Training & Curriculum
Clinical Training
Cedars-Sinai is a tertiary-care hospital with strong community ties and is ranked as one of the largest nonprofit academic medical centers in the western U.S. It is consistently recognized as one of the country's most prominent for cardiology and heart surgery.
Our master clinician teachers aim to:
- Teach the knowledge, procedural skills, clinical judgment, attitudes and values that are essential to the effective practice of cardiovascular medicine
- Foster humanistic and ethical attributes in our trainees
- Encourage an appropriate balance between academic and research endeavors and clinical service
- Develop teaching skills by actively engaging our fellows in teaching activities with medical students, residents and allied health professionals
Fellows gain experience in all facets of cardiovascular diseases, as well as specialized training using the latest therapeutic modalities. One of the major strengths of the program is the high volume of clinical cases and procedures (among the largest in the nation) available to the fellows.
Frequent interaction between the fellows and the highly accomplished team of faculty members and mentors provides a level of psychological and backup support to fellows that is a major strength of the program.
Rotations comply with ACGME requirements and the Core Cardiology Training Symposium guidelines for the clinical core experience of the American College of Cardiology.
Because of its location at the intersection of Los Angeles, West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, Cedars-Sinai provides trainees with exposure to an amazing diversity of patients and care models. This is enhanced by our training program’s partnership with Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center (LAMC).
- Fellows perform one inpatient cardiology consultation rotation and one cardiac catheterization rotation at Kaiser Permanente LAMC. This is a 460-bed tertiary referral center for more than 3 million Southern California Kaiser Permanente members. As with Cedars-Sinai, most Kaiser Permanente attendings involved in fellowship training hold faculty appointments at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
- At Cedars-Sinai, the Smidt Heart Institute's cardiac transplant program is the world's largest adult program, with a dedicated 52-bed heart-failure/transplant inpatient unit featuring invasive hemodynamic monitoring capabilities.
- Cedars-Sinai has nine cardiac catheterization suites that serve the surrounding community as Los Angeles' highest-volume ST segment elevation myocardial infarction receiving center.
- The hospital also offers an all-inclusive, high-tech program in percutaneous valvular interventions and advanced structural heart disease treatments, as well as advanced peripheral interventions.
- There are two labs dedicated to providing leading-edge electrophysiology interventions, including atrial fibrillation ablation, supraventricular and ventricular tachycardia therapy and ICD/CRT/pacemaker device implantation.
- The noninvasive echocardiography lab provides complete training in transthoracic echocardiography, stress echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography and 3D echocardiography.
- The renowned cardiac imaging department offers comprehensive training in nuclear, PET, MRI and CT modalities.
- Outpatient experiences include a diverse patient population, including the Cedars-Sinai Cardiology Outpatient Clinic (where fellows function as the primary outpatient cardiologist) and at local free clinics for the underinsured.
- A specialty ambulatory clinic rotation provides additional exposure to outpatient cardiology, and fellows have the option of electing a six-month specialty clinic experience after their second year. During the second or third years, fellows conduct their weekly outpatient continuity clinic at Kaiser Permanente LAMC or general cardiology clinics staffed by faculty in the surrounding community practices.
Research Training
Research training is an integral part of the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program, and fellows in their third year can look forward to dedicated research time with remarkable mentors.
With leading-edge facilities, high patient volume and excellence in patient care, education and research, Cedars-Sinai is a key site for clinical trials, including recently the CADUCEUS, COURAGE, PARTNER, ISCHEMIA, DYNAMIC and EVEREST trials. Our fellows typically participate in research projects associated with clinical trials and may also participate in studies sponsored by other departments. Investigations and investigators include:
- Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine in Failing Myocardium: Eduardo Marbán, MD, PhD, Raj Makkar, MD, Clive Svendsen, PhD and Eugenio Cingolani, MD.
- Cardiac Excitation-Contraction Coupling and Cellular Electrophysiology in Ischemia/Reperfusion and Heart Failure: Joshua Goldhaber, MD.
- Heart Disease in Special Populations, Women's Health, Hypertension in African Americans: C. Noel Bairey Merz, MD, Chrisandra Shufelt, MD, Florian Rader, MD, and Janet Wei, MD.
- Structural Heart Disease/Interventional: Raj Makkar, MD, and Babak Azarbal, MD.
