Fellowship Program Structure

The Division of Cardiology at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio at San Antonio (UTHSCSA) offers a fully accredited three-year fellowship training program in Cardiovascular Diseases designed according to guidelines for training cardiologists put forth by the American Board of Internal Medicine. The Division also offers advanced clinical training in interventional cardiology and echocardiography in the form of one-year fellowships.
 

Core training is composed of rotation in all phase of clinical cardiology, including acute coronary care, cardiac consultation, and non-invasive and invasive cardiac procedures. Training beyond the core program is based on the fellow's individual preferences for further experience in selected areas of clinical cardiology and cardiovascular investigation. Fellows also receive ample exposure to further subspecialized cardiac disciplines such as interventional cardiology, electrophysiologic study, and cardiac transplantation; however, certification in these areas requires additional training. Fellows participating in this program will be well-prepared to satisfactorily complete the ABIM certifying examination in Cardiovascular Disease.
 

Cardiology fellows also obtain additional knowledge concerning the critical evaluation of cardiology literature and approaches to cardiovascular research. There are a large number of clinical and basic cardiovascular research projects ongoing in the Cardiology Division and may utilize the additional expertise of co-investigators from the Departments of Physiology, Pharmocology, Biochemistry, and Surgery. Investigators from the Cardiology Division are also involved in collaborative research projects with Department of Medicine faculty members from other Divisions.
 

Successful completion of this program requires demonstrated competence in general clinical cardiology and satisfactory proficiency in both non-invasive and invasive cardiac procedures. Additionally, each fellow is required to complete one academic project during his/her training. This can be in the form of original research, a review article, a case report, or small case series.
 

The fellowship training program in cardiovascular disease is designed to prepare men and women for an academic career of excellence in cardiology research, teaching, and patient care. It is a three-year clinical program with 6 months of research distributed in the second and third years. In addition, senior fellows have opportunities for clinical or research electives. Prerequisites include completion of an accredited three-year residency in internal medicine and demonstration of prior research interest and experience.
 

Either basic or clinical research options may be pursued. Special areas of expertise of our fellowship program include vascular biology, echocardiography, electrophysiology, cardiac transplantation, new imaging procedures, bioengineering, health services, and clinical trials. Training grants allowing two years of research training are available in vascular biology, health outcomes, and epidemiology.
 

Fellows in the standard program will not be trained in interventional cardiology or electrophysiology, both of which require a separate fourth year of clinical training. A fourth year of research training requires special arrangement with the Program Director and usually is dependent on research funding.