Dear Doctor :
Thank you for
expressing an interest in the spine fellowship. It is operated under the auspices
of a non-profit organization called The Foundation for Orthopaedic, Athletic and Reconstructive Research. The fellowship begins on August 1 and ends on July 31 of the following year.
If you have never
been to Houston,
let us begin by describing a little about the city. It is the fourth largest
city in the United States and as such, has many social and
cultural activities. The Museum District is conveniently located near the Texas
Medical Center and offers fine and contemporary
arts, sculpture and natural science exhibits. The area includes the city's major
museums as well as art galleries, theaters, three universities, and a large public park.
Hermann Park contains the world
famous Houston Zoo and an eighteen hole golf course.
Visitors to Houston
who arrive by air may choose from one of the city's two commercial airports, George H.W. Bush International or William P.
Hobby. Bush International is the larger of the two and is approximately thirty
to forty-five minutes from the Medical Center
while Hobby is about twenty to thirty minutes away. The Houston
airport system is the thirteenth largest in the world and tenth largest in the United States. The airports provide service to over one hundred U.S.
cities and twenty-eight cities abroad. Rental cars, limousines and taxicabs are
easily accessible.
The temperature
in Houston is considered temperate with winters being mild averaging only three
to four weeks of chilly weather between December and February. Spring and autumn
temperatures range from sixty to eighty degrees and the summer climate is hot. Fortunately,
everything in Houston is air-conditioned!
Rain is frequent and often unpredictable so an umbrella is handy.
Houston
is proud of both its professional and intercollegiate athletic programs. Minute
Maid Park is the home for the Houston Astros in
the National Baseball League. The two-time NBA Champion Houston Rockets are the
professional men’s basketball team and the Houston Comets are the professional women’s basketball team and the
four time WNBA Champions. Both teams play at the Toyota
Center that is conveniently located in downtown Houston. The Houston Aeros are the professional hockey team and the Hotshots are the professional
soccer team. The Houston Texans are the new NFL football team that play in another
new stadium in Reliant Park. Rice University, Texas Southern University, and the University of Houston offer a full range of NCAA Division
I athletics and showcase many world class athletes in both men's and women's sports.
Recreational
opportunities abound with golf, tennis, cycling, and horseback riding available year-round.
The Gulf of Mexico and Galveston are forty-five
minutes south of the Medical Center. Numerous beaches and excellent fishing make this a popular tourist resort. Fresh water lakes for skiing and fishing are a short drive away.
The Texas Medical
Center (TMC) is now recognized as the world's largest medical complexes. The University
of Texas and Baylor College of Medicine both provide medical schools and large
research facilities within the TMC. There are fourteen hospitals in the TMC: eight offering full service and six providing specialized care. M. D. Anderson
Hospital is world-renowned for its advancements in the treatment of cancer. The Methodist Hospital
and the Texas Heart Institute house the cardiovascular teams of Drs’ DeBakey and Cooley respectively. The Shriners Hospital
for Children, University Children's Hospital at Hermann and Texas Children's Hospital are outstanding pediatric facilities.
Memorial Hermann Hospital
operates one of the first Life Flight programs in the nation and serves as the primary teaching facility for the University
of Texas – Houston Medical
School. Space does not permit a more
detailed picture of the TMC, but hopefully the opportunity it offers for medical education is already evident.
Goals and characteristics
The goal of our
fellowship is to provide excellent clinical training in the evaluation and treatment of the entire spectrum of spinal disorders. Our fellowship has specific rotations that emphasize cervical and lumbar degenerative
disorders, spinal column trauma, spinal column and spinal cord tumors and spinal deformity.
The fellow rotates with both neurosurgical and orthopaedic spine surgeons.
The rotations
will be at: Memorial Hermann Hospital emphasizing the treatment of degenerative
spinal disorders and spinal trauma on the neurosurgery service; Memorial Hermann Hospital emphasizing degenerative spinal
disorders, spinal trauma and spinal column tumors on the orthopaedic service; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
emphasizing spinal column and spinal cord tumors on the neurosurgery service; and the Methodist Hospital emphasizing spinal
deformities on the orthopaedic service.
The fellow will
be exposed to the following surgical procedures: microscopic laminectomy and
discectomy, ACDF, TLIF, transthoracic and retroperitoneal corpectomy and anterior spinal reconstruction, occiput to cervical/thoracic
spinal instrumentation, kyphoplasty, thoracoscopic spinal surgery, minimally invasive spinal fusions, en bloc spondylectomy
and spinal reconstruction, transpedicular osteotomy and both hook and pedicle screw posterior spinal instrumentation for spinal
deformity correction.
Physicians participating
in the program include: Guy Clifton, MD, Darrell Hanson, MD, Vivek
Kushwaha, MD., Amir Malik, MD., Rex Marco, MD, Ehud Mendel, MD, Chris Meyer,
MD, Laurence Rhines, MD
As mentioned,
the spine fellowship is a part of the Foundation for Orthopaedic, Athletic and Reconstructive Research which is a non-profit
corporation designed to fund educational and research opportunities in the field of orthopaedics. Because of the large number
of educational opportunities available, there is some flexibility. This allows
the individual fellow to create an experience best suited to their future practice.
It also means that the fellowship is dynamic and subject to change when it is felt that the change will add to the
training program.
The Foundation
provides a salary of forty six thousand dollars a year as well as malpractice insurance, in addition to health and dental
insurance for the fellow. Housing is not provided, but is available nearby. In addition to the daily clinic and surgical work, the fellow is responsible for occasional
lectures. The curriculum requires the completion of one research paper, which
must be presented to the staff and submitted to a peer-reviewed journal within one year of the completion of the fellowship.
A Texas
medical license is required prior to beginning the fellowship as well as a Drug Enforcement Agency number and a Texas
Narcotics Commission number. Assistance will be provided to obtain these. In order to obtain a Texas medical license
you must have passed one of the following licensing exams: FLEX, SPEX, NBME,
NBOME, USMLE, COMLEX, LMCC or a state board examination. For more information
about Texas medical licensure please consult the Texas State Board of Medical
Examiners web site at www.tsbme.state.tx.us. All graduates of foreign medical
schools should visit this web site and pay particular attention to Chapter 163, especially 163.3. Foreign students must also be able to obtain a free trade visa in order to participate in our program.
Enclosed you
will find an application form. Please complete this and return it along with
a recent photograph, a copy of medical school transcripts and your curriculum vitae.
Three letters of recommendation must also be sent including one from your residency program director. Please have the letters faxed to (713) 790-0505 before the hard copy is put in the mail. Once your application is complete, the fellowship coordinator, Michele Byrne, will contact you, if an interview
is required. If you have any questions, please contact her at (713) 799-2429. Thank you once again for your interest.
Best Regards,
Rex Marco, M.
D.
Fellowship Director
6410 Fannin St.
Suite 1535
Houston, TX 77030
