Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship
Sands-Constellation Heart Institute
Director’s Letter
It is my privilege to be a part of the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship. Our team is honored to provide a diverse and supportive community that fosters the growth of tomorrow’s cardiologists as compassionate, knowledgeable and capable of enhancing lives and preserving health through education, wellness promotion, and research.
The Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship program at Rochester Regional Health is built on a strong foundation and history of training physicians who have enhanced our communities. We believe medical education is at the forefront of healthcare, and this program further strengthens our unwavering commitment to excellent, high-quality care. It combines the two things we are most passionate about – patient care and exceptional clinical cardiology training.
While our program is focused on providing the care our community needs and deserves, we are not your typical community hospital program. We take care of the sickest of the sick in our community and have an extremely complex case load, which includes many structural cases, ECMO procedures, LVAD placements and open heart surgery.
I am looking forward to the growth of this fellowship program and the many successes of our fellows.
Sincerely,
Mohan Rao, MD, FACC
Program Director
Our RRH community strives to cultivate and promote diversity and inclusion at all levels, empowering each team member to show up as themselves daily.
We believe that our collective diversity in backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives, coupled with an inclusive and just environment that harnesses and celebrates that diversity is fundamental in our efforts to improve the health and well-being of all our team members, patients, and communities in which we are privileged to serve.
About the Program
Rochester Regional Health’s ACGME-accredited Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship program had its inaugural year in 2019. Our Cardiovascular Disease Fellows are trained by the nationally-renowned group of physicians at the Sands-Constellation Heart Institute. Fellows are offered the opportunity to study various areas of Cardiology at Rochester Regional Health, and have the option to select elective rotations based on clinical interest.
The overall goal of our cardiovascular disease fellowship program are to:
- Develop the skills, knowledge attitudes leading to proficiency in all the domains of clinical competency required by the cardiology fellow to assume personal responsibility for the care of individual patients.
- Embrace the concept of graded responsibility in patient care. Our aim is for the fellows to gain experience and demonstrate growth in their ability to care for patients with cardiovascular disease and progressively assume roles that permit them to exercise those skills with greater independence and to develop competency to practice clinical cardiology independently.
- Develop the skills, knowledge, competencies and attitudes required to enter the unsupervised practice of clinical cardiology.
- Establish a strong foundation for continued professional growth.
- Learn to value of becoming part of a multidisciplinary team to achieve the goal of best patient care.
- To establish a caring attitude and sensitivity to the health care needs of a diverse society.
Areas of Study
- Advanced Cardiac Imaging
- Advanced Heart Failure and Circulatory Support
- Ambulatory Cardiology
- Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory
- Cardiac Electrophysiology
- Cardiac Intensive Care Unit
- Cardiovascular Clinical Research
- Clinics
- CT/MRI Advanced Imaging
- CT SURG
- Echocardiography
- General Cardiology
- Nuclear Cardiology Imaging
- Rural Care
Curriculum
The Rotation Schedule for the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship is:
PGY-4
| ROTATION | WEEKS |
| Echo | 8 |
| Nuclear Imaging | 4 |
| Catheterization Lab | 8 |
| RGH General Consults | 6 |
| Unity General Consults | 4 |
| Night Float | 6 |
| CICU | 8 |
| Electrophysiology | 4 |
| Unity Imaging | 4 |
| TOTAL | 52 |
PGY-5
| ROTATION | WEEKS |
| Echo | 4 |
| Nuclear Imaging | 4 |
| Catheterization Lab | 4 |
| RGH General Consults | 4 |
| Unity General Consults | 4 |
| Night Float | 4 |
| CICU | 8 |
| Electrophysiology | 4 |
| Unity Imaging | 4 |
| CT Surgery/Advance Imaging | 4 |
| Elective | 8 |
| TOTAL | 52 |
PGY-6
| ROTATION | WEEKS |
| Echo | 8 |
| Nuclear Imaging | 4 |
| Catheterization Lab | 4 |
| RGH General Consults | 2 |
| Rural Rotation | 2 |
| CICU | 4 |
| Unity General Consults | 4 |
| Elective | 24 |
| TOTAL | 52 |
We also offer a rural cardiology elective in Batavia, NY and Clifton, NY.