- Population Health: Christine Albert, MD, Susan Cheng, MD, Sumeet Chugh, MD, and C. Noel Bairey Merz, MD.
- Atherosclerosis, Inflammation and Vascular Biology: P.K. Shah, MD, Kenneth Bernstein, MD, Behrooz Sharifi, PhD, and Moshe Arditi, MD.
- Genetics of Arrhythmias and Machine Learning: Sumeet Chugh, MD, Christine Albert, MD, and Eugenio Cingolani, MD.
- Advanced Imaging in Heart Disease: Debiao Li, PhD, Louise Thomson, MBChB, Daniel S. Berman, MD, Sean W. Hayes, MD, Damini Dey, PhD, Susan Cheng, MD, and David Ouyang, MD.
- Heart Transplantation Biology and Outcomes: Jon Kobashigawa, MD, Michelle Kittleson, MD, Jignesh Patel, MD, PhD, and Evan Kransdorf, MD.
- Advanced Proteomics and Biomarkers in Heart Disease: Jennifer Van Eyk, PhD.
- Mechanisms of Cardioprotection, Autophagy and Mitophagy, Anthracycline-Induced Heart Failure Mechanisms: Roberta Gottlieb, MD.
Fellows participate in one of the research training pathways. These include the Clinical Scholars Program, which is designed to provide fellows with statistical background and expertise in clinical research methodology so they can succeed as clinical investigators.
Alternatively, fellows may choose the Cedars-Sinai Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences to gain in-depth knowledge of a particular area in basic, translational and health services-related cardiovascular science.
A fourth year devoted to research is encouraged for fellows who are engaged in promising research with a mentor in the Smidt Heart Institute. Fellows accepted into a master's degree or PhD program in biomedical sciences will also be accorded additional years. In some cases, these additional years will be made available to qualified National Institutes of Health (NIH) T32 training grant-eligible candidates (U.S. citizens or permanent residents). Cedars-Sinai offers master's programs in health delivery science as well as magnetic resonance in medicine.
The Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship also participates in the Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Research Pathway. This program combines training in research with training in clinical internal medicine and cardiology. For information about the Pathway at Cedars-Sinai, please contact the program coordinator.
Duration of the Fellowship
The Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship involves:
- 24 months of core clinical training in general and critical care cardiology, heart failure and transplantation, mechanical circulatory devices, cardiac catheterization, electrophysiology, preventive cardiology, vascular medicine, congenital heart disease and noninvasive cardiac imaging including echocardiography, nuclear cardiology, cardiac CT, PET and MRI.
- 12 additional months of investigative training in basic, translational and health services-related cardiovascular research.
- A fourth year for those who wish to devote a total of two years to full-time research, funded by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) T32 training grant to the Smidt Heart Institute (restricted to U.S. citizens and permanent residents).
The Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship also accepts fellows through the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Research Pathway. These individuals devote 24 months to internal medicine training, 24 months of clinical cardiology training, and then 36 months of dedicated research time in cardiology. Candidates can either apply through the Cedars-Sinai Internal Medicine Residency if they have not had any postgraduate training, or as internal medicine residents in their first year (this involves transferring only with permission of the host internal medicine program). Because these positions require special consideration and permission, it is essential to contact the cardiology program coordinator before applying.
Teaching
Fellows are often invited to lecture to house staff and graduate students and regularly present teaching cases in division conferences. Fellows teach first- and second-year medical students through problem-based learning sessions and laboratory sessions at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Fellows also present their research in the Smidt Heart Institute's research seminar series.
Cedars-Sinai is the largest teaching hospital affiliated with the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. More UCLA students rotate through Cedars-Sinai than through any other hospital affiliated with that institution.
Internal medicine residents and medical students rotating through the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit, heart failure/transplant and cardiology consult services are eager to learn from our fellows, as are trainees in other departments and divisions.
A core curriculum of more than 75 lectures covers the basic and clinical fundamentals related to cardiovascular medicine. Advanced Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited training programs are available in heart failure and cardiac transplantation, clinical cardiac electrophysiology, interventional cardiology and critical care. Non-ACGME-certified advanced training is available in cardiac imaging and women's/preventive health.
Have Questions or Need Help?
If you have questions or would like to learn more about Cardiovascular Fellowships at Cedars-Sinai, please call or send us a message.
8700 Beverly Blvd.
Davis Building, Room 1015
Los Angeles, CA 90048