Quo vadis? How should we train cardiologists at the turn of the century?

BACKGROUND Cardiovascular medicine is weathering challenges on multiple fronts, and the paradigm of cardiovascular fellowship training has changed as a result. METHODS AND RESULTS On the basis of a review of the literature and surveys of former trainees, we have evaluated our Cardiovascular Fellowship Program at the University of Iowa. We have identified principles fundamental to the training of fellows. We extend these principles to propose practical ideas for responding to the challenges we face in the rapidly changing landscape of medicine in a new millennium. CONCLUSIONS We have proposed a few principles and numerous concrete, practical suggestions that will guide our Cardiovascular Fellowship in the future. These ideas may prove useful to other training programs.