Clinical training

During the Interventional Radiology Independent Residency, clinical training covers all subspecialty areas of interventional radiology including vascular, pediatric and oncologic Interventional Radiology. There are additional elective opportunities within the Neuro Interventional, Cardiopulmonary and Musculoskeletal subspecialty.

All Independent residents will be assigned a dedicated day for interventional radiology clinic for patient continuity and consultations as well as have the opportunity to participate in the many multidiscipline tumor boards available.

Rotation schedule

Independent year is separated into 13 four-week rotations.

This clinical year includes time spent in vascular surgery and a trauma rotation at University of Florida Health, Jacksonville. As mentioned above, Elective time can be created within various subspecialties within Interventional procedures.

Call frequency

Mayo Clinic follows the recommendations of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Call requirements will be within interventional radiology only and the frequency will be dependent on residents available for coverage for each four-week rotation.

Physics education

There are several components to the physics education program for residents:

1. Imaging and radiation safety orientation.  A course that presents basic principles of each imaging modality and radiation safety.
2. Informal physics consultation. The Department of Radiology's medical physicists are available to residents for consultation and assistance regarding topics such as clinical imaging principles, research project design and implementation, and radiation safety issues.

Radiology Teaching File and library

The Mayo Clinic Radiology Teaching File contains pathologically proven cases that are worked up, researched and entered into the permanent file for resident education. The American College of Radiology teaching file is included as part of the electronic teaching file system. The department's library contains computers for residents and fellows, proprietary database search software, extensive audiovisual materials, and a large collection of pertinent journals and textbooks.

Conferences

1. Monthly Wednesday 7 a.m. morbidity and mortality conferences.
2. The hepatobiliary oncology conference is a critical conference to discuss and plan oncologic therapies for the hepatobiliary system. Interventional radiology residents present imaging findings to the multidisciplinary team and participate in discussion and recommendation as experience allows.
3. PGY-6 residents may also attend the Thursday morning pulmonary tumor board conference.

Research training

All interventional independent radiology residents are required to present or publish a seminar project during their residency. Seminar projects are focused on topics of their choice. The seminar is a 30-minute lecture and presentation prepared under the direction of a consulting staff adviser.

These seminars usually are based on a review of Mayo Clinic's experience with a particular disease or the investigation of a new technology as it relates to a particular problem. Recent seminar topics have included:

1. Accuracy of enhanced MRI in detection of recurrent lumbar disks
2. Diagnosis of pulmonary embolism by fast CT
3. Hepatic cavernous hemangioma: Re-evaluation of CT criteria
4. Magnetic resonance flow measurements to screen for chronic mesenteric ischemia
5. Intraoperative ultrasound after carotid endarterectomy

In addition, you will participate in a practice quality improvement project.

Teaching opportunities

You can teach Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine students, visiting students from other medical schools, junior residents, and other residents spending elective time in diagnostic and interventional radiology.

Interventional and diagnostic radiology rotations are highly collaborative in nature and interaction between residents is both encouraged and facilitated. There are many opportunities to impart knowledge and teaching to more junior residents on service.

Specific teaching opportunities include discussing cases from the Radiology Teaching File, assisting with daily assignments in film interpretation, and instruction of minor procedures pending completion of procedural competencies.

Evaluation

To ensure that you acquire adequate knowledge and develop the appropriate technical skills to meet program expectations, your performance is monitored carefully during the Interventional Radiology Integrated Residency. You are formally evaluated by supervising faculty and additional team members after each clinical rotation. You will meet with the program direct quarterly to go over these evaluations and be given the opportunity to provide feedback about your experience to help optimize your time with us.  In addition, you will have regularly opportunities to evaluate the faculty to confirm that your educational needs are being met.

The Department of Radiology's program evaluation committee continually monitors the Interventional Radiology Independent Residency. This committee meets every 6 months and assess performance and maturation of the IR Independent resident.