Cardiology Specialty Profile

Cardiology

Cardiology involves the diagnosis and management of cardiovascular disease, ranging from acute life-threatening events such as myocardial infarction and cardiac arrhythmias to chronic problems such as hypertension and congenital heart disease. Cardiologists are versed in a number of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using the latest in medical gadgetry. Specific diagnoses can be made in the majority of patients, and effective therapies (whether medical, interventional or surgical) are often available. Cardiology is intellectually stimulating, and often adrenaline-charged.

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Cardiology Training Program

Training Program

Advanced training is overseen by the Specialist Advisory Committee (SAC) in cardiology. A comprehensive guide to the vocational training program is available from the RACP website in the advanced training section of the Requirements for Physician Training handbook.... more

Application process

Trainees are currently required to apply to individual hospitals for positions and then to the SAC for prospective approval. For the 2009 training year, state based centralised selection will be conducted in Victoria and NSW.... more

Length of Training

Advanced training in cardiology requires a minimum of 3 years, including a 2 year period of core training and one year of non core training typically devoted to research or gaining further experience in a specialized area of cardiology. Training... more

Cost of Training

see Physicians - Cost of Training... more

Availability/Competition for training positions

In 2006, cardiology had the most advanced physician trainees of all the adult internal medicine subspecialties at 129. There was an intake of 30 new advanced trainees. Positions for cardiology training tend to be very competitive.... more

Flexibility in Training

See Physicians - Flexibility in Training... more

Cardiology Workplace

The workplace

Cardiologists deal with a wide range of conditions, however congestive cardiac failure, ischaemic heart disease and cardiac arrhythmias account for large proportion of the total workload. There is a significant volume of both inpatient and outpatient work, and cardiologists are... more

The doctor-patient relationship

Cardiologists spend much of their time on direct patient care, and develop long term relationships with many of their patients. There is a predominance of patients over 45 years of age, a trend which is likely to continue in the... more

Intellectual content

A detailed knowledge of cardiovascular physiology, pharmacology and pathology is necessary. To a lesser extent, genetics, molecular biology, nuclear cardiology and radiation safety may be relevant to cardiology practice.... more

Medical indemnity

Currently about $15-20,000 per annum in private practice. Use our risk category tool to see what risk category is assigned to this specialty.... more

Lifestyle and Practice Options

Cardiology is a demanding specialty, with high work pressures. At the last Australia-wide survey in 1998, full time cardiologists worked an average of 60.5 hours per week. There are often significant on-call requirements, with frequent weekend work, particularly for coronary... more

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