Curriculum, Duties and Responsibilities

A typical day will consist of reading MRI, CT and radiographs in the MSK Reading room, scheduling and performing procedures (arthrograms, aspirations, biopsies), protocoling musculoskeletal MR exams, and providing consultation to colleagues and referring physicians. The fellow will also oversee and instruct Radiology residents assigned to the MSK rotation.

The fellows work closely with the subspecialty-trained MSK faculty, who will be present during all procedures, and provide direct supervision at the workstation as the examinations are reviewed.

Each fellow will rotate at Cincinnati Children's Hospital for four weeks, gaining experience in common pediatric MSK disorders. While there, fellows also have opportunity to attend weekly multidisciplinary sarcoma conference. MSK fellows also have optional elective time and can rotate through other radiology disciplines, including neuroradiology with opportunity to gain exposure to spine imaging and interventional procedures. Fellows are also encouraged to attend and observe orthopedic arthroscopies and surgeries, to allow for direct clinical correlation.

Each fellow is given opportunities in teaching of both residents and medical students, either at the work station or by participating in relevant conferences, including resident bone and MR conferences. Additional conferences include interesting case conferences held in the division, monthly journal club and follow-up conferences, as well as interdepartmental conferences with orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, and rheumatology.

Each fellow will meet with the program director early in the year to identify a project with the goal to submit an abstract for presentation at a national meeting, or complete a potentially publishable paper by the end of the year. The fellow will have a half day per week for academic pursuits. A research project is encouraged, however, some form of scholarly activity is required. Funding support is available to conduct a research project as well as to attend a national conference pending merit.

Non-accredited fellows are appointed to the faculty as clinical instructors and participate in independent interpretations of general radiology studies on call, in an effort to maintain and develop universal skills.

Supervision and Evaluation

Fellows are assigned a reasonable amount of in-hospital duty hours. The responsibility or independence given to fellows is dependent on his/her level of knowledge, manual skills and experience; however faculty coverage is present during all invasive procedures in accordance with HCFA recommendations.

Evaluation of the fellow will be performed quarterly by faculty members by means of a standardized evaluation form. Fellows will meet quarterly with the Program Director to review a composite of faculty evaluations and to discuss their progress to date.

At the end of the training program, the fellow will have the opportunity to evaluate the faculty as well as the overall effectiveness of the program in achieving its stated goals and objectives.