The latest on Fellowships

Fellowship deadlines loom

There’s no time to lose to apply for a 2022 Fellowship position…

The Thoracic Surgery Foundation/Francis Fontan Fund International Travelling Fellowship 2022

One new Fellowship

This is a new Fellowship to promote the continuing education of a young faculty surgeon, helping them to travel to another institution for up to 16 weeks to learn a novel technique, adapt innovative technology and/or fostering collaboration between surgical investigators in order to further the progress of cardiothoracic surgery at the recipient’s home institution. Closing date for applications: 15 September October: applications sent to committee for review Notification to recipient: after committee meeting 01Public award announcement: to be confirmed For more, see the TSF/FFF page on the EACTS website

Advanced Intensive Postoperative Care in Cardiovascular Surgery Fellowship 2022

Three new Fellowships

The recipients will gain experience in the postoperative management in adult cardiovascular surgery, as well as a wide exposure to minimally invasive and other advanced techniques in cardiovascular surgery. Closing Date for applications: 29 September October: applications sent to committee for review Notification to recipient: after committee meeting Public award announcement: to be confirmed

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02 For more, see the AIPC page on the EACTS website 04

OPCAB/MICS CABG Fellowship 2022

Five new Fellowships, supported by Medtronic

This gives newly graduated cardiothoracic surgeons from around the world the opportunity to enhance their clinical understanding and to acquire theoretical and practical knowledge in the surgical management of patients with coronary artery disease, with special interest in off-pump and minimal invasive techniques. Closing date for applications: 29 September October: applications sent to committee for review Notification to recipient: after committee meeting Public award announcement: to be confirmed

For more, see the OPCAB page on the EACTS website

MSTCVS Quality and Outcomes Fellowship 2022

One new Fellowship to visit Michigan, US

The successful candidate gets a unique, careerenhancing training opportunity in this six-month placement at one of the world’s leading centres of excellence.

Closing Date for applications: 29 September October: applications sent to committee for review Notification to recipient: after committee meeting Public award announcement: to be confirmed

For more, see the MSTCVS page on the EACTS website

Alina Gallo talks about her experience of the Aortic Valve Repair Fellowship, which she completed in 2019

At what stage was your career when you applied for the AVR Fellowship in 2019? I was a consultant at the cardiac surgery department of the Maggiore della Carità Hospital in Novara. As an independent surgeon, I already had some experience on aortic root and ascending aortic surgery. I became a specialist in cardiac surgery in 2013, and from the beginning I focused my career on the practical aspect of surgery, with the aim of becoming an independent surgeon. After training, I worked at San Donato Milanese Hospital where I had the opportunity to work with Professor Lorenzo Menicanti. That taught me that a surgeon has to be able to perform surgery in any situation and not stay safe watching others doing it, waiting for plain and easy cases. As he advised, I ‘jumped and swam’. I moved to Mirano, Veneto, where I started to perform surgery as first operator.

What was it that prompted you to apply for the Fellowship? I was reading the EACTS newsletter and became aware of the Francis Fontan Fund. I was taken by The Aortic Root and Valve Repair Fellowship because it is the topic that I love most. I thought I must not miss the chance to apply. I won and it was such an honour that I put all myself into this amazing experience.

Did taking up the Fellowship involve any upheaval? Not really. I asked the hospital management for a study leave for the days required to attend the Fellowship. They said yes because it was also a prestigious opportunity for them and reflected well on the hospital itself.

Overall, what was your experience of your time spent on the Fellowship? The Fellowship is perfect for a consultant cardiac surgeon, having the right balance between theory and practice. During the two-week internship I spent in Brussels and Homburg, I tried to watch and ‘steal’ skill and expertise as much as I could. I had the unique opportunity to observe how Professor Gebrine El Khoury and Professor Hans-Joachim Schäfers, two of the most important surgeons of our time, run a department and manage complex cardiac operations. The Fellowship completely met my expectations. I would recommend it to every young surgeon who wants to learn from the experts. What would you say have been the key things you’ve learnt about your specialty and about yourself during the Fellowship? Cardiac disease can be addressed in many different ways depending on the expertise of the surgeon, but the difference is made by the surgeon who can offer the best-suited solution to the patient’s specific problem. Travelling around and meeting surgeons from different countries and with different educational programmes opens your mind and enriches you. There will be always something you can learn.

How has it affected the trajectory of your career? It has allowed me to meet and talk with world-famous cardiac surgeons, and has enhanced my self-confidence. It has also influenced my career choices, helping me to leave my comfort zone and move to a centre with a higher patient volume with aortic root, ascending aorta and aortic arch pathologies. I now work at Santi Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo Hospital in Alessandria. I have good expertise in aortic root surgery and now I am improving and learning complex surgical techniques, such as the ‘frozen elephant trunk’ technique, which was one of the topics of the ‘Introduction to Aortic Surgery’ course I attended as part of the Fellowship.

What would your advice be to anybody thinking of applying for a Fellowship? When I applied, I was a little intimidated by writing a letter of interest and asking my chief for a letter of support. I thought the best thing was to describe what my surgical career had been like to date, what I wanted to achieve, my dreams and why I really wanted to be selected: to start a programme on aortic valve repair in my department and make a difference for patients. To those considering applying, I would say that if this is the programme you’ve always dreamed of, you will be successful in applying.

The EACTS Academy offers advanced training programmes in surgical skills, developed in collaboration with experienced surgeons.

The EACTS Skills Programme now offers four separate modules for instruction where delegates can obtain different competencies. Each programme addresses the full range of skill levels and allows surgeons to start training at their current level of expertise. Courses are now classified as Level 1, 2, 3 or ‘Conferences/ summits’, depending on the target audience. This ensures that delegates can select the right courses at the right time in their careers. The course levels are:

Level 1

for residents in training with the course content closely allied to the EBCTS syllabus

Level 2

for residents in the final years of training and for surgeons at the beginning of independent practice

Level 3

for surgeons established in independent practice.

Conferences/summits Upcoming in 2021:

4 to 6 November, Berlin 5th EACTS Mechanical Circulatory Support Summit (Conference/summit) Content: interactive lectures, live-in-a-box cases, keynote presentations Audience: cardiologists, heart failure cardiologists, emergency and ICU specialists (ECLS), cardiac surgeons, perfusionists, heart-failure nurses and VAD coordinators, medical industry (cardiac device including ECMO development and production), paediatric cardiologists and congenital heart disease surgeons

15 to 16 November, Bologna The Aortic Forum (Conference/summit) Content: four half-day sessions devoted to the major areas of aortic surgery – each session features a live surgical case, invited presentations, four live-in-a-box videos and two abstract presentations related to each subject Audience: all cardiac and vascular surgeons, cardiologists, radiologists and anaesthetists

2 to 3 December, Maastricht Endoscopic Port-Access Mitral Valve Repair Drylab Training (Level 3) Content: true model of endoscopic port-access set-up, allowing training in the basic technique to full complex repairs. Audience: surgeons established in independent practice

9 to 10 December, virtual meeting Fundamentals in Cardiac Surgery: Mitral and Tricuspid Fundamentals in Cardiac Surgery: Mitral and Tricuspid Valve (Level 1) Content: Content: the online version of the updated ‘Fundamentals in the online version of the updated ‘Fundamentals in Cardiac Surgery’ series, being held as a virtual meeting and Cardiac Surgery’ series, being held as a virtual meeting and focusing particularly on the mitral and tricuspid valves. focusing particularly on the mitral and tricuspid valves. Audience: Audience: residents and fellows in cardiac surgical training residents and fellows in cardiac surgical training programmes programmes