Cardiothoracic Anesthesia Fellowship
We offer a one-year ACGME accredited fellowship in Adult Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology.
Welcome to the University of Louisville Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology Fellowship. This ACGME-accredited fellowship has two fellows per year. Your yearlong experience promises to make you an expert in perioperative management and a cardiothoracic anesthesia consultant.
From day one, you will manage complex surgical patients for various cases. For cardiac surgery, the experience will include on-pump CABG, valve, multi-valve, CABG-valve, planned aortic surgery (root, ascending & arch work), endocarditis, and mechanical support, including durable and percutaneous VADs, intra-aortic balloon pumps, VV and VA ECMO. As a quaternary care center for cardiac trauma and transplant center, you will also participate in Stanford type A aortic dissection repairs, heart and lung transplants, and other cardiac surgical emergencies. Liver transplants are also performed at Jewish Hospital and can be part of your education if you are interested. Thoracic surgeries include open, thoracoscopic, and robotic-assisted surgeries such as wedge resections, lobectomies, diaphragmatic hernia repairs, and other complex pathologies that require lung isolation. Structural heart cases include TAVRs, MitraClips, left atrial appendage devices, and high-risk lead extractions among others.
Perioperative TEE will be a primary focus to transform you into an expert in echocardiography throughout the fellowship. In addition to performing intraoperative TEE, weekly echo rounds with your attendings will allow you to review other TEE exams, have focused echo lectures, and discuss complex exam findings.
Besides providing outstanding perioperative care, your education is one of our faculty’s primary focuses. You will learn from attendings trained in various large academic institutions and board-certified in Advanced Perioperative Transesophageal Echo by the NBE and Adult Cardiac Anesthesia by the ABA. You will be expected to teach residents and students as they rotate through the cardiothoracic OR. Outside of the adult cardiothoracic OR, you will also rotate with the pediatric congenital cardiac OR, cardiovascular ICU, structural heart, perfusion, TTE, and research if involved with a project. At the conclusion of the fellowship, you will be well equipped to pass the NBE Advanced Perioperative Transesophageal Echo exam (yearly exam given in July) and the ABA Adult Cardiac Anesthesia exam (yearly exam given in December).
Ben Leahy, MD
Fellowship Program Director
More About Our Program
The Division of Adult Cardiothoracic Anesthesia is part of the Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine. The department is an academic and clinical department comprised of professional physicians, nurses and scientists, whose mission is to provide the best in clinical care and discovery, in a collegial, academic environment.
Program aims:
- Deliver exceptional, patient-centered care at the UofL Health - UofL Hospital and UofL Health - Jewish Hospital to be a recognized authority in the evaluation and treatment of patients requiring critical care
- Provide superior education for fellows in the medical discipline and practice of adult cardiothoracic anesthesia and advance the teaching mission of the University of Louisville
- Develop superb, independent practitioners with the skills to be leaders in both private practice and academic medicine who will promote the advancement of the medical discipline of adult cardiothoracic anesthesia
- Promote an atmosphere of scholarly inquiry where our fellows are fully engaged in quality improvement, patient safety and scientific pursuits
- Remain on the cutting edge of technology, technique and tends within our specialty and incorporate the most current science into our training program.
Educational Program:
The educational program involves focused weekly didactic sessions designed specifically for ACTA fellows as well as multi-disciplinary conferences. These include:
- Weekly fellow didactic session
- Weekly echo rounds
- Monthly Cardiac M&M conference with CT surgery, anesthesia and critical care
- Monthly CT Journal Club
- Annual attendance at a national society meeting
- Fellows will participate and be members of the Program Evaluation Committee
Research
Each fellow is expected to design a systems based improvement project as well as present a research project or case report at a national conference.
Program Details
Application and Interview Process
We have two fellowship spots available each year.
Fellows enter the program at the PGY-5 level.
Equal attention is given to every applicant regardless of sex, gender, religion and race.
1
SF Match
All positions are offered via the match system. Applicants should register at SF Match and obtain the universal application for adult cardiothoracic anesthesiology at that site.
2
Minimum Entry Requirements
- BE/BC by the American Board of Anesthesiology
- Successful completion of USMLE steps 1, 2 and 3
- Hold a temporary, unrestricted KY medical license
3
Contact us for further application
Cardiothoracic Anesthesia Fellowship Director
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Fellowship Program Coordinator
Phone: 502-852-1732
Stipends & Benefits
| Post Graduate Level | Annual | Monthly |
| PGY5 / Fellow | $72,601 | $6,050 |
Single and family coverage is available at group rates. Several different plans at varying costs are available to choose from. Fellows may choose premium conversion, which permits payment of premiums with pre-tax dollars.
Hepatitis B immunization and an annual TB skin test are required and furnished free of charge to all fellows. The Campus Health Services Office provides minor urgent medical care and immunizations, including boosters and TB testing. Personal counseling is also available. The Campus Health Services Office also serves as an on-site treatment facility for workers compensation related injuries and exposures including needle sticks and as the repository of resident immunization records and exposure data. The office is staffed by board certified faculty physicians and faculty nurse practitioners who have extensive primary care and occupational exposure experience.
Professional counseling is available to fellows through the Health Sciences Center Campus Health Services. Counseling services are also available through the University of Louisville Employee Assistance Program.
The Faculty Practice Office in the Outpatient Care Center will provide annual examination, including cleaning and x-rays, to fellows free of charge. Fellows can call 852-5401 for information. Fellows may also purchase, at group rates, dental insurance in both single and family plans.
Term life insurance is provided for all fellows, in the amount of $2,000 of life insurance for each $1,000 of annual stipend. Accidental death and dismemberment coverage is included.
Long-term disability insurance is provided for fellows, free of charge. Fellows have the option of converting the coverage from group to individual at the end of their training and the option of purchasing additional coverage at very reduced rates.
Free membership to the HSC Fitness Center is available to all HSC residents, fellows, students, staff and faculty. The Fitness Center is conveniently located in the Chestnut Street Parking Garage and includes weight machines, free weights and 20 pieces of aerobic equipment. Aerobics and yoga classes are also offered. In addition, recreational facilities on Belknap Campus are also available to residents through Campus Recreation at the Student Recreation Center.
The purpose of this program is to ensure that all residents and fellows have a safe transportation option if they are too fatigued to return home safely. This service is provided free of charge to UofL residents/fellows and the funding is generously provided through Office of Graduate Medical Education.
Residents/fellows will be given a ride to their home as well as a ride back to their vehicle once they can drive safely.
- $500 book stipend
- $1,500 conference stipend
- Five days for conference attendance
- Five days for interviews
Four weeks paid time off.