Curriculum

The core curriculum in General Surgery is designed to provide the residents with a strong knowledge base in the fundamentals of diagnosis and treatment of surgical diseases. The overall schedule is structured on assigned readings from Sabiston Text Book of Surgery on a two year basis. The curriculum is highly integrated with didactic sessions, case- based learning lectures, supplemental reading assignments, and multiple on-line sources - including the recently developed SCORE Program by the American Board of Surgery. Three hours of protected time every Thursday morning are devoted to the Education Conference. Each Thursday morning consists of a one hour lecture with a topic assigned by an attending specializing in the subject matter. The subsequent two hours may then be spent in case-based learning discussion prepared by a resident and the lecture attending, small group seminars, and skills sessions. The skills sessions are integrated throughout the year with the Simulation and Cognitive Science Laboratory. An Ethics Curriculum conducted with the support of the Department of Humanities is also integrated into program.

In July and August there is a special Intern Course designed to review basic clinical management scenarios and patient management problems. Throughout the year, there are also separate Interns Skills Sessions to allow the first year resident to further develop and practice his/her basic surgical techniques and procedures.