Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship
The Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship is a 12-month training period devoted to the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative care of adult patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery and related invasive procedures.
OverviewThe Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship of the Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care is a 12-month training period after successful completion of a residency in anesthesiology. The fellowship is devoted to the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative care of adult patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery and related invasive procedures.
Program Director
Michael G. Fitzsimons, MD, FCCP
Director, Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship
Massachusetts General Hospital
Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care
55 Fruit Street
Boston, MA 02114
Goals and Objectives
The goals and objectives are a reflection of the recommendations of the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA), the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA), the American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA), Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and expert opinion of the staff members of the Division of Cardiac Anesthesia of the Department of Anesthesia at Massachusetts General Hospital. The goals and objectives are formatted to meet the Core Clinical Competencies of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).
RequirementsRequirements for the Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship include:
- Completion and passing of all three USMLE steps
- ABA board-certified or eligible
- The accepted applicant must obtain a full Massachusetts license (limited license if on visa)
- A valid ECFMG certificate for all foreign medical graduates
- Only J1 visas accepted
Curriculum
Schedule, Format and Content of Didactics
The strength of the Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship is the didactic program. Lectures are given Monday through Wednesday at 9:00 am. The fellow is also required to deliver one fellow's conference on a topic of their choice during the course of their training and periodically organize and moderate the group "Interesting Anesthesia Cases" conference.
Other conferences the fellow is encouraged to attend include the Mass General Hospital Heart Center Thoracic Aorta Center Rounds, BackBay Echo Society Conference, biannual combined Mass General Hospital/Beth Israel/Brigham & Women's Echocardiography Conference and the Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care Grand Rounds and Case Conference.
Lectures and Conferences
Each month there are approximately 18 cardiac anesthesia lectures and conferences. These lectures are complimented by the DACC Grand Rounds and Case Conference. Cardiac staff give 35 different lectures that are rotated every two and a half months.
- Monthly Anesthesia Interesting Cases Conference (prepared by the fellows and staff)
- Monthly Journal Club
- Monthly Pediatric Case Conference
- Monthly Fellow's Grand Rounds
- Periodic invited speakers
- Annual Comprehensive Review of TEE
- Annual Basics of Cardiopulmonary Bypass Course
Monthly Fellow's Grand Rounds
During the one-year fellowship all fellows will be assigned a month in which he or she will give a 40-minute presentation on a clinically relevant cardiac anesthesia topic. The topic should be discussed with the Director of the Cardiac Anesthesia Group Education. The fellow should use PowerPoint as the media tool. The fellow should follow the guidelines below:
- The lecture will be given on the last Thursday of the month at 6:15 am or 5 pm.
- The fellow should discuss the topic with the Director of Education at least one month in advance.
- The Director of Education will appoint a staff member to be a mentor for the discussion.
- A one-page summary of the discussion should be prepared for distribution to the audience.
- A reference list in the standard publishing format should be included with the one-page summary.
- The fellow should ensure that all slides have the appropriate references at the bottom right position.
- The fellow should give the talk at least one time to his or her mentor prior to giving it to the group.
The fellow should save a copy of his or her discussion and files on the fellow desktop computer for future fellow reference.
Supervision
All fellows have one-to-one coverage by a staff cardiac anesthesiologist.
Cardiac Anesthesia Staff
There are 12 cardiac anesthesia staff members, and several staff also spend time conducting laboratory research. All of our physicians have received certification in Perioperative TEE from the National Board of Echocardiography.
Vacation
Fellows have four weeks of vacation time and one week of meeting time.
Program Size
We select six fellows per year.
Evaluation
Each fellow will be assigned an advisor who will be responsible for reviewing the fellow's progress based on a formal review process two times per year.
Graduation
At the end of the one-year fellowship, our fellows attend an awards dinner and attend the Harvard Anesthesia Department graduation.
Clinical ExperienceCall is taken from home approximately five to six times per month. If the fellow works past midnight, the fellow will not be expected to work the following day. Fellows will typically work one case per day and may assist with a second case on occasion. Fellows also assist in the EP lab or the Cath Lab approximately one day per week.TEE Training
Fellows perform 75 to 100 TEE exams during the two-month rotation. The fellow reviews every study with an Massachusetts General Hospital staff cardiologist. Fellows are required to read many references during the rotation and present a topic relevant to TEE at the end of the two-month rotation. Fellows will take a practice exam in March to prepare for the certification exam.
Pediatric ExperienceFellows will learn how to take care of children with complex pediatric cardiac anomalies. Fellows will work on pediatric cases solely during the two months at Boston Children's Hospital and occasionally while on the Mass General Hospital Heart Center adult rotation.
Non-Clinical TimeAll fellows are given one non-clinical day per week during the adult cardiac months. This time is to be used to enhance the understanding of topics related to cardiac anesthesia such as cardiopulmonary bypass, intra-aortic balloon pumps, transfusion medicine, and cardiac surgical techniques.
Research ExperienceFellows have the ability to engage in ongoing clinical projects or the ability to prepare and conduct a study of their own. Any research project will be done with the assistance of Dr. Marcos Melo, the Director of Cardiac Anesthesia Research.
How to ApplyInterested applicants should send a personal statement, the Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship application (PDF) and three letters of recommendation by mail to:
Michael G. Fitzsimons, MD, FCCP
Director, Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship
Massachusetts General Hospital
Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care
55 Fruit Street
Boston, MA 02114
Selection Process
All CA-2, 3 residents are encouraged to apply to the Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship. We select our fellows based on his or her CV, personal statement, letters of recommendation and interview, and place emphasis on fellows who have demonstrated innovation, leadership, motivation, and strong communication skills during their residency.
Dr. Michael Fitzsimons, the Director of the Fellowship Recruitment, will submit the applicants' CVs and letters to group members to determine if an interview is indicated. If invited for the interview, the fellow applicant will spend one half-day at Mass General Hospital meeting staff and observing the OR and a lecture.
You will be informed of the group's decision as soon as possible - usually within one week. If your interview is very early in the recruiting year, our group may not be able to inform you of its decision until later in the year. We will pick our fellows approximately one year in advance of the fellowship start date. The selection is usually completed in the month of June.
Written Contract
Each fellow who is offered a position will receive a contract which defines salary and benefits. This should be signed and returned to Mass General Hospital if the fellow decides to accept the fellowship position.
Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship
55 Fruit StreetBoston, MA 02114
Phone: 617-726-3318
Fax: 617-726-5985
Public Transportation Access: yes
Disabled Access: yes
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