The two-year Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellowship at Rush University Medical Center provides a well-balanced operative and didactic experience in both cardiac and thoracic surgery. Our primary focus is training competent surgeons in a multidisciplinary setting.
Conferences
Two hour dedicated didactics weekly focusing on progressing through the TSDA curriculum.
Morbidity and Mortality conferences occur monthly for the Department of CVT Surgery at Rush. There are also weekly tumor boards, cath conferences and structural heart conferences.
Research Opportunities
Fellows are required to complete at least one project during their two-year fellowship with the goal of presentation on a national level and publication. Each fellow selects a faculty mentor for his or her project. While original ideas are supported, fellows are welcome to join one of the many projects in development by the faculty.
Simulation
Monthly surgical simulation labs are organized to reinforce surgical technique. Labs are tailored to topics such as mechanical circulatory support, valve repair, aortic procedures, coronary anastomoses and robotics.
Rotations
Our program supports two separate tracks in Thoracic surgery – a cardiothoracic track and a general thoracic track. We accept one fellow for each track per year, for a total of 4 fellows. Rotations are designed to meet the goals of each track, allowing some freedom in the second year to tailor the experience to each fellow’s particular interests.