Christine M. Kleinert Institute for Hand and Micro Surgery

Educational Program

Lectures
Workshops
Courses and Meetings
Clinical Curriculum

Whether through observation, hands-on experience in either the microsurgery or fresh dissection laboratory, lectures by faculty or visiting professors, or assistance with a research project, fellows and residents are encouraged to broaden their scope of medicine. All of our physicians feel we should constantly search for new and better solutions to the problems our patients present us with, and consideration should always be given to not only the treatment we give but also how that treatment will affect the patients long term.

The educational experience of fellows consists of didactic conferences and lectures as well as clinical experience--in the office, the emergency room, and the operating room--where fellows may assist with or perform, under direct supervision, approximately 6,000 surgical procedures. Fellows rotate with different staff with different backgrounds and areas of clinical focus. We feel the fellows will learn more by being exposed to a variety of interdisciplinary approaches to upper limb problems.
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Lectures

Academic training includes five daily core conferences each week. The general outline for the conferences is:

Staff lectures on Mondays and Tuesdays
Lectures by fellows on Wednesdays
Biomechanics series and evidence-based medicine series on Thursdays
Case presentations and Journal Clubs on Fridays

The core conferences are interspersed with lectures by visitors and outside faculty.

Click here to view the lecture curriculum plan.
Click here to view the actual lecture schedule.

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Workshops

Microlab
One week of basic microsurgical training is provided through the MicroLab, sponsored by CMKI and taught by Dr. Gustavo Perez-Abadia. Fellows may arrange to return to the Microlab for additional experience. Click here to read more about the Microlab.

Internal fixation
A two-day internal fixation workshop is given annually to the fellows and residents. Click here to view the 2007 course outline.

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Courses and Meetings

Flap Course
This is a weekend meeting offered yearly unless the subject of Focus on Anatomy is flaps. Click here for more information.

EMG/NCS
This course, offered on a Saturday, covers technical and clinical aspects of electrodiagnostic nerve studies. Click here for more information on the EMG/NCS course.

TriCity meeting
Each year on a Friday in the Spring, a regional conference is conducted in conjunction with Indianapolis and Cincinnati Hand units so that Fellows may present their findings for critique and comments from faculty and fellows from Dr. Stern's group and the Indianapolis group.
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Clinical Curriculum

Fellows receive clinical training through one- or two-month rotations on separate services. Initial patient evaluation is performed by the Fellows, whether in the office or the ER. The Fellow outlines his treatment plan for the patient and then consults with the attending who makes modifications as necessary.

Fellows also perform pre-operative and post-operative evaluations in clinic two days per week. The Fellow scrubs as first assistant with the attending and then follows the patient's progress. Surgery is scheduled 2-3 days per week for each attending staff. Call occurs every third or fourth night. Fellows usually take first call with the attending they are currently rotating with.
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Kleinert Kutz
2007 Magazine