University of Alabama at Birmingham--Advanced Endoscopy Fellowship

University of Alabama at Birmingham
1720 2nd Ave S
Birmingham, Alabama 35294
205-996-4059 (V)
Website


1 Position Available

Program Type: Both ERCP & EUS

Authorized Administrative Official: Kondal Kyanam (email)

Program Director: Kondal Kyanam (email)

Duration: 1 Year

Inclusive Dates of the Program: 7/1/2025 to 6/30/2026

Program Website: www.uab.edu/medicine/gastroenterology/

Accepts applicants from outside of North America? No

Accepts applicants with J1 visas? No

Accepts applicants with H1B visas? No

Accepts applicants with E3 visas? No

Supervised Procedures

Procedure		 Faculty Involved in AEF Training Total Annual Volume Annual Volume with hands-on AEF Involvement
ERCP 850 850 400
EUS 1250 1250 550
Lower GI EMR 150 150 30
Esophagogastroduodenal EMR 70 70 25
Esophagogastroduodenal ablation (e.g., RFA) 80 80 15
Small bowel enteroscopy 200 200 10
ESD 10 10 0
Bariatric endoscopy 0 0 0
POEM 0 0 0

Unsupervised Trainee Activities

Procedure		 Value
General GI procedures (per year) 200
Inpatient service (weeks/year) 4
Ambulatory clinics (per year) 20
Committed time for research (days/month) 3

Program Reporting Summary

The ASGE Training Committee requested that each AEF program voluntarily submit an annual report summarizing their advanced endoscopy procedure volume. You can view the provided report below.

Requirements for Application

  1. Standard ASGE Application Packet
    • ASGE Application
    • Post-Undergraduate Education
    • USMLE Scores
    • Certification of Completion of Residency
      1. Prior to appointment in the advanced endoscopy fellowship, fellows should have completed a three-year ACGME-accredited gastroenterology fellowship
      2. Fellows from non-ACGME-accredited programs must have completed at least three years of gastroenterology education prior to starting the fellowship
    • Personal Statement
    • Curriculum Vitae
    • 3 Letters of Reference

Additional Information about Program

The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Basil I Hirschowitz Endoscopic Center of Excellence is a nationally and internationally renowned center for advanced and therapeutic endoscopy. The faculty at the center perform a high volume of complex endoscopic procedures and have a multi-state referral base. UAB is a quaternary referral center and has multiple specialty services which are essential for the success of an advanced endoscopy (AE) program.

Dr. Hirschowitz after whom the endoscopy unit is named was one of the inventors of the endoscope and a pioneer in gastric physiology research. Interesting trivia--an endoscope he designed is displayed in the Smithsonian museum!

We perform a wide variety of endoscopic procedures including Endoscopic Ultrasound, Endosonographic pseudocyst drainage and necrosectomy, Endosonographic Biliary Drainage, Endoscopic Ultrasound guided transgastric ERCP (EDGE), Endoscopic Ultrasound guided gastrojejunostomy, Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio-Pancreatography, Spyglass Cholangioscopy and pancreatoscopy, Laser lithotripsy, Endoscopic Mucosal Resection, Endoscopic Sub-mucosal Dissection, Full Thickness resection, Endoscopic Luminal closure and stenting.

The third space endoscopy program (E-POEM, G-POEM, Z-POEM) which was successfully launched in August 2019 with over 100 successful cases has been re-launched in November 2022 and is back in full swing.

The bariatric and metabolic endoscopic program was launched in October 2022.

This highly competitive fellowship is designed to provide advanced training in pancreatico-biliary endoscopy and advanced luminal endoscopy. The fellowship can be adjusted to accommodate specific needs and interests fellows may have. Our first advanced endoscopy fellow, Dr. Ramzi Mulki, completed his fellowship in June 2021 and joined UAB as faculty.

During training, the AE fellow will participate in the various educational activities such as conferences, didactic lectures, grand rounds, tumor boards, animal lab, and ex vivo lab. They will also be exposed to the general gastroenterology training program syllabus. The AE fellow will be an integral member of the team running the AE consult service.

The main site of the training is the Basil I Hirschowitz Endoscopic Center of Excellence at the UAB Hospital Jefferson Towers endoscopy unit which has four endoscopy rooms, two of which have fluoroscopy units. The unit is undergoing a multimillion-dollar renovation.

Clinical and endoscopic research is encouraged and one major publication and two abstracts at national conferences are expected.

Service obligations include four separate weeks of general gastroenterology call (nights and weekends), one month (2 weeks at a time) of gastroenterology consult service with fellow/resident team, and a day per week of general endoscopy (EGD and colonoscopy) at the UAB Hospital Jefferson Towers endoscopy unit.

We participate in the ASGE AEF match.

Core faculty:

Dr. Kondal Kyanam (Director of Endoscopy and Program Director of Advanced Endoscopy Fellowship)
Dr. Shajan Peter (Director of Ambulatory Endoscopy)
Dr. Ali Ahmed
Dr. Ramzi Mulki
Dr. Sergio Sanchez-Luna

Please Note: All data in this program description is entered on a voluntary basis