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INTERNATIONAL CARDIOLOGIST ACQUIRES KNOWLEDGE, FRIENDSHIPS AT U.VA.

Dr. Raja Babu Panwar has a smile on his face as he walks down the halls of the University of Virginia Health System. While it is just another day for most physicians, for Panwar, it is one of the most exciting times of his career. Currently, Panwar, head of the Department of Cardiology at the Medical College of Bikaner in India, is completing a five-week mini-fellowship in U.Va.'s Division of Cardiology.

The busy training program at U.Va. has included rounds in the Coronary Care Unit, lectures, case discussions, read-with-expert sessions in echocardiography and nuclear cardiology and visits to cardiac catheterization, electrophysiology, echocardiography and nuclear cardiology laboratories. In addition, Panwar has spent hours enjoying the resources of the Health Sciences Library. The fellowship was made possible by the World Health Organization (WHO) through the U.Va.-WHO Collaborative Partnership.

Panwar looks forward to bringing the knowledge he acquired here back home. The learnings from this visit will allow me to provide my patients with superior treatment and improve the cardiology training program at my hospital in India, he said. I am very grateful to everyone who worked with me here for sharing their time and knowledge. I have met some wonderful, generous people here.

Panwar's visit is part of U.Va.'s ongoing effort to offer short-term training to international cardiologists. The goal is to familiarize physicians with current guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases so they may share the knowledge with colleagues in their home country.

At U.Va., we provide individualized, up-to-date postgraduate education for international physicians, Dr. Vladimir A. Kryzhanovski, director of the School of Medicine's International Programs. Heart disease is a particular area of focus because the body of knowledge in clinical cardiology continues to expand rapidly necessitating ongoing education. It is the number one killer in the world, yet there is little opportunity for personalized learning in cardiovascular medicine in most countries.

Panwar returns to India on July 5.

June 26, 2000