Trainee experience

As a trainee in the Cardiovascular Diseases Advanced Practice Provider Fellowship, you will complete a minimum of 300 classroom hours and 1,700 clinical mentored hours.

The learning methods include interdisciplinary rounds, conferences, self-learning modules, hands-on labs, simulated learning, and a professional development project. You will have an opportunity to interact with other cardiology advanced practice provider fellows from Mayo Clinic's campus in Arizona.

This fellowship grows your critical thinking skills and increases your confidence to practice in cardiovascular specialty areas. The curriculum is based upon core competencies that include knowledge, skills, and understanding of health care areas.

Clinical training and rotations

Rotations occur in either the inpatient or outpatient setting. By the end of the fellowship, you will have rotated monthly and have a strong knowledge of evidence-based practices in these areas, within your scope of practice:

• Cardiovascular risk and assessment
• Cardiovascular diagnostics
• General inpatient and outpatient cardiology
• Interventional cardiology
• Structural heart disease
• Electrophysiology (arrhythmias, cardiac implantable electronic devices)
• Advanced heart failure and mechanical circulatory assist devices
• Adult congenital heart disease
• Vascular heart disease
• Cardiothoracic surgery and transplantation

Schedule and hours

The program provides you with a variable on-site schedule to achieve the best learning opportunities to meet the program goals.

Schedules may vary during subspecialty areas and mentor preferences. Flexibility in scheduling ensures that you receive adequate rest and time off.

Department and faculty

The Cardiovascular Diseases Advanced Practice Provider Fellowship is coordinated and taught by an interdisciplinary team, including nurse practitioner, physician assistant, allied health, and physician staff of Mayo Clinic in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases.

Faculty members are chosen for their commitment to teaching, as well as clinical practice and research. Many have published and lectured extensively and are highly regarded in their fields. You have direct access to these individuals throughout your training, giving you the opportunity to learn from experienced practitioners in cardiology.

Facilities

Mayo Clinic's campus in Jacksonville, Florida, is a comprehensive medical facility providing advanced programs in education and research that support the highest quality patient care. Campus activity is conducted in Mayo Clinic Hospital and the interconnected Davis, Mayo, and Cannaday buildings.

Mayo Clinic Hospital is a tertiary care hospital providing comprehensive services to cardiology patients with a variety of diagnoses.

The ambulatory clinic facilities provide clinical services ranging from primary care to specialty care across the continuum. Additionally, hospital and clinic based procedural units offer state-of-the-art services to patients across the spectrum of wellness.

Simulation training occurs in the J. Wayne and Delores Barr Weaver Simulation Center. The center boasts 9,600 square feet of training space using exact replications of the clinical areas. This allows for "real life" training using high-fidelity training devices and standardized patients to augment the realism. Procedural expertise will be achieved using models and simulations to prepare the learner safely for practice in the clinical environment.

Program outcome criteria

By the end of the fellowship year, you will have experience performing cardiovascular-focused skills or procedures within your scope of practice, which may include:

• Physical exam
• Chest radiograph interpretation
• Electrocardiogram interpretation
• Stress testing
• Hand-held echocardiography
• Interrogation of ventricular assist devices
• Informal and formal interdisciplinary lectures and conferences
• Quality improvement or research project

Evaluation

Successful completion of all clinical rotations' performance criteria, formal presentations, learning activities, and an academic manuscript or abstract is required for graduation.