UT Southwestern
Gastrointestinal Pathology Fellowship
Overview
The Gastrointestinal (GI) and Liver Pathology Fellowship is a Texas Medical Board-approved program offered by the Department of Pathology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. It is a one- year fellowship with comprehensive training in diagnostic GI and liver pathology that includes in- depth exposure to all aspects of the specialty. The Fellowship Program covers a full spectrum of adult and pediatric medical and neoplastic diseases and transplant-related pathology of the digestive system.
The fellow is given graduated responsibility for signing out cases. The fellow is expected to participate in independent and collaborative research, including the initiation and completion of at least one research project during the course of the year.
Length of Program: One year
Program Structure
The Gastrointestinal (GI) and Liver Pathology Fellowship Program is structured to provide all needed core training over a one-year period and to ensure proficiency in practice in GI and liver pathology (gross pathology, histology, immunohistochemistry, and molecular diagnostics).
The clinical responsibilities the fellow assumes during the year of training include:
- Sign-out of in-house GI, liver, and pancreaticobiliary cases
- Review of all GI and liver consult cases
- Grossing of selected liver resection/explant specimens
- Presentation and participation in GI and liver conferences
- Participation in research project(s)
- Study of GI/liver teaching sets
While on call, the fellow performs all frozen sections requested, diagnoses all emergent biopsies, and generally functions as junior faculty. A faculty member is in-house for backup, if needed.
Conference Schedule
During the year, the fellow works closely with the GI and liver multidisciplinary team, actively participating in weekly conferences and providing service and consultation to clinicians in matters relating to GI and liver diseases.
The GI and Liver Fellowship mandatory conferences include:
- Colorectal Cancer Conference (weekly)
- Liver Biopsy Review Conference (weekly)
- GI team meeting (weekly)
- Liver Transplant Committee (weekly)
- IBD conference (monthly)
- GI Pathology Conference (bimonthly)
- Liver Pathology Conference (bimonthly)
Other conferences and educational endeavors in which the fellow may be involved include:
- Surgical Pathology Consensus Conference (daily)
- Pathology Grand Rounds (monthly)
- Participation in developing, reviewing, and modifying GI gross manual, diagnosis templates, and synoptic reports (for GI and liver tumors)
The fellow is expected to present pathology at some of the above conferences. Cases with questions should be discussed with the appropriate faculty member prior to the conference.
Research
The fellow is expected to participate in one or more research projects related to GI, liver, and pancreaticobiliary pathology, to submit and present the abstracts to national scientific meetings, and to publish the data in pathology/biomedical journals.
Goals and Objectives
The overall goals are to acquire the necessary medical knowledge, diagnostic skills, and experience to practice as a subspecialty expert in GI, liver, and pancreaticobiliary pathology and to gain research experience and skills.
Specifically, goals and objectives include:
- To become proficient in pathology and diagnosis of gastrointestinal, hepatic, and pancreatic tumors, their precursors, and their mimics
- To develop an understanding of the clinical features of gastrointestinal, hepatic, and pancreatic diseases, including diagnostic evaluation of patients, treatment algorithms, and tumor-staging parameters and prognostic indices
- To become proficient in pathology and diagnosis of non-neoplastic and transplant-related gastrointestinal and liver disease
Evaluation of the Fellow
The program directors and other GI pathology faculty members with whom the fellow interacts will evaluate the fellow on a semiannual basis.
Requirements
Prospective candidates must have completed an ACGME-accredited residency in anatomic pathology, must be board eligible or board certified in anatomic or anatomic and clinical pathology by the American Board of Pathology, and must be eligible for a medical license to practice in Texas by the beginning of the Fellowship Program.
Salary
The salary will be commensurate with the applicant’s level of training.
Contact
Purva Gopal MD, MS
Pathology Education Office
UT Southwestern Medical Center
5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75390-9073
Phone: 214-645-3711
purva.gopal@utsouthwestern.edu