Program curriculum is modeled by the requirements set by the ACGME. The curriculum is designed to prepare residents to enter their advanced residency training with a comprehensive skillset, including utilization of technology and engagement in high quality multidisciplinary techniques.
The Transitional Year Residency curriculum consists of 13 four-week blocks. During the one-year program, residents will meet the following requirements:
- 28 weeks of fundamental clinical skills in the primary specialties of internal medicine, emergency medicine and critical care medicine.
- Ambulatory Care four-week block to meet requirement of 140 hours uninterrupted by inpatient activities.
- 12 weeks of general elective rotations.
- Four weeks of surgical elective rotations.
Internal Medicine
The inpatient Internal Medicine rotations represent the largest quantity of assigned time in a resident's schedule, and therefore present some of the most significant opportunities for gaining knowledge and experience. Transitional Year residents will be integrated into Internal Medicine Resident teams on Telemetry and General Medicine floors. Residents are the primary provider of care to their patients, under the supervision of Internal Medicine Faculty physicians. Residents will have regular interactions with sub-specialist consultants. Altogether, there are many opportunities to interact with physicians from a wide array of training backgrounds.
Critical Care
The critical care rotation is designed to expose residents to the most seriously ill patients in the hospital, with a wide variety of cardiac, pulmonary, infectious and other multisystem diseases. This experience requires particular attention to cultivating skills in patient care and medical knowledge, but the other competencies are highlighted during this rotation as well. Residents may view the critical care rotation as a time when they may bring all their skills to bear simultaneously in the care of the sickest patients in the hospital under the supervision of board certified intensivists. Intensivists lead multidisciplinary teaching rounds daily and are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to supervise residents directly or indirectly by telephone. Teaching consultants are also involved in critical care cases to supervise the portions of the case relevant to their specialty.
Emergency Medicine
During the Emergency Medicine rotation, residents will work under the supervision of Emergency Medicine attending physicians along with residents in our ACGME-accredited Emergency Medicine Program to triage, interview, diagnose and manage unselected patients who present to the Emergency Department. Residents will participate in didactic sessions with Emergency Medicine Residents during this rotation. This rotation will improve differential diagnosis insight and skills in diagnosis, clinical decision making and management of urgent/emergent situations.
Ambulatory Care
Residents receive their ambulatory care experience at a Capital Health Primary Care office with Dr. Sarah Sordo, Dr. Oscar Perez or Dr. Sumiya Ahmed. This experience is designed to expose residents to the breadth and depth of medical problems seen in the office setting allowing residents to be involved in the full range of activities seen in the outpatient setting, including the coordination of care and communication between specialists, hospital-based, and primary-care physicians.
Night Float
The primary educational objective of the night float rotation is to provide residents with an important opportunity to triage, assess and treat problems in an “after hours” setting, further developing independent thought and exercise of judgment in patient care. An attending physician from the program faculty is always on call, and is available to discuss cases or come into the hospital if needed. There is a Nocturnist physician in the hospital every night, as well as Emergency Department physicians at all times who are available for assistance. Consultants in all specialties on staff at Capital Health are also available. In the era of limited overnight call, night float provides residents the opportunity to develop toward independent practice with a robust support system in place.
Electives
Residents have 12 weeks of elective time that allows them to personalize the program to support their endeavors into the specialty of their choice. Possible electives include internal medicine subspecialties, anesthesiology, dermatology, neurology, ophthalmology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, radiology, and radiation oncology. Residents are also granted four weeks of approved “away” elective time. To get “away” elective approval, residents must arrange with an attending preceptor at the visiting institution and notify the program coordinator, chief resident, and elective attending preceptor of such arrangements at least six weeks in advance of rotation start date. Residents will complete the ‘Request for Outside Elective Form’ electronically and submit to the program.
Residents will also have 4 weeks of surgical elective time in which the resident will rotate through their choice of surgical subspecialties or general surgery. These experiences are designed to provide residents with advancement in their patient care, medical knowledge, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal and communication skills, professionalism, and systems-based practice competencies related to surgical care.