How to Apply
ERAS is a service which transmits residency applications, recommendation letters, Dean’s Letters, transcripts, and other supporting credentials from medical schools to fellowship programs electronically.
Applicants to the Rochester Regional Health Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program are required to apply to the program using ERAS.
We welcome candidates of all backgrounds with diversity in both their academic and personal experiences. For this application year, we have seven cardiovascular disease fellow positions in the NRMP Match. Applications will be accepted from July 3 through July 17. The selection committee selects applicants to interview beginning on September 17, with invites sent out over the subsequent weeks. We strongly encourage you to schedule your interview as early as possible as interview slots fill quickly. Sponsorship of J1 and H1 VISAS are accepted and subject to current immigration regulations.
We require a minimum of:
• 3 Letters of Reference
• 1 Program Director Letter of Reference
• CV
• Personal Statement
Interviews
Under ACGME guidance, and in trying to keep as fair and safe as possible for all prospective applicants, fellowship interviews for 2023 – 2024 season will be offered virtually.
After selecting applicants to interview for the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship program, specific information will be sent via email to schedule your interview through ERAS. All links and details regarding the virtual interview will be provided. Interviews will take place in September and October.
Please do not contact the program office to inquire about the status of your application. We are unable to provide specific information on individual applications.
Contact
Have questions or need to get in touch with us? Please contact:
Allison Olaode
Program Manager
Email Us
Why Choose Rochester Regional Health
Program Leadership
Mohan Rao, MD, FACC
Program Director Specialty: Cardiac Electrophysiology
Akbar Ahmed, MD, FACC
Associate Program Director Specialty: Interventional Cardiology
Bipul Baibhav, MD, FACC
Associate Program Director Specialty: General Cardiology and Advanced Imaging
Mallory Balmer-Swain, DO, FACC
Associate Program Director Specialty: General Cardiology
David Corteville, MD
Key Clinical Faculty Specialty: General Cardiology
Scott Feitell, DO
Key Clinical Faculty Specialty: Heart Failure
Ryan Hoefen, MD, PhD, FACC
Site Director, Unity Hospital Specialty: General Cardiology
Soidjon D. Khodjaev, MD
Key Clinical Faculty – CICU
Gaurav Sharma, MD
Key Clinical Faculty Specialty: General Cardiology
Guy McCrea, MD, FACC
Associate Site Director, Unity Hospital Specialty: General Cardiology
Dalton Miranda, MD
Core Faculty
Roshan Karki, MD
Core Faculty
Elizabeth Lee, MD
Core Faculty
Rawa Sarji, DO
Core Faculty
Naila Choudhary, MD
Core Faculty
Allison Olaode
Program Manager
Benefits & Compensation
Medical Insurance
Opportunity to enroll in one of two comprehensive medical insurance plans.
Dental Insurance
Option to purchase one of two plans.
Life insurance
Employer paid coverage equal to 1x salary with option to purchase added coverage up to five (5) times annual salary.
Vision/Hearing Plan
Option to purchase a vision & hearing plan.
Short-Term Disability
Residents are entitled to up to six months of pay in the event of an approved disability, compensated at 60% of the resident stipend.
Long-Term Disability
Residents are provided with long-term disability of 50% of resident stipend in the event of an approved long-term disability. Residents have an option to purchase additional long-term disability to bring the amount up to 66.67%.
EAP
EAP is free, confidential service for employees and immediate family members that provides assistance with everyday work and family issues, as well as more challenging personal concerns.
Retirement
Option to enroll in tax deferred annuity plan.
Paid Vacation / Holiday
Travel & Education Allowance
An allowance will be provided for education items and activities for each year of fellowship:
PGY4, $4,000
PGY5, $5,000
PGY6, $6,000
Salaries are paid on a bi-weekly basis. The salaries for the 2024-2025 academic year will be: (salary + stipend)
$79,000
PGY-4
$83,000
PGY-5
$86,000
PGY-6
Why Rochester?
The Greater Rochester area, in the Finger Lakes region of New York, is a truly unique place to live and work. Rochester’s urban arts, entertainment and dining venues are complemented by surrounding suburban, rural and lakefront communities. This results in a wealth of options for work and play.
Contact Us
Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program
Allison Olaode
Program Manager
