INTERNAL MEDICINE

Endocrinology

BARNSTABLE BROWN OBESITY AND DIABETES RESEARCH DAY

Home

CONTACT

Fellowship Program in Endocrinology and Molecular Medicine

Program Director:

L. Raymond Reynolds, MD, FACP, FACE, ECNU

Assistant Program Director:

Megha M. Desai, MD

Division Chief:

Lisa Tannock, MD, FAHA

Administrator:

Grazie van der Westhuyzen

Program Size:

Two fellows per year

Selection of Fellows:

We participate in the National Residency Matching Program.
Applications open in July each year

All applicants must have completed an Internal Medicine residency in an ACGME-accredited program and should be eligible for the IM board exam. in addition to the standard application, we require at least 3 letters of recommendations. One of them must be from the director of the Internal Medicine residency. J-1 visa is accepted, particularly if the applicant has strong qualifications. However, H1B visa in our institution is granted only to applicants with unique qualifications that are not present in any other applicants.

Fellows and Program Director 2008 - 2010

Program Description

The subspecialty fellowship in Endocrinology at the University of Kentucky is designed to train physicians in the knowledge, skills and experience required for excellence in Endocrinology. The trainees who successfully complete this program will be fully trained and equipped to function as clinical endocrinologists, clinical educators, or clinician scientists, depending on the individual career goals of the individuals. The program is set up as a two-year training program per ACGME guidelines.

The first goal of the fellowship in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of Kentucky Medical Center is to provide comprehensive training, both with in-patients and out-patients, in the clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and long-term care of patients with a wide range of endocrine diseases. The trainee must acquire the knowledge base, cognitive skills and humanistic attributes necessary to be an effective endocrinologist.

In the first year the trainee will manage the Endocrine In-patient Consult Service for 4.5 months of the year, have two continuity clinics where a variety of general endocrinology patients are seen, and spend short rotations (4-8 weeks) in a variety of endocrine "specialty" clinics each week. The fellow will also spend one evening each week in the University of Kentucky HMR-affiliated Weight Management Clinic for 6 months. To gain exposure to research the fellow will rotate through three separate clinical or basic research labs for 2 weeks during the first year. In addition, the Fellow will have formal, didactic training in the form of clinical conferences, journal clubs, research seminars, and lectures in core curriculum topics.

In the second year the Fellow will manage the in-patient consult service for 1.5 months, cover weekends one weekend a month, and continue his or her two weekly continuity clinics and elective specialty clinics. The remainder of time will be reserved for pursuing a research topic (see below).

The Fellow will learn to order and interpret appropriate measures of hormone levels and action, including performance and interpretation of stimulation and suppression tests. Training in radiological evaluation of endocrine diseases, including ultrasound of the neck, nuclear medicine, CT and MRI imaging of endocrine tissues, and evaluation of bone density and other tests evaluating metabolic bone disease will be provided. The Fellow will learn to perform and interpret results from fine needles aspirations of the thyroid. The Fellow will receive instruction in pancreatic and islet cell transplantation.

The Fellows will have dedicated office space with computer access in the College of Medicine building with nearby access to the Medcial library, hospitals, and Kentucky clinic. The Division of Endocrinology has full-time administrative support, which arranges outpatient consults and scheduling, prepares conference schedules, and assists with physician and patient communications.

Trainees will be encouraged to participate in local and national research meetings. In general, each trainee will attend one national meeting a year relevant to Endocrinology (for example, Endocrine Society, ADA, etc). Fellows will be expected to submit case reports and clinical reviews for publication during their first year, and in their 2nd year, fellows will be strongly encouraged to submit a research abstract to a national meeting and develop a research manuscript for publication.

