EACVI Certification in Congenital Heart Disease Echocardiography (Echo CHD)

Exam

Eligibility

The EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD written examination is open to all healthcare professionals involved in congenital heart disease echocardiography. 

The EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD Certification is not a compulsory or regulatory certificate of competence or excellence. Individuals' rights to report and sign clinical studies in individual countries remain to be defined by national laws and regulations.

Exam format

The EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD examination is a multiple-choice written examination in English.

The examination consists of 125 questions, divided into two parts:

• Part 1 - Reporting: 50 questions on Echo CHD cases with displayed echoes
• Part 2 - Theory: 75 questions

The first part is administered over 1 hour and 30 minutes and the second part is administered over 1 hour and 50 minutes, with a 10-minute break in between. 

Questions are designed to assess the candidate's knowledge.  They are based on a clinical scenario. Five possible answers are available with only one single best answer, and there is no negative marking.

Questions are drawn from the entire spectrum of congenital heart disease echocardiography reflecting the EACVI Echo CHD Core Syllabus.

Appeal

ESC/EACVI aims to deliver examinations of the highest quality and provide the best level of service for all candidates. To ensure that all candidates are assessed fairly, there is a procedure to allow candidates to appeal against their exam results.

More information is available.

Policies for online proctoring examinations

For more information, please refer to the ESC online proctoring examination terms & conditions. 

Logbook

Once candidates have passed the exam, they can then apply for the logbook part of the programme to prove their practical experience in the Echo CHD field. No late submissions will be accepted and, if the deadline is not respected, the candidate will have to repeat the exam in order to apply for certification.

Eligibility

The EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD logbook part of the programme is accessible to all successful candidates to the exam. 

Access to the logbook platform is granted to candidates only after having successfully passed the written exam.

Requirements

Candidates are required to provide evidence of their clinical experience.

The EACVI/Echo CHD logbook includes DOPS (Direct Observation Procedures Skills) which returns responsibility to the local expert supervisor to guarantee competence and assure quality.

Candidates must provide the following documents:

• A logbook of 250 cases assessed and signed by the candidate's supervisor.
• A DOPS summary sheet
• 10 DOPS and their accompanying report

Each DOPS must include:

• The clinical indication for echocardiography
• Date of examination
• Written feedback on the performance of each procedure including advice on improvements/deficiencies
• Corresponding original written echo report (anonymized) 
• Candidate and assessors' signatures

Note:

• No TOE cases can be included in the 250 logbook cases list
• The logbook can consist of paediatric and/or adult congenital cases.
• The DOPS reports must have been been reported and performed solely by the candidate. 
• If the report has been hand written it must be accompanied by a typed version.
• Candidates must have a minimum of three assessors assessing the DOPS reports.
• Each DOPS must be accompanied by the candidate's original written report of the case.
• If there are any scores from one to three (unsatisfactory) then a statement from the designated supervisor regarding the taken action and objective evidence of improvement in subsequent assessments is expected.
• The logbook and submitted reports should reflect the normal caseload of a general paediatric and congenital echocardiography department and should include cases of:

1. 1. Ventricular function assessment
   2. Valvular heart disease
   3. Septation defects (VSD, ASD, AVSD)
   4. Right heart obstructions (tetralogy of Fallot, pulmonary atresia)
   5. Left heart obstructions (coarctation, hypoplastic left heart…)
   6. Atrioventricular discordance (double discordance…)
   7. Arterioventricular discordance (transposition, double outlet ventricles)
   8. Situs anomalies, isomerism
   9. Postoperative congenital heart disease
   10. Suspected endocarditis
   11. Cardiomyopathies
   12. Coronary anomalies (Kawasaki disease, ALCAPA…)
   13. No more than 1/3 of the studies should be completely normal

Logbook regulations

Not complying with the below regulations will result in the logbook being returned to the candidate for modification and as such, delay the grading process.

• The application must be submitted in English. Any document in local language must be accompanied by an English translation. 
• The application must be anonymised (the candidate's name should not appear in the application)
• The application must not include any patient data, in order to comply with GDPR regulations.
• The application must be submitted no later than 1 year after having received the exam results. 
• Cases included in the logbook must have been collected from one year before to one year after the written exam and can cover the full 24 months.

