Fellowship Overview

The Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at Hospital Clínic de Barcelona will be hosting this fellowship for a three-month period with a focus on continuing surgical education in Cardiovascular Surgery and Intensive Care Management related to the specialty, for Ukrainian residents.

During this period, the fellow will have the opportunity to engage in daily clinical practices along with the staff physicians, residents and fellows. The Department delivers care to all spectrum of adult cardiovascular surgery diseases and has the unique feature of having an ICU that is completely managed by surgeons. Thus, the fellow has the option to see holistically all aspects related to surgical care, from preoperative assessment in the outpatient clinic, to surgical management, intensive postoperative care and back to the outpatient clinic. This offers a unique approach to the specialty.

Learning Objectives

Successful Fellows will have the opportunity to attend the daily clinical practice and operating room experience at the Department. They will also be able to attend all multidisciplinary weekly meetings.

The syllabus of this fellowship will expand on the following topics:

• Valve replacement and repair. Conventionally and minimally invasive (including robotics)
• CABG. On and off pump. Conventional, MIDCAB and robotically assisted.
• Proximal aorta surgery, including valve sparing operations
• Ross procedure
• Mechanical circulatory support (temporary and implantable devices)
• Heart transplantation
• DCD donation
• Pulmonary tromboendarterectomy
• Transcatheter valve implantation
• Surgery for hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (myectomy)
• Surgery for atrial fibrillation
• Aortic arch and thoracoabdominal aorta surgery
• Surgery for GUCH
• Surgery for retrieval of ICED
• Surgical treatment of complex infective endocarditis (homografts, Commando operation)
• Pericardial surgery (constrictive pericarditis)
• Postoperative management of all the above conditions
• CALS training for management of post cardiac surgery resuscitation

The fellows will also be able to attend all Departmental daily meetings, residents/fellows weekly meetings, Cardiovascular Institute weekly Grand Rounds and all the training courses, Symposiums and wetlabs that are held locally during their stay.

Clinical research opportunities are always present within the Department.

This fellowship will also facilitate cultural interaction for professional and human growth of all members of the team. The Department of Cardiovascular Surgery is delighted to offer this training opportunity for colleagues going through this difficult situation.

Funding

The Fellowship includes a financial contribution of €7,500 towards living and travel costs for the three-month placement. EACTS will subsidies’ the cost of your attendance at the EACTS Annual Meeting (the largest cardiothoracic meeting in the world), you will also receive free registration.

Application and Selection

In order to apply for this fellowship there are some essential criteria you must meet:

• Be an EACTS member
• Have excellent use of English
• Be a resident in Ukraine that has had the residency program compromised due to the current situation
• Have an interest in pursuing an academic career
• Work in an academic institution

Applicants who possess the following desirable criteria would be of particular interest:

•  The ability to speak Spanish is not a requirement, but it is desirable
• Ideally, have attended EACTS Academy courses in the past
• Ideally, have attended EACTS Annual Meetings in the past
• Have the potential to disseminate knowledge to other residents

In order to complete your application, you must submit the following documents*:

• Letter of support from current supervisor
• Letter of interest (detailing the way in which you meet the application criteria, your career aspirations along with how you are in a position to apply the skills and knowledge obtained during the Fellowship in your own centre)
• CV
• Operative experience

*Please ensure that all documents submitted are written in English, and that they are submitted either as word documents or PDF. We do not accept images or handwritten applications.  We are unable to provide advice or guidance about visa applications, so please ensure that you understand the visa requirements before applying for this Fellowship.

Evaluation and Feedback

There will be Clinical case-based assessments during and at the end of this fellowship.

There will be periodic meetings with the fellowship director to ensure feedback from the trainee.

At the end of the fellowship, the fellows will produce a full report (2000-2500 words) on their experience. The fellows will eventually present this during the EACTS annual meeting.