Facilities and Resources

The major teaching institution is the University of Kentucky Hospital, an acute care general medical/surgical hospital with 440 beds and 8 intensive care units. A second facility is the Veterans Affairs Hospital on cooper Drive, also an acute care general medical/surgical hospital with 290 beds and 2 intensive care units. Both hospitals provide full-time comprehensive nuclear medicine and special diagnostic radiological procedures. Outpatient clinics are located in the adjacent Kentucky Clinic and also at the VA hospital. Currently there are approximately 400 Endocrinology outpatient encounters monthly. There is dedicated high-resolution ultrasound equipment for thyroid ultrasonography and DEXA equipment for bone densitometry in the Endocrine/Renal wing of the Kentucky Clinic. The University of Kentucky has a complete biochemistry laboratory and facilities for hormonal immunoassays, as well as access to karyotyping and immunohistologic studies. Nuclear imaging, ultrasouns, and full radiology facilities are present at the University of Kentucky. The Endocrine Faculty has close working relationships wiht nutrition services, specialists in surgery, nephrology, neurology, neurosurgery, obstretrics and gynecology, ophthalmology, pediatrics, podiatry and urology. The University of Kentucky Hospital encompasses services for children, adolescents and adults.

Clinical Rotations

The Fellow will participate in two half-day continuity clinics a week in General Endocrinology. In this setting the Fellow will assume the consultant provider role; however, every patient will be reviewed with an Attending Endocrinologist, who will ultimately be responsible for the care provided. The Fellow will see new patients referred to Endocrinology, and will continue to follow these patients until Endocrinology care is no longer required. The Program Director and Assistant Program Director will be responsible for designating new referrals to the Fellow, and will ensure that the Fellow is involved in the care of a wide variety of clinical cases. The Fellow will have his/her clinics scheduled with at least two different Attending Physicians, thus ensuring the Fellow is trained in at least two different approaches and perspectives. The Fellow will not be responsible for medical students or residents in teh ambulatory care setting.

To ensure the Fellow has an adequate exposure to a broader clinical faculty and additional related endocrine disciplines the trainee will rotate through four separate areas of endocrinology by spending one-half day each week in a variety of specialty clinics. The Fellow will spend 4-8 weeks in each specialty clinic in his/her first year, with the option of spending further time in his/her second year based on the interest and/or educational needs of the Fellow. These 4 areas comprise:

1) Pediatric Endocrinology

2) Thyroid Oncology

3) Bone Disorders (Nephrology)

4) Thyroid Ultrasonography/Biopsy clinic

Research Experience

An integral poart of the training program is exposure to clinical investigation. In conjunction with a faculty advisor, trainees conceive clinical research projects, design protocols, gather and analyze data, and draw appropriate conclusions. Involvement in research is emphasized. The trainee will be introduced to clinical and laboratory research in their first year, by rotating through three research laboratories pursuing either clinical or basic research into topics related to Endocrinology. By the end of the first year the fellow will be required to select a research mentor, and in his or her second year will engage in a carefully defined project. The trainee will be encouraged to pursue research in an optional third year. This research experience will include training in hypothesis-driven research, statistical analysis of data, and presentation of data in written and/or oral formats. Fellows interested in pursuing research careers will be encouraged to write grant funding proposals.

Lexington and The Bluegrass

Lexington, and Fayette County, is the "Horse Center of America." It is also the cultural, educational, medical, commercial and industrial metropolis of the eastern half of Kentucky. Lexington is a progressive city that has a population of approximately 250,000 and is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the nation. The city is described as one of the most attractive cities in the nation and is nestled among some 170 beautiful horse farms in the rolling terrain of the Bluegrass section of the state. We are about a one-hour drive from Louisville and one hour and a half from Cincinnati, with the three cities forming a triangle.

Comments and Corrections | An Equal Opportunity University | Jobs | Terms, Conditions and Accessibility Statements | Privacy

© 2012, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, 138 Leader Ave., Lexington, Kentucky, USA 40506-9983
Student Affairs: (859) 323-5261 · Admissions: (859) 323-6161 · Clinical Questions: (859) 257-1000 · Dean's Office: (859) 323-6582
Page last updated Friday, August 03, 2012

Internal Medicine - Endocrinology