Pediatric cardiology fellows from across the country gathered at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Aug. 14-17 to prepare for one of the highest-stakes moments of their careers: the American Board of Pediatrics certification exam.
The Board exam marks the culmination of more than a decade of training and the final step in the transition to independent practice. To help graduating fellows achieve this goal, CHLA co-hosted the 2026 Pediatric and Adult Congenital Cardiology Review Course—the largest course of its kind in North America.
Held on the CHLA campus, the four-day event provided intensive instruction across the full spectrum of congenital cardiology. CHLA, which co-hosted the review with Mayo Clinic and provided roughly three-quarters of the faculty, has played a leading role in the program for nearly a decade.
“It’s a significant honor to be able to guide the next generation of congenital cardiologists to a successful conclusion of their training,” says Paul F. Kantor, MBBCh, MSc, FRCPC, Chief of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Heart Institute at CHLA—the largest pediatric cardiac center in the Western U.S. “That is a direct result of our world-leading faculty, who treat patients with the most complex heart defects and frequently contribute to the major textbooks in our field.”
A comprehensive review
This year’s course attracted over 130 fellows, who attended both in-person and virtually.
The comprehensive, state-of-the-art review brought together experts across subspecialties—including cardiac intensive care, imaging, electrophysiology, surgery, and adult congenital heart disease—to cover the full continuum of congenital cardiology.
Through a mix of in-depth lectures, case-based discussions, and nightly sessions featuring simulated exam questions, fellows reviewed core content while refining clinical reasoning and test-taking strategy in real time.
Rather than focusing on memorization, the curriculum emphasized the key principles—physiology, anatomy, and clinical judgment—needed to manage congenital heart disease.
“Understanding those principles is critical because congenital heart defects are incredibly complex and diverse,” says Dr. Kantor, the Associates Chair in Cardiology at CHLA and one of three course directors. “Treating them successfully is both an art and a science.”
Training the next generation
Since first co-hosting the review in 2018, CHLA has evolved into the course’s primary academic driver, providing the majority of faculty and curriculum leadership.
That evolution reflects CHLA’s broader commitment to training the next generation of pediatric specialists. The hospital’s Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship Program—part of the Chuck Lorre Pediatric Health Education Institute at CHLA—is one of the most sought-after congenital cardiology training programs in the country.
CHLA’s pediatric cardiology fellows maintain a Board exam pass rate exceeding 95%, with graduates advancing to leading institutions across the country.
Although the pass rate for attendees of the review course is not tracked, anecdotally, roughly 85% of participants go on to pass the exam, Dr. Kantor notes.
“The fellows we’re teaching today will become the leaders of tomorrow,” he adds. “At CHLA, we see it as an honor and a responsibility to prepare them well and help strengthen the future of pediatric and congenital cardiac care for children and adults throughout their lives.”