Endocrinology Fellowship Training Program

Our fellowship training program is fully integrated at two participating institutions: MUSC University Medical Center and the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center (VAMC).

University Medical Center: The University Medical Center is the primary teaching hospital for our fellowship program. The 750-bed, tertiary care university hospital and research center is comprised of four major hospital facilities (University Hospital, MUSC Children's Hospital, Ashley River Tower, and the Institute of Psychiatry) and an NCI-designated cancer center, MUSC Hollings Cancer Center. University Medical Center is also home to South Carolina's only solid organ transplant center, the Level I Trauma Center, as well as one of only two National Telehealth Centers of Excellence.

The Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center (VAMC): The Ralph H. Johnson VAMC is located in Charleston adjacent to the MUSC campus. The VAMC is a primary, secondary, and tertiary referral medical center, providing acute medical, surgical, and psychiatric inpatient care as well as primary care and specialized outpatient services. Currently, there are 144 acute care beds and 28 nursing home care unit beds. The Charleston VAMC is closely affiliated with MUSC.

Consultation Services: On average, our fellows spend six months per year during a two-year fellowship learning inpatient management of diabetes mellitus and a host of complex endocrinopathies. At the University Hospital and VAMC, patients with endocrine-related concerns are admitted to the General Internal Medicine/Hospitalist Service and receive endocrine consultation as appropriate. In addition, our fellows participate in the inpatient Diabetes Management Service (DMS) which is staffed by an endocrinology attending and advanced practice providers. DMS provides consultative diabetes care to all adult inpatient services on request as part of a team-based approach to optimized care. While the Endocrine Consult service at the University Hospital is distinct from DMS, fellows spend time on both services. 

Fellows Continuity Clinics: Fellows spend time weekly in these clinics except when covering University Consults. Continuity clinics serve a broad population of VAMC and University Hospital patients including underserved, uninsured, and private referral. Thyroid Ultrasound/Procedures Clinic: This clinic provides an excellent array of thyroid pathology, concentrated within the endocrine clinic under the supervision of Dr. Soonho Kwon. Fellows gain hands on experience with ultrasound and fine needle aspiration (FNA) and are well-equipped to continue these skills independently in their own practice upon graduation. This clinic also facilitates close working relationships with Pathology, Radiology and Endocrine Surgery.

Lipid Disorders Clinic: Fellows work one-on-one with Dr. Marc Cornier seeing challenging lipid cases.

Endocrine Tumor Clinic: Under the direction of Dr. Jyotika Fernandes, this clinic brings together Endocrinology, Neurosurgery, Head and Neck Surgery, and Endocrine Surgery in a multidisciplinary setting. The focus of this clinic is evaluation and management of patients with pituitary tumors, including conditions such as Acromegaly, Cushing's disease, hypopituitarism and other hypothalamic-pituitary disorders, thyroid neoplasia, parathyroid disease, and tumors of the adrenal cortex and medulla.

Intensive Diabetes Education, Awareness, and Lifestyle (IDEAL) Program: Fellows work closely with endocrine faculty, MSN-CDE nurse educators, and nutritionists to master the care of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Hybrid closed-loop intensive insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), and other intensive insulin regimens are initiated and managed, together with state-of-the-art surveillance programs for diabetic complications.

Obesity Clinic: Fellows participate in the evaluation and management of obesity, with an emphasis on pharmacologic therapies and a multidisciplinary approach.

Private Attending Clinics: Fellows are exposed to a vast array of endocrine pathologies working one-on-one with various faculty.

Elective rotations: Fellows are assigned an average of two months per year of elective time. While continuing to attend continuity clinics and educational conferences, they can choose to devote their time to research and/or various clinical experiences, depending on their interests. There are dedicated elective rotations including Nuclear Medicine (review of bone density scans, radioactive iodine in the treatment of hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer), Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Endocrine Disorders in Pregnancy Clinic/Management of Maternal (MOM) Diabetes, Endocrine Surgery Clinic, Pediatrics, Ophthalmology, and Podiatry, among others. Candidates interested in a research or an academic career are encouraged to seek more in-depth, laboratory-based projects, with a goal of defining a subspecialty interest and a project which will provide a platform for developing a solid research background and the skills to ultimately direct an independent research program. These candidates are encouraged to devote a third year to research training.

Fellows are excused from clinical duties to attend each of the following conferences:

Introduction to Clinical Endocrinology: This series is held throughout July and August and includes lectures presented by clinical faculty to provide new fellows with the basic information necessary to transition smoothly from medicine resident to endocrine fellow.

Concepts in Molecular Endocrinology: This series is held weekly during September and October, taking the place of Research Conference and Journal Club for the first 6 sessions. The series is intended for endocrine subspecialty fellows and postdoctoral basic research fellows, although pediatric endocrinology and internal medicine residents, medical students, and basic science and clinical faculty are encouraged to attend. The purpose of the series is to introduce fellows to concepts in basic research in molecular endocrinology, to develop a familiarity with the language of basic science and enhance the educational benefit of Research Conference and Journal Club. Didactic lectures are presented by research faculty of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases.

Endocrine Grand Rounds: This conference is held weekly throughout the academic year and is attended by fellows and clinical teaching faculty. Faculty and trainees from other collaborating services, e.g. Pathology, Nuclear Medicine, Neurosurgery, and Ophthalmology, are routinely invited and often participate and present data. It is a CME-accredited conference. Visiting Professors are invited throughout the year to present recent, clinically relevant research.

Medicine Grand Rounds: Held weekly throughout the year with option of virtual or in-person attendance.

Tumor Board: This bimonthly multidisciplinary conference involving Endocrinology, Endocrine Surgery, Radiology and Pathology, is dedicated to the review of challenging cases of thyroid, parathyroid, and adrenal masses.

Journal Club: This literature review conference is held monthly. All teaching faculty attend. Emphasis is placed on learning to critically analyze literature, focusing on recent endocrine and metabolic topics of interest.

Interesting Case Conference: Fellows present a case with a diagnostic or management challenge at this monthly conference. All clinical faculty attend, and cases are designed to facilitate large group discussions.

Research Conference: Faculty, senior endocrine fellows, or guest faculty from other departments or institutions are invited to present their research in an hour-long seminar format. It is a CME-accredited conference and generates collaborative efforts between investigators.

Diabetes Conference: Held quarterly, this is led by our DMS Director, Dr. Rosenberg, and focuses on relevant diabetes literature and clinical updates.

Cardiometabolic Conference: This is a joint meeting with the Cardiology Fellowship Program held quarterly to review cases and recent guidelines related to cardiovascular disease prevention.

Board Review: Twice monthly, fellows review questions and topics relevant to the Endocrine Board Exam with a faculty facilitator.