Medical College of Georgia General Surgery Residency Program: Comprehensive Training for Future Surgeons
The Medical College of Georgia (MCG) offers a comprehensive general surgery residency program designed to provide residents with a strong foundation in managing surgical diseases and preparing them for the entire continuum of training and surgical practice. This program emphasizes a broad range of surgical techniques and ensures residents are well-prepared for any practice environment.
Program Overview
The General Surgery Residency Program at MCG aims to equip residents with exposure and experience in all aspects of surgical care. The program is fully accredited by the Residency Review Committee (RRC) for Surgery, under the auspices of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Throughout the five-year training program, residents progressively assume increasing clinical responsibilities.
Curriculum and Training
The residency program's curriculum is structured to cover the principal components of general surgery, including diseases of:
- Head and neck
- Breast
- Skin and soft tissues
- Alimentary tract
- Abdomen
- Vascular systems
- Endocrine system
The program also provides comprehensive training in trauma management, emergency surgery, and surgical critical care.
Rotations
Each rotation is designed to ensure trainees gain experience in various surgical specialties, including:
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- Cardiothoracic surgery
- Pediatric surgery
- Plastic surgery
- Urology
- Gynecology
- Neurological surgery
- Orthopedics
Experience is also gained in anesthesiology and all phases of endoscopy, including esophagogastroduodenoscopy, colonoscopy, and bronchoscopy.
Didactic Program
MCG provides a comprehensive didactic program in resident education. The program incorporates faculty lectures, resident-led discussions, and journal clubs during the primary education day on Tuesdays. Residents review chapters from Sabiston and participate in resident-led question-and-answer sessions to present board review questions on that particular chapter. The SCORE curriculum supplements the knowledge base with articles, chapters, multimedia, and questions. Third-year residents attend the Advanced Trauma Operative Management (ATOM) course for basic training in operative trauma.
Research Opportunities
To foster residents' interest in surgical basic science, a research rotation consisting of two months during the second year is available. Residents also participate in clinical research throughout their five years in the program.
Atrium Health Navicent and Mercer University School of Medicine Partnership
Atrium Health Navicent, in conjunction with the Mercer University of Medicine, offers the Mastery in General Surgery Program (formerly known as the Transition to Practice Program). This program supports the transition to independent practice in general surgery for new surgeons who have completed residency.
Surgical Teaching Service
The Surgical Teaching Service is divided into teams led by a PGY-4 or PGY-5 resident under the direction of a full-time faculty member. The five chief residents alternate serving as administrative chief resident for three months. Each section includes private attending surgeons in general surgery, cardiothoracic surgery, urology, plastic surgery, and head and neck surgery. The trauma service is managed by six full-time surgeons, one nurse practitioner, and two residents.
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Patient Care
The teaching program includes patients admitted through the outpatient surgery clinic and the emergency room. Patients are assigned to a full-time surgical faculty member or an attending surgeon with a clinical faculty appointment at Mercer University School of Medicine.
Call Schedule
A night float system is in place for nightly in-house call, involving a lower-level (first or second year), mid-level (second or third year), and a chief (fourth or fifth year) resident. Each resident has at least one day in seven free of responsibilities.
Pediatric Surgery Experience
A broad and advanced experience in pediatric surgery is obtained at Atrium Health Navicent under the direction of pediatric surgeons. The experience includes all levels of pediatric surgical care, from routine hernias, appendectomies, and pyloromyotomies to advanced procedures on newborn infants and pediatric surgical oncology.
Cardiac and Plastic Surgery Experience
Most cardiac surgery in the area is performed at Atrium Health Navicent under the guidance of attending cardiac surgeons. There is also an abundant plastic surgery experience available for residents.
Trauma and Transplant Surgery
Trauma surgery is emphasized, as Atrium Health Navicent is a Level I Trauma Center. To provide hands-on experience in transplant surgery, a rotation has been established at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, where each PGY-3 resident spends one month on the transplant service.
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MAHEC General Surgery Residency Program
The Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) General Surgery Residency Program is in collaboration with Mission Hospital. MAHEC, established in 1974, serves a 16-county region in Western North Carolina and focuses on primary care in rural communities and those with less access to resources.
Mission Health
Mission Health, based in Asheville, NC, is the tertiary care referral center for western North Carolina and the adjoining region. Mission Hospital is licensed for 815 beds, with a busy emergency department that sees 100,000 patients per year. The Level II trauma center admits 3,400 patients per year, and the helicopter transports more than 1,000 patients per year. Mission Children’s Hospital includes 130 beds with 60 board-certified pediatric subspecialists providing care in 23 different specialties.
Surgery Services at Mission Hospital
Mission Hospital surgery services include eight critical-care-certified acute care surgeons, 11 subspecialty surgeons, two pediatric surgeons, and five vascular surgeons.
Charles George VA Medical Center
The Charles George VA Medical Center, a Joint Commission-accredited facility, provides a full spectrum of health services to Veterans in a 23-county area of Western North Carolina. The medical center has acute care beds, ICUs, community living center beds, and beds for a substance use residential rehabilitation treatment program. The VA Medical Center has resident spots available and the clinical volume to support four full-time surgical residents from the MAHEC program.
Haywood Regional Medical Center
Located in Waynesville, NC, Haywood Regional Medical Center is another training site for residents.
Application Process
Applications are accepted through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). The program reviews applications and invites candidates for interviews.
Board Certification
Residents who complete the MAHEC General Surgery Residency are eligible to pursue board certification in general surgery through the American Board of Surgery.
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