The ACC, the Heart Failure Society of America and the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation have released the 2020 ACC/HFSA/ISHLT Lifelong Learning Statement for Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology Specialists Feb. 17 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The document provides an outline of the key competencies required of advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology (AHFTC) specialists and complements formal AHFTC fellowship training.

Led by Writing Committee Chair Clyde W. Yancy, MD, MSc, MACC, and Vice Chair Mark H. Drazner, MD, MSc, FACC, the new document is a supplement to the 2017 Advanced Training Statement on AHFTC – which defined the competencies required for Level III training in AHFTC – and specifically addresses the commitment to sustaining and enriching competency over the span of a career.

Of note, the lifelong learning competencies for AHFTC specialists are organized using the six domains promulgated by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and the American Board of Medical Specialties and endorsed by the American Board of Internal Medicine. Clinical competencies and leadership and administrative competencies are also outlined.

According to Yancy and Drazner, "for the advanced heart failure specialist who is no longer actively engaged in transplant medicine or management of mechanical circulatory support, this document is especially useful as there is a discrimination of those lifelong competencies expected of all advanced heart failure specialists and those competencies unique to the specialist with a practice focus in transplant and mechanical circulatory support."

"The breadth of knowledge and skills expected of advanced heart failure/transplant cardiologists is highlighted by the length of competencies applicable to this specialty," Yancy and Drazner conclude.

Clinical Topics: Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathies, Acute Heart Failure

Keywords: Fellowships and Scholarships, Clinical Competence, Specialization, Leadership, Education, Medical, Graduate, Accreditation, Specialty Boards, Heart Failure, Lung Transplantation

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