12-month program designed to train cardiovascular specialists to become experts in advanced multimodality structural cardiac imaging and interventional echocardiography

This program is designed as an advanced fellowship for fellows who have completed a formal 3-year general Cardiology fellowship.

Fellows will have hands-on supervised clinical training, one-on-one teaching sessions with Imaging faculty and participate in research and educational activities. The high volume of clinical studies and research opportunities available provide fellows with an excellent teaching environment.

The fellow will gain expertise interpretation of cardiac CT including Calcium scoring, coronary CTA, plaque analysis, anatomical and functional assessment with CT-FFR as well as extensive experience in structural 4D heart CT studies including TAVR, Valve in valve planning, Mitral and tricuspid valve procedural planning for percutaneous and surgical valve in valve, valve in MAC, left atrial appendage and pulmonary vein mapping and various adult congenital heart disease. Cardiac CT studies include evaluation of coronary artery disease, pulmonary venous anatomy, cardiac morphology and function for many complex valvular cases, many TAVR, TMRV and tricuspid interventions planning.

Objectives

At the end of this program, fellow will have achieved training according to the ACC 2015 Core Cardiovascular Training Statement and will have become an expert in structural/interventional echo (Level III) and will have obtained a Level II to Level II training cardiac CT (depending on the fellows interest and prior training). The fellow will also receive exposure to Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

In addition to gaining the relevant knowledge of physics and instrumentation for each modality, fellows will learn to independently acquire, post-process, and interpret advanced 3D Echo and CCT studies.

Curriculum

  • Comprehensive training that focuses on incorporating a multimodality cardiac imaging approach to manage patients with complex valvular and structural cardiac disease
  • High volume program with high complexity cases (CAD, structural, congenital, patients with implantable devices) using cutting edge technology
  • Collegial and collaborative training environment with many opportunities for research and educational activities

Dedicated state-of-the-art echocardiography and Cardiac CT imaging program (2 Dual-Source Siemens Force CT scanner, 1 GE revolution volume CT scanner

To provide in depth training in all aspects of advanced cardiac imaging. Including:

  1. M-mode
  2. 2D
  3. 3-D
  4. Doppler
  5. TEE
  6. Stress
  7. Intraoperative
  8. Contrast
  9. Interventional
  10. ICE
  11. TTE

Echo Highlights

  • Level III training
  • TTE – Transthoracic Echocardiography (M Mode, 2D, 3D, Doppler, contrast echo, Strain)
  • Stress Echocardiography
  • TEE – Transesophageal Echocardiography
  • Interventional TEE for Guidance of Structural Interventions
  • Intraoperative TEE for Guidance of valvular cardiac surgeries
  • Intracardiac Echocardiography (ICE)

CT Highlights

  • Level II or Level III training (depending on the trainee’s prior training and level of interest)
  • Coronary Cardiac CT (anatomic
  • Level 3 Training
  • Transesophageal Echocardiography
  • Stress Echocardiography
  • Contrast Echocardiography
  • Evaluation of Proficiency

Wednesdays 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

The Weekly ECHO Conference provides echo-related didactic lectures and current comprehensive case presentations to serve as a format to incorporate recent research data, controversies in care, and practical application for clinicians and researchers. Participants will gain a variety of knowledge of cardiovascular topics including emerging diagnostic, therapeutic and interventional techniques for cardiovascular care; cardiovascular complications from primary treatments and newly identified disease entities and their impact on the cardiovascular system.

This activity is intended for physicians, interventionists, surgeons, mid-level practitioners (nurse practitioners/ physicians assistants), nurses, research scientists/coordinators, echocardiogram technicians and general practitioners who have an interest in cardiovascular disease.

Learning objectives - At the end of each lecture, participants should be able to:

  • Employ a multidisciplinary, cooperative, and interactive approach to the exchange of medical education across the breadth of Baylor Scott &White cardiology and affiliate practitioners and educators.
  • Improve the safety and quality of patient care by analyzing systems-based and practice-based processes.
  • Translate recent research, new techniques, guidelines, etc. to clinical practice, based on the methodological quality of their design, validity, and applicability to patient care.
  • Foster communication among healthcare stakeholders by exploring and integrating patient-centered, team-based strategies, when appropriate.
  • Compare and contrast patient outcomes of past cases with current one to inform treatment strategies.

Our faculty members are active in scholarly activities, and several have extensive research endeavors.

There is a weekly research conference and a monthly conference where investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored trials are discussed. This conference includes discussion on how research is explained to patients and applied to patient care.

Fellows are expected to author one research project. In addition to one-on-one coaching from faculty, fellows learn the basics of research through a dedicated monthly research lecture with topics that include:

  • Research planning and design
  • Biostatistics and data analysis
  • Clinical trials research
  • Outcomes data research
  • Ethical decision making in research and ramifications
  • Applying research to patient care
  • Appraising the literature when reading cohort, case-controlled, randomized-controlled or cross-over trials
  • Manuscript preparation
  • Abstract preparation and presentation
  • Explaining research to patients

Research Impact


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Journal vs # of publications plotted, numbers in parenthesis is the Impact factor of the journal

How to Apply

Email CV, personal statement, 3 letters of recommendation, photo, USMLE/Complex scores, and universal application to Program Administrator, Taline Azadian at Taline.Azadian@BSWHealth.org

Deadline to apply: August 31st

Interviews will take place in October

Apply by email

Contact Us

Program Administrator
Taline Azadian
Phone: 469.814.3518
Fax: 469.814.4854
Taline.Azadian@BSWHealth.org