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Greetings from Rochester, Minn.: notes from Endocrine University
It was about 7:00 a.m. on a Saturday in early March. I had checked into the hotel less than seven hours before, and it felt like I had fallen asleep seven minutes ago. Though a bit jet-lagged, I felt a sense of excitement as I received my two hefty syllabus books, official T-shirt and schedule. Including the intrepid yours truly, 238 second-year fellows from 120 endocrinology fellowship programs descended on the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., for the 8th Annual Endocrine University.
The conference is designed to enhance the practical experience that we are exposed to in our own training programs before entering clinical practice. Over five days, we were immersed in lectures, small-group sessions and hands-on labs. We had the opportunity to break bread and ask questions of distinguished endocrinologists from Mayo Clinic and throughout the country. Meeting other fellows from all over, and, in some cases, seeing others I had met at conferences was an added bonus. The days were packed but fun and intellectually fulfilling.
The two-day American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists Diagnostic Endocrine Neck Ultrasound and UGFNA Course kicked off the conference, with lectures ranging from thyroid anatomy to evaluation of thyroid nodules to cytopathology, as well as areas of consensus and controversy. We enjoyed an interactive lunch session on pituitary cases, with an emphasis on hyperprolactinemia. We divided into small groups in the afternoon for a hands-on session on fine needle aspiration and practiced doing ultrasound and identifying landmarks such as the isthmus and the carotid artery on each other, as well as fine needle aspiration technique on grapes embedded within chicken breasts.
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Days three and four focused on bone density measurement, and at the close of the session we were given the opportunity to become certified by the International Society for Clinical Densitometry after completion of a one-hour written exam. Those interested could join a tour of some areas of the Mayo Clinic, including its library, exhibits rife with history and the Endocrine Clinic. We also had the opportunity to attend small-group Meet the Experts sessions on nutrition, new treatments for diabetes, thyroid surgery, pediatric endocrinology, osteoporosis management and case studies in diabetes care.
One of the dinners featured endocrine pearls presented in eight cases that were “relevant to the practicing endocrinologist but not widely appreciated” and were designed to be “to the point and keep [us all] on our toes after a long day of learning.” We keyed in our answers using an audience response system and the speaker offered a friendly competition between the fellows and him. The final day and a half explored topics such as coding, the business of medicine, negotiating contracts, office-based lab medicine, insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitoring sensors. The conference closed with a talk on diabetes and pregnancy.
Participation in Endo University
You must be a final-year fellow, be nominated by your program director and be an AACE member (join at aace.com/membership — it’s complimentary for fellows). Nomination and registration forms are mailed in the summer. Hotel accommodations and most meals are provided. Conference registration is $300 but a $450 travel grant is furnished to assist with transportation.
From my unscientific sampling of fellows I spoke with, the unanimous and enthusiastic consensus was that “Endo U was awesome — a tremendous learning experience” that was “intense, but very valuable — we got to discuss practical issues that we usually don’t get enough time to cover.” As far as I know, this type of meeting is unique to endocrinology among the internal medicine subspecialties. I’m confident that I speak for all of the fellows who attended in heartily applauding the faculty and staff, the American College of Endocrinology, AACE, the Mayo Clinic and Novo Nordisk for organizing this unique and enriching aspect of our training.
Edward C. Chao, DO, is a Fellow at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center in the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, and is a member of the Endocrine Today Fellows Advisory Board.