As a preliminary year resident, you will gain a solid knowledge base in internal medicine and begin learning how to diagnose and manage adults with neurological conditions.
For most of the year, you will focus on mastering basic internal medicine skills, guided by an assigned preceptor as well as an attending physician and experienced residents. You will gain experience treating patients with a full spectrum of conditions, including cancer and cardiac disease. You will train in diverse community care settings, including hospitals, intensive care units and outpatient clinics.
Your in-depth neurological training begins with an adult neurology rotation emphasizing general neurology. You will learn to localize neurological lesions and diagnose common neurological problems in hospitalized patients, guided by attending neurologists or senior neurology residents.
Your year culminates with a diverse, four-week neurology orientation designed to prepare you for junior resident status. Each week engages you in a different aspect of neurological care: general neurology, stroke care, neurological intensive care and your initial night shifts in a hospital.
| Rotation | Length of Rotation |
|---|---|
| Internal Medicine | 11 modules |
| Adult Neurology | 2 modules |
1 module = 4 weeks
You will enhance your clinical skills by participating in diverse internal medicine didactic experiences, including multidisciplinary core lectures, citywide grand rounds and site-based morning reports and conferences. Other lectures focus on ambulatory care and evidence-based medicine.
During your culminating PGY-1 adult neurology rotation, you will participate in orientation lectures that introduce you to basic neurological problems and neurological emergencies.
At the end of the year, you will take your first Resident In-Service Training Examination (RITE), administered by the American Academy of Neurology, along with a mock oral board examination. Your results will allow you to chart your progress and plan a course of action for self-improvement.
Repeated each year of your residency, this process ultimately prepares you well to pass your board certification exam on your first attempt.
Beginning in your first year, you will play an important role in educating medical students.
As you gain experience, you will gradually assume more responsibility for teaching other residents, nurses and other health care personnel, formally and informally.