First assistant in cataract surgery / Multi-specialty exposure / Call with full senior coverage for first 2 months / Early involvement with laser procedures / Wetlab taught by faculty and seniors / As of July 2017 reduced assignment to emergency clinic
In early July, the department coordinates a breakfast meet and greet for the new residents. Most of the staff, technicians, secretarial staff, residents and faculty attend for introductions to be made and the new residents are welcomed to the program.
The residents then begin a 2 week orientation schedule in which the chief resident and residency coordinator guide them through a number of meetings (clinic manager, billing coordinator, nurse practitioner, photographer, etc.) to orient the residents to the department and services offered. After this initial introduction to the Ophthalmology Department the first year residents are taken through a course of instruction in the techniques of ocular examination and an overview of common ocular pathologies by senior residents and faculty. The format includes: lectures, demonstrations, wet labs, and observation in clinic. As this course concludes the resident will enter into faculty clinics at each of the practice sites. We make an effort to rotate the first year residents through all of the subspecialty clinics including: glaucoma, retina, peds, oculoplastics, neuro-ophthalmology, and cornea. A few of the clinics are procedure oriented with a focus on minor procedures, e.g. chalazion excision, YAG capsulotomy, retinal laser, and laser peripheral iridotomy. During after hours call, emergency outpatient procedures (ie: lid lacerations) are also a part of the first year experience.
Call responsibility throughout the PGY-2 year is as follows: nightly and weekend first call is taken every 3rd night, in July, August May and June then every 6th night for other months. This begins on July 1st; however, for a designated time frame (usually the first 2 months) the backup senior resident is required to be present on all after hours patient visits. In this initial phase the senior resident is required to show up at the same time as the first year to guide them through the process. Subsequent to this, the senior will come in after the first year has seen the patient. Gradually, the first year is released to perform more independently. It is expected that there will always be available supervision or backup from both a senior resident and faculty member on call.