Customized Training for the Career You Want

Our program provides you with the skills, resources and opportunities for board certification in Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant. We also follow guidelines established by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and the most current specialty Advanced Training Statement. However, it is ultimately your responsibility to review all ABIM requirements to evaluate your overall eligibility status.

Didactic Experiences

  • Weekly dedicated AHFTx Core Curriculum presented by cardiology faculty in many specialties, including heart failure/transplant cardiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons, and palliative care cardiologists
  • Dedicated pathology endomyocardial biopsy conference  
  • Enriched learning experience participating in weekly heart transplant list meetings, post-transplant medical management meetings, and heart failure operations meetings 
  • Division of Cardiovascular Medicine conferences 

Clinical Experiences

We provide you with advanced training to manage heart failure patients using established and experimental treatment options. This encompasses the entire spectrum of care: initial diagnosis and medical therapy, selection of advanced device therapies, high-risk cardiac surgery, cardiac transplantation (including donor selection and immunology care), mechanical circulatory support and end-of-life care.

Sample Clinical Schedule

Inpatient

26 blocks (each block = 2 weeks)

  • UW Hospital inpatient management
  • Exposure to advanced heart failure, cardiac transplant, and MCS patients
  • Advance to junior attending: lead patient management team and junior trainees

Outpatient

26 blocks (each block = 2 weeks)

  • Rotations at UW Hospital or VA Hospital
  • Cath lab: right heart catheterizations and endomyocardial biopsies
  • Rich clinical experience in a variety of settings, including niche clinics
  • Non-clinical time for scholarly activities and study

Scholarly Activity

Research

You are required to develop case presentations and identify and participate in a quality improvement project. You can complete this over the one year of fellowship, or over an additional 6-12 months, pending sufficient funding.

If you're interested in research, our faculty will help you identify an area of interest and a suitable mentor. Our division is home to robust research on heart failure, arrhythmias, vascular biology and imaging. It's part of our department's rich research environment and a vibrant campus community of inquiry.

Teaching

The Department of Medicine's Fellow Medical Education (FAME) Training Track trains fellows to become effective clinician-teachers and scholars.

Additional Opportunities in the Department