CARDIOLOGY
Preceptors: Scott Fletcher, M.D.; Carl Gumbiner, M.D.; John Kugler, M.D.; David Danford, M.D.; Ameeta
Martin, M.D.; Zahid Amin, M.D.
Purpose:
This elective is intended for student desiring to further their knowledge of congenital heart disease.
Objectives:
1. The resident will be familiar with the various types of innocent murmurs and be able to distinguish
them from pathologic murmurs.
2. The resident will be able to describe the physiology of cyanotic and acyanotic congenital heart
disease.
3. The resident will recognize the clinical presentation of children with congestive heart failure.
4. The resident will be able to describe the indications for an echocardiogram.
5. The resident will be familiar with the approach to a child with suspected congenital heart disease.
6. The resident will be able to describe the clinical and physical findings associated with the common
form of congenital heart disease including ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, atrial septal
defect, coarctation of the aorta, aortic stenosis, transposition of the great arteries, and pulmonic
stenosis. The resident will be able to describe the pre-operative and post-operative management of
those conditions.
7. The resident will be able to describe the approach to the child with Kawasaki disease.
8. The resident will be familiar with the approach to the child with supraventricular tachycardia.
Methods:
The resident on Pediatric Cardiology spends time in the pediatric outpatient clinic with each of the six
pediatric cardiologists on faculty. The average number of residents on elective is two per month. There
are over 1,200 outpatient visits to the pediatric cardiology clinic yearly, of which 480 patient are new.
There is an average of 5 or 6 outpatient session/week with approximately 8-patient/session. The resident
sees the patient simultaneously with the staff cardiologist.
The residents participate in the management of pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery patients during
their inpatient rotation at Children’s Hospital. This consists of approximately 150-200 surgery patients
and an additional 150-200 non-surgical hospital admissions. The residents provide direct patient care for
these patients under the supervision of the pediatric cardiologist and pediatric thoracic surgeon.
Implementation:
1. The outpatient experience is supplemented by a problem-based learning test and accompanying
videotape which is provided to the resident at the beginning of the elective. This book consists of 20
cases requiring approximately 30 minutes/case.
2. The resident on elective will be required to research a cardiology topic in-depth and deliver a 20
minute oral presentation to the cardiology staff.
3. Each resident completes a written objective pre-test and post-test at the beginning and end of the
elective month.
Evaluation:
Evaluations will be based on performance on the examinations, oral presentation, and observed clinical
skills.