Variation in Training for Interventional Pulmonary Procedures Among US Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowships

There is a large variation in the spectrum of pulmonary procedures offered to trainees. Programs with a dedicated IP are more likely to offer training in advanced therapeutic procedures. When interventional procedures are offered by fellowships, < 30% of programs meet the competency recommendations. These findings have implications for training, delivery of care, and research. An extra year of fellowship in interventional pulmonology might be desirable if one is to reach the desired competency numbers. An alternative to reaching the recommended numbers for select procedures would be to consider regionalizing care at centers that perform many procedures. Finally, to provide justification for the current competency recommendations, clinical outcomes should be correlated with physicians' procedural volume, as has been done in other subspecialties.