echo not as popular?

[copacetic]

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is it just me or does it seem like echo is not as hot or sought after as some of the other fellowships? like EP, CT, and interventional. why is that? is echo just not as interesting? is it a compensation thing? is it just 'been there, done that'? in that echo is just old news? im aware that alot of IM people do echo, is it that cardiologists dont have control of the echo 'pie' so to speak? what is it? im scatching my head here.

 

[droog]

echo is still part of the backbone of cardiology. if you are interested in cardiology you have to be interested in echo, or else you will not enjoy your job. i've never met an internist who can read echo with the depth of a cardiologist's. cardiology has full control of the technology. compensation may be less, but that has not affected it's importance. it is a fundamental of the field.

 

[drdavemd]

is it just me or does it seem like echo is not as hot or sought after as some of the other fellowships? like EP, CT, and interventional. why is that? is echo just not as interesting? is it a compensation thing? is it just 'been there, done that'? in that echo is just old news? im aware that alot of IM people do echo, is it that cardiologists dont have control of the echo 'pie' so to speak? what is it? im scatching my head here.

1. There are many fewer fellowships in echo and imaging since it is a core competency of Cards training. The others you mention are well established as additional fellowships beyond standard 3 yr clinical cards training fellowship

2. Compensation is fine

3. I don't know any IM docs that read their own echos, and likely if there are, they will be less and less since the ongoing trend is towards more "testing" and "boards" being required in order to get priviliges and jobs

4. I am not aware of any echo labs that are not run by cardiologists. If you are I would be interested to hear about them.

 

[dragonfly99]

Echo is not popular as a subspecialty fellowship simply because you don't need an extra year of cards fellowship to be able to read echos. You are taught that as part of general cards fellowship. If you want to put in stents, you really do need that extra year of training (interventional fellowship), for the most part. Echo fellowships are more for people interested in extra research and being an echo expert in some academic institution, as far as I know.

I agree w/drdave about the internists reading echos...I know there are reportedly a few out there, but I've never met one...and would expect they'll become less and less common.

 

[copacetic]

Echo is not popular as a subspecialty fellowship simply because you don't need an extra year of cards fellowship to be able to read echos. You are taught that as part of general cards fellowship. If you want to put in stents, you really do need that extra year of training (interventional fellowship), for the most part. Echo fellowships are more for people interested in extra research and being an echo expert in some academic institution, as far as I know.

I agree w/drdave about the internists reading echos...I know there are reportedly a few out there, but I've never met one...and would expect they'll become less and less common.

im a canadian. up here, IM people in primary care centers (smaller rural areas) will tend to read their own echos simply because there are no cardiologists around. i guess its not as typical in major centres