 Education in partnership with

European Society of Thoracic Imaging (ESTI) =

 Online Application

OPEN until March 18, 2024

 Evaluation Committee

Anagha P. Parkar, Thomas Frauenfelder and Jürgen Biederer

 Training Centers

Please click HERE to view all available training centers.

 How to apply

Applicants are asked:

To log into the MyUser Area of the ESR Website and to select the button “Exchange Programmes for Fellowships”
(If you are not an ESR Member or need to renew your ESR Membership, please click here.)
To then opt for the respective subspecialty
To select one preferred training centre and to indicate a second as well as a third choice
To upload the following documents as one single PDF file (maximum size 8 MB) in the order listed below:

Letter of motivation (addressed to the Evaluation Committee) including a summary of their training background, areas of particular strength and interest and a brief description of how they would hope to implement and apply their medical training. (This is a very important document, please take your time when you prepare it.)
CV – It is mandatory to use this template: ESOR curriculum vitae template (DOC) otherwise the applicaiton will not be considered
A certificate verifying recent board certification in radiology (no longer than three-four years ago)
Letter(s) of recommendation (addressed to the Evaluation Committee) from the head of department of the current training centre or a previously undertaken academic training

Exchange Programme for Thoracic Imaging Fellowships (ESTI)

Aim

New technologies in thoracic radiology have resulted in amazing breakthroughs with rapid development and refinement of sophisticated diagnostic imaging tests. These innovations have greatly affected the requirements for today’s practice of thoracic radiology.

The increasing awareness of the required expertise in chest radiology has led the European Society of Thoracic Imaging (ESTI), supported by the European Society of Radiology (ESR) and the European School of Radiology (ESOR), to take the initiative in establishing an exchange programme for fellowships and a dedicated subspecialty training in thoracic radiology.

It offers an attractive extension of an existing subspecialty training or fellowship in thoracic radiology through an additional exchange programme with dedicated reference centres in Europe. The three-month exchange programme will provide an intense modular training in all areas of thoracic radiology, including projection radiography, CT, MRI, and image-guided interventions.

The exchange programme is organised through ESOR and will expose trainees to all aspects of thoracic radiology under the supervision of an assigned mentor, who is a member of ESTI.

Number of available places

Three places will be offered and organised through ESOR. The successful applicants will receive a grant jointly provided by ESR/ESOR and ESTI.

Eligibility

The exchange programme applies to radiologists within their first three-four years after certification, who desire to become subspecialist radiologists.
The applicant must have knowledge of current clinical practice in radiology with regard to cross-sectional imaging. Essentials are competence in producing a radiological report, in communication with clinicians and patients and knowledge of the principles of administration and management applied to a clinical department with multi-disciplinary staff and high-cost equipment. Understanding the medicolegal implications of uncertainty and errors in diagnostic radiology is necessary. A clinical background in other disciplines which was achieved through clinical experience and training prior to entering the fellowship. Clinical experience in respiratory medicine, pneumology, pulmonary oncology, thoracic surgery, or anaesthesiology would be a benefit.
Applicants must be fluent in English.
An active ESR and ESTI membership is required.

PLEASE NOTE:

Applicants who were selected for this programme in the past cannot be considered for a second time.
It will be possible to apply for one programme and within this programme for one topic only.
To ensure equal opportunities candidates should apply only to institutions outside of their country of residence/work.
All applications will be carefully reviewed by an evaluation committee after the submission deadline.
The selected candidates will be asked to provide additional documents to the training centre for administrative purposes.
A valid Covid-19 vaccination certificate will be required by most hospitals.
The selected fellows are further asked to take care of their health insurance and are responsible for their visa. (Please make sure to apply well in time because of longer waiting periods.)

Duration of fellowship and funding

The training starts in the second half of the year and lasts for three months. The fellow receives a grant (€3.500,-) upon the completion of the training, the delivery of a final report and the submission of original flight tickets and accommodation receipts. The grant is intended to contribute in part to travel and accommodation expenses during the training period. ESOR cannot guarantee that the grant will cover these costs in full. During the training period the fellow is responsible for covering his/her expenses and his/her own health insurance. The training itself is offered for free. Please note that in particular cases administrative charges may arise, which are to be covered by the grant.

Programme structure

Based on weekly training programme modules, the trainee will familiarise him/herself with the institution’s imaging equipment. He/She will then learn to become proficient at imaging examinations used in diagnosing thoracic diseases, to review and interpret images followed by case-by-case hands-on teaching on routine clinical cases with different modalities taught by an experienced staff. The training institutions expose each trainee to at least 250 mentored imaging studies. Furthermore, the trainee shall be trained by a mentor in the interpretation of 100 imaging studies from an established teaching file or previous cases. At the end of the training programme, the trainee should be proficient in discussing the appropriate imaging modality and imaging technique with referring clinicians and be able to interpret different thoracic radiology examinations on his/her own.

In non-native English speaking training centres teaching would be in English, while major radiological conferences and reporting may be in the local language. Some knowledge of the local language may be an advantage.

The trainee will be able to observe clinical activities, but will not have direct patient care responsibilities.

It is the trainee’s responsibility to communicate with the centre regarding the details of the training and whether more responsibilities than observer status can be obtained. ESOR solely acts as facilitator and coordinator between the training centre and the trainee.

Certification

After successful completion of the three-month training the trainee receives a certificate from ESR/ESOR and ESTI. In order to receive this, the fellow must present a written report about his/her work and activities during the programme.