Pediatric Interventional Cardiology

[Leukocyte]

I love working with kids, and I am interested in Interventional Cardiology. However, I would consider going into Peds only if I had a reasonable chance of doing an Interventional Cardiology fellowship. So:

1) Are there any Ped. Interventional Card. fellowships?

2) How competetive is it to get into a Ped. Interventional Card. fellowship?

3) Do Ped. Interventional Cardiologists get to do enough procedures? Do they have enough work?

4) Do they compete with regular interventional cardiologists?

5) How is the job market? Can they find jobs easily? I do not care about $$$.

Thank you.

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[oldbearprofessor]

Greetings - I am not a pediatric cardiologist, so, if one is here, they might be able to provide more information. Pediatric cardiology itself is a specialty of pediatrics and requires three yrs of post-pedi fellowship training. During that time, fellows rotate through the cardiac cath lab and gain experience in the basics of interventional pedi cardiology. At major academic centers, however, often fellows will do an additional year to "sub-sub specialize" (not really a word) in pedi catheterization. Other pedi cardiologists may also do specialties in things like electrophysiology- EPS (folks who manage arrhythmias). Usually such high levels of specialized training are not difficult to obtain if one's performance in the cardiology fellowship itself is very good. I suspect most people stay to do these extra years wherever they do their fellowships in cardiology.

As far as the job market, I have no direct knowledge but suspect that jobs are reasonably available in major academic centers for pedi cardiologists who wish to focus on catheterization and interventional work. Salaries would, in an academic center be consistent with general academic pedi salaries. One thing is that interventional work is not the most life-style friendly job. A baby born with transposition of the great vessels who needs a hole opened between his left and right atrium often cannot wait for business hours or regular work days for this to happen! It is a very exciting, challenging field however and one that crosses at times close to the border between "medicine" and surgery.

Regards

Oldbearprofessor

 

[Leukocyte]

Thanks Professor! Glad to have you in this forum.