RESIDENCY TRAINING IN COLON AND RECTAL SURGERY   [Application Information]

The Section of Colon and Rectal Surgery in the Department of Surgery at Stony Brook University Medical Center offers an accredited colon and rectal surgery residency. This residency is designed to prepare the surgeon for the pursuit of an academic career in colon and rectal surgery equally as well as for private practice in colon and rectal surgery. The colon and rectal surgery residency program is a one-year fully accredited clinical residency.

Our faculty includes four full-time members who are established colon and rectal surgeons based at University Medical Center: Roberto Bergamaschi, MD, PhD, professor of surgery and chief of general and colon and rectal surgery; Marvin L. Corman, MD, professor of surgery and residency program director; David E. Rivadeneira, MD, assistant professor of surgery; and William B. Smithy, MD, assistant professor of surgery. In addition, we have a voluntary faculty of five individuals, doubly-boarded surgeons who are committed to supporting the program. Our colorectal faculty has broad expertise in the entire spectrum of colon and rectal surgical procedures, as well as advanced diagnostic capabilities through our Anorectal Physiology Laboratory.

The residency program consists of one resident in colon and rectal surgery rotating every three months between University Medical Center and Winthrop-University Hospital (which is 36 miles from Stony Brook). At Winthrop the dedicated faculty of our training program are: Dean P. Pappas, MD, clinical instructor of surgery and on-site training director; Robert J. Dring, MD; Jules E. Garbus, MD; Marc L. Greenwald, MD; and Paul A. Hartendorp, MD.

The rotations begin at Stony Brook. The continuity of the educational experience at both insitutions is ensured through the collaborative efforts of the director of the training program at Winthrop and the program director at Stony Brook.

The content of the educational experience is directed toward fulfilling the requirements of the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery. Residents gain operative experience through a large volume of diverse surgical procedures, including reconstructive anorectal surgery, surgery for inflammatory bowel disease, emergency colon resections, ambulatory anorectal surgery, and all aspects of office and endoscopic procedures.

Both University Medical Center and Winthrop-University Hospital have been recognized for many years as centers for academic pursuits, and have established educational programs. There is a comprehensive formal teaching/lecture program, which currently includes the following weekly conferences: morbidity and mortality, grand rounds, tumor board, GI conference, treatment planning, core curriculum, colon and rectal rounds, and case presentations.

In addition, we have a monthly colon and rectal surgery dinner meeting at which a formal talk is given; notable speakers have included Dr. Anthony Senagore ("Laparoscopic Colectomy: Is It Ready For Prime Time?"), Dr. David J. Schoetz, Jr. ("Local Treatment of Rectal Cancer"), and Dr. Robert W. Beart, Jr. ("Evolution of Continence Preservation in IBD-Problem Management"), among others.

The entire faculty is committed to teaching at all levels — lectures and conferences, walk rounds, operative and procedural instruction, office management of patients, as well as administrative and financial advice concerning running a practice in colon and rectal surgery. A weekly meeting is conducted at which time the "Core Subjects," in accordance with the manual prepared by the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, and the Association of Program Directors in Colorectal Surgery, is covered.

During each three-month rotation, the resident is assigned to the faculty who admit patients to that hospital. The nature of each individual's practice and that of each group is such that it is unusual for there to be crossover — that is, each surgeon tends to operate at only one institution. The resident is responsible for participating in office, ambulatory surgery, and endoscopy sessions with each attending surgeon.

The resident must attend office sessions as scheduled with each of the full-time and voluntary faculty, becoming knowledgeable about office assessment, ambulatory anorectal surgery, preoperative care, and follow-up evaluation.

The resident is responsible for the preoperative evaluation, the intraoperative decision-making, the operative procedure, and the postoperative care. The colorectal surgery faculty are present in the operating room for all hospital operations. The resident does not operate independently.

At Stony Brook, the resident participates in and becomes proficient in running the Anorectal Physiology Laboratory. At present, our laboratory is staffed with a fully trained registered nurse. Anorectal ultrasound, anorectal manometry, and pudendal nerve latency studies are performed, in addition to all of the office procedures that are normally associated with the field of colon and rectal surgery.

Concerning research opportunities, resident are encouraged to be involved in clinical research as well as required to write a paper for submission to the annual meeting of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons or other regional or nation meeting. Several studies, which have been approved by Stony Brook's Institutional Review Board, are in progress. The resident is expected to participate in all aspects of these trials.

Ample time is allotted for reading and for library research. A large medical library is present on both campuses (see Stony Brook's library; see Winthrop's library). Furthermore, Dr. Corman's personal library, comprising both contemporary and historical texts, is conveniently available for further literature pursuits.

The resident is expected to be available for call, but not in-house. There is always a senior level general surgery resident in the hospital.

The resident receives one-month vacation per year, in accordance with the GME requirements of both institutions, and are entitled to salary and benefits at the PGY-6 level ($64,583, as of July 1, 2007). No housing is provided. The resident will be sent to the national meeting of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons as a guest of the Section of Colon and Rectal Surgery. In addition, the residents are allowed one week for an approved educational experience involving either attendance at another meeting or to visit other centers of colon and rectal surgery.

The following list provides information about the application process, as well as how to obtain the application form:

n Selection of colorectal residents is made through the National Resident Matching Program;
n All applicants must be board eligible/certified in general surgery;
n A personal interview is required;
n Before the required interview takes place, three (3) letters of recommendation — one of which must be from the chair of the applicant's department — are to be sent to the program director:

n Applications for the position starting on July 1, 2009, are now being accepted;
n Applicants must have a New York State medical license by July 1 of the academic year they begin;
n We are registered with the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS), which transmits residency applications, recommendation letters, transcripts, and other supporting credentials from medical schools to residency program directors using the Internet). Applications will only be accepted through this system.
n ABSITE scores are required;
n Questions concerning the application process should be directed to the program coordinator, Victoria Glaser, via email or phone (631-444-8242) or fax (631-444-7689).