Curriculum

Goals

• Provide learning experiences based on measurable objectives for education of general surgeons during their residency.
• Integrate principles of basic sciences with clinical experiences.
• Promote a broad understanding of the role of surgery and its interaction with other medical disciplines such as general medicine, psychiatry, and pediatrics.
• Provide for progressive responsibility from initial patient care to complete patient management.
• Foster effective interdisciplinary collaborative relationships.
• Provide surgical residents with the ability to function as teachers and consultants.
• Foster continuing education to promote lifelong individual initiative and creative scholarships.
• Prepare surgical residents to use research technology and skills in conducting studies that assist in solving surgical problems.
• Develop professional leadership and management skills.
• Promote understanding of the economic, legal, and social challenges of contemporary and future surgery.

Objectives

The objectives of a curriculum describe the desired changes that occur in the behavior of learners when goals of the curriculum have been achieved. These objectives are expressed as outcomes and are related to one or more of the competencies or attitudes described as outcomes of professional education. Thus, objectives for the curriculum in surgery specify what the resident should know, be able to do, or have an attitude about. Each of the following curriculum objectives should be prefaced with the phrase: "At the completion of training, the resident should be able to…"

• Manage surgical disorders based on a thorough knowledge of basic and clinical science.
• Demonstrate the appropriate skills in those surgical techniques required of a qualified surgeon.
• Demonstrate the use of critical thinking when making decisions affecting the life of a patient and the
  patient's family.
• Make sound ethical and legal judgments appropriate for a qualified surgeon.
• Collaborate effectively with colleagues and other health professionals.
• Teach and share knowledge with colleagues, residents, students, and other healthcare providers.
• Teach patients and their families about the patient's health needs.
• Demonstrate acceptance of the value of life-long learning as a necessary prerequisite to maintaining surgical knowledge and skill.
• Demonstrate a commitment to scholarly pursuits through the conduct and evaluation of research.
• Demonstrate leadership in the management of complex programs and organizations.
• Provide cost-effective care to surgical patients and families within the community.
• Respect the religious needs of patients and their families and provide surgical care in accordance with those needs.

Conference Schedule

Residents have time on Thursdays from 7 a.m. until approximately 1 p.m. for the academic component of their surgical training. The instructional methods for our conferences include performance presentation, feedback, and formal classroom instruction. The core curriculum is integrated into these discussions and through the assignment of special projects. The use of laparoscopic trainers and high-tech simulation for minimally invasive surgery is also part of our curriculum. Residents have an opportunity to use animal models for the development of minimally invasive and open surgical skills. Residents also engage in a formal mock oral examination in preparation for the qualifying examination for the American Board of Surgery.

The main components of our curriculum are: morbidity and mortality (M&M) conference, grand rounds, basic science conferences, systems-based practice, subspecialty conferences, chairman’s conferences, pathology conferences, trauma M&M, monthly research meetings, ABSITE and mock oral review, and MIS training.

Basic Conference Schedule Format

Grand Rounds Schedule

View our schedule of upcoming grand rounds lectures.

Curriculum Goals

• Provide learning experiences based on measurable objectives for the education of general surgeons during their residency.
• Integrate principles of basic sciences with clinical experiences.
• Promote a broad understanding of the role of surgery and its interaction with other medical disciplines such as general medicine, psychiatry, and pediatrics.
• Provide progressive responsibility from initial patient care to complete patient management.
• Foster effective interdisciplinary collaborative relationships.
• Provide surgical residents with the ability to function as teachers and consultants.
• Foster continuing education to promote lifelong individual initiative and creative scholarships.
• Prepare surgical residents to use research technology and skills in conducting studies that assist in solving surgical problems.
• Develop professional leadership and management skills.
• Promote understanding of the economic, legal, and social challenges of contemporary and future surgery.

Curriculum Objectives

The objectives of a curriculum describe the desired changes that occur in the behavior of learners when goals of the curriculum have been achieved. These objectives are expressed as outcomes and are related to one or more of the competencies or attitudes described as outcomes of professional education.

Thus, objectives for the curriculum in surgery specify what the resident should know, be able to do, or have an attitude about.

At the completion of training, the resident should be able to:

• Manage surgical disorders based on a thorough knowledge of basic and clinical science.
• Demonstrate the appropriate skills in those surgical techniques required of a qualified surgeon.
• Demonstrate the use of critical thinking when making decisions affecting the life of a patient and the
  patient's family.
• Make sound ethical and legal judgments appropriate for a qualified surgeon.
• Collaborate effectively with colleagues and other health professionals.
• Teach and share knowledge with colleagues, residents, students, and other healthcare providers.
• Teach patients and their families about the patient's health needs.
• Demonstrate acceptance of the value of life-long learning as a necessary prerequisite to maintaining surgical knowledge and skill.
• Demonstrate a commitment to scholarly pursuits through the conduct and evaluation of research.
• Demonstrate leadership in the management of complex programs and organizations.
• Provide cost-effective care to surgical patients and families within the community.
• Respect the religious needs of patients and their families and provide surgical care in accordance with those needs.

Sample Rotation Schedule

Call Schedule

Memorial Health University Medical Center's department of surgery uses a night-float system to cover overnight calls. The night-float team covers all new and established surgical and trauma inpatients overnight.

Residents typically spend two months each year on night float, where they gain significant experience caring for acutely ill patients and performing a variety of bedside and operating room procedures.

The PGY1 residents work six 12-hour overnight shifts, Sunday through Friday, with Saturday nights off.

The PGY2 and PGY3 residents work six 12-hour shifts, Saturday through Thursday, with Friday nights off.

The PGY4 and PGY5 residents work five 12-hours shifts, Monday through Thursday, as well as one 24-hour shift on Sunday, with Fridays and Saturdays off.

The night-float residents also assist the weekend rounding teams seeing floor patients on Saturdays and Sundays prior to leaving.

Residents that are not on the night-float rotation cover in-house call on the weekends. All residents not on the night-float rotation typically have every other weekend free of all clinical duties (from Friday afternoon until Monday morning).

The weekends on-call for PGY1 residents consist of one of the following shifts:

• one five-hour shift on Friday night and one 16-hour shift on Saturday night OR
• two 12-hour day shifts, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.

The weekends on-call for PGY2 and PGY3 consist of one of the following shifts:

• one 24-hour shift on Saturday OR
• or two 12-hour shifts, one on Friday night and one on Sunday day.

The weekends on-call for PGY4 and PGY5 consist of one of the following shifts:

• one 12-hour shift on Friday night OR
• or one 24-hour shift on Saturday.

All of the above shifts are compliant with the new ACGME resident work hours restrictions for all PGY levels.

Procedure Volume

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and the Residency Review Committee for surgery has established guidelines outlining the minimum number of operative procedures and general content areas of general surgery.

The volume and variety of operative experience at Memorial Health University Medical Center provide a balanced experience in each of the essential content areas of general surgery.

These defined categories are head and neck, breast, skin and soft tissues, alimentary tract, abdomen, vascular system, endocrine system, management of trauma/critical care, emergency surgery, and transplantation.

The program and faculty take into account individual capability and rate of progress to ensure sufficient operative experience to produce qualified and competent surgeons.

The following tables depict numbers and types of operative cases performed by our graduating residents in comparison to the ACGME requirements:

Procedure Volume by 2022 Chief Residents Compared to ACGME Requirements

Graduating Resident Avg. Operative Experience 2011-2022 Total Major Cases

Destinations of General Surgery Chief Residents