Candidates are not asked to submit the full reports, although they may be requested by the EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD graders and EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD certification committee. Thus, candidates are asked to keep this information available. 

Supervisor

Supervisor

The supervisor must:

• already be a practising paediatric/congenital echocardiographer
• have a high level of expertise
• hold national/European specialist recognition in paediatric/adult congenital cardiology OR be an EACVI certified echocardiographer who has held EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD Certification for more than one year

The supervisor role is to:

• hold the responsibility to guarantee the practical competence of the candidate
• check the honesty and validity of locally performed DOPS
• complete the DOPS Summary of all the local assessor’s scores of the 10 DOPS
• be aware of and report any deficiencies in a candidate’s competence suggested by their DOPS
• note any DOPS scores < three and thus fail the candidate for that specific DOPS assessment.
• act as a local DOPS assessor but cannot be the sole assessor (not mandatory)

Local assessors

There must be a minimum of three and maximum of ten assessors per candidate for the 10 DOPS assessments (just one assessor needs to sign each DOPS).

The local assessors must fall under either/both of these criteria:

• Any cardiologist practising paediatric/adult congenital cardiology
• Or a specialist sonographer who has held EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD certification for more than one year

Logbook results

As soon as the logbook is compliant with the requirements, the application is sent for grading to members of the EACVI/AEPC Echo CHD Certification Committee. Graders may require additional information from the candidate in order to provide their grading. 

Results are sent by email within 3 months of submitting the e-Logbook. Please note that some delay in the grading can occur due to the high volume of applications received throughout the year. 

Appealing the logbook

Candidates who fail to the logbook part may raise an appeal.

More information is available. 

Extension requests

There is a one-year window to complete the logbook part of the programme. In exceptional circumstances, candidates may request an extension to submit their application.

To ensure the process remains fair and robust, extensions will generally only be given in the following circumstances: parental leave, less than full-time work or illness of the candidate.

Extension requests must be accompanied by a signed letter from your supervisor briefly explaining the situation and stating the duration of the extension required. Requests cannot be considered without this letter. The request must be submitted before the deadline.

Please note that extension requests are not guaranteed and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the certification committee.    

Use the Contact Us form to submit such requests and request further information.

Recertification

Candidates will be granted certification in Echo CHD once they have completed the two parts of the programme (exam and logbook). The certification is valid for 5 years after which the candidate must apply for recertification to keep the certification valid. 

Requirements

For more detailed information, please refer to the recertification requirements webpage.

Recertification fee

• Non-members and EACVI Regular Members: €200
• EACVI Silver Members: €75

How to apply

Candidates must apply for recertification from six months before to six months after the current certification expiration date.

During this time, candidates who are eligible for the recertification will receive automatic reminders to apply for recertification. These reminders are sent on their My ESC email address.

All candidates will be reminded as the deadline approaches, but it is the candidate's responsibility to ensure that the recertification is submitted in a timely manner. No late submissions will be accepted and, if the deadline is not respected, the candidate will have to repeat the certification process (exam + logbook) in order to recertify.

If all requirements of recertification are met, a certificate will be issued which will be valid for a further 5-year period.

Extension requests

There is a one-year window to apply for recertification (from six months before to six months after the current certification expiration date). In exceptional circumstances, candidates may request an extension to submit their application.

To ensure the process remains fair and robust, extensions will generally only be given in the following circumstances: parental leave, less than full-time work or illness of the candidate.

Extension requests must be accompanied by a signed letter from the candidate's supervisor briefly explaining the situation and stating the duration of the extension required. Requests cannot be considered without this letter. The request must be submitted before the deadline.

Please note that extension requests are not guaranteed and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the certification committee.    

Use the Contact Us form to submit such requests and request further information.

Certification result and list of certified candidates

Candidates will be granted certification in Echo CHD once they have completed the two parts of the programme (exam and logbook). The certification is valid for 5 years after which the candidate must apply for recertification to keep the certification valid. 

The EACVI is pleased to list all of their Echo CHD certified candidates.