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Ventura Family Medicine Residency, Office of Medical Education, 3291 Loma Vista Rd. Ventura, CA 93003 - Phone (805) 652-6228
Questions, Comments, Suggestions, please contact Bryan Wong, MD Webmaster: bryan.wong@ventura.org

 

Curriculum

3rd year

Outpatient Specialties - 10 weeks

The outpatient specialties rotations are a wealth of experience for our residents. One of the major goals of residency training is to become exposed to as wide a variety of pathology as possible. This happens in our county specialty clinics.  The resident works side by side with our specialty faculty seeing the patients referred from all over the county.  As examples, you can count on seeing many patients with systemic lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and vasculitis in our Rheumatology clinic.  In Hematology-Oncology you will see patients with breast cancer, lymphoma, neutropenia, etc. etc.  You will complete your training having dealt with as broad a range of medical problems as can be fit into three years.

Because the faculty are there to teach, you are actively involved in seeing the patient and discussing the case with the specialist. Our clinics are not ones where residents "just follow around and observe"; our residents do work that is truly meaningful while they are learning.  The clinics on schedule for 2007-2008 include:

Additionally, outpatient procedures such as Treadmill Stress Tests and Flexible Sigmoidoscopies are done during these rotations.

Inpatient Medicine/Pediatrics - 8 weeks

The Medicine-Pediatrics rotation is the heart of inpatient learning.  You will see an amazing variety of pathology in patients of all ages and fully participate in their care as the primary doctor.  You will develop progressively more complete and complex differential diagnoses and cogent treatment plans.

The service consists of four teams of a first year and second year resident, two third year chiefs, a medicine attending for each team and the pediatrician faculty hospitalist.  The four teams alternate days on call except Tuesdays, which are taken by an attending physician team.  Teaching rounds are held daily with both medicine and pediatrics faculty.  The third year residents participate in teaching and intake rounds, coordinate the service and help with cross covers.  The progressive responsibility and leadership experiences prepare you well for independent practice.

Emergency Medicine - 4 weeks

The emergency department is the place where our residents get extensive training in handling urgent medical conditions, trauma, and a wide variety of illness.  The family physician is often the doctor of first contact for many patients who are very sick, whether it be in the office, urgent care center or hospital emergency department.  Learning to handle these situations is important toward making competent family doctors who are comfortable practicing anywhere.

In your third year, you will be assigned to the "Night ER" rotation.  During these four weeks you will be on duty in the ER from 10 pm until 7 am the next morning, learning to run an emergency department.  You are very well supported by faculty and nurses to succeed in becoming comfortable handling "anything that comes in the door".  You will manage chest pain, lacerations, sepsis, etc..  Our residents find this rotation to be an incredible confidence builder, discovering just how much they have learned in their time at VCMC.  Through the years, many of our residents have gone on to work in emergency departments upon graduation, being very competent and comfortable in this role.  

Intensive Care - 4 weeks

The ICU at the Ventura County Medical Center is a busy, high acuity unit caring for critically ill patients of many types. The ICU rotations, one month in the first year and one month in the third year, give our residents lots of hands on experience with very sick patients. Common diagnoses you will care for include sepsis, trauma, acute MI, pancreatitis, diabetic ketoacidosis and many others. This is a busy rotation and so neither the first year nor third year take overnight call. The training in medical procedures is superb during this rotation. Residents become proficient in placing central lines, arterial lines, chest tubes and airway management. You will finish this rotation and be much more comfortable dealing with acute illness. The ICU is also a place where you will interact closely with other allied health professionals. Nursing, pharmacy, nutrition support and respiratory therapy participate with you and the attending physician in daily rounds. There is strong involvement with social services and spiritual advisers as well. You will gradually become more comfortable talking to families of critically ill patients, counselling and advising them about their loved one.

Obstetrics/Gynecology - 4 weeks

Women's health and maternity care are an integral part of family medicine. It is a privilege to participate in such an important event in a family as the mother's pregnancy and baby's birth.  Competence in delivering gender specific care is crucial for today's family physician.

Experience on the OB-Gyn service consists of average and high risk prenatal clinics, gynecology clinics including procedures (such as endometrial biopsy, colposcopy and IUD insertions, etc.), labor and delivery management and surgical OB-Gyn experience.  Our residents are the primary operators on Caesarian deliveries, tubal ligations, diagnostic D&Cs, suction D&Cs for incomplete SAbs and other procedures.

Experience on labor and delivery starts with days "on the deck" in the first year, where each intern spends time working individually with the obstetrician and family medicine faculty on our busy maternity ward. You will gain considerable skills managing labor and delivering babies during this time.

By second and third year, you build upon your training your intern year and manage patients more independently. Our residents finish their training with well over 100 vaginal deliveries.  You will spend time in each of the second and third years as the surgical resident on OB, scrubbing on many Cesareans and other cases.  Even more experience is gained on OB Backup call (voluntary) where you do C-sections after hours. Many of our graduates have done 50 - 80 C-sections as primary surgeon, some very motivated grads log over 100 operations. About two-thirds of our graduates are delivering babies in their practice. Approximately 30% have C-section privileges.

Orthopedics/Sports Medicine - 4 weeks

The goals of the orthopedic rotation are to give the resident exposure to the various aspects of musculoskeletal medicine.  The rotation focuses on the outpatient care of fractures, pain syndromes, arthritis, soft tissue problems and athletic injuries.  Time is spent primarily in the orthopedic clinic of the Ventura County Medical Center.

During the rotation, residents spend time with a variety of care providers including adult and pediatric orthopedic surgeons, sports medicine physicians, athletic trainers, podiatrists and physical/occupational therapists.

Outpatient Pediatrics - 4 weeks

The rich clinical experience in Ventura County Medical Center outpatient pediatrics clinics is truly amazing. We are fortunate to have outstanding general pediatrician teachers as well as regularly scheduled specialty clinics. Subspecialists on faculty at  UCLA and Children's Hospital Los Angeles come up to teach our residents and provide our patients with personalized care nearer to their homes.

You will rotate through the Pediatric Diagnostic Center, across the street from VCMC, Mandalay Bay Children's Center, our primary care pediatrics office in Oxnard and the Santa Paula primary care clinic.   Caring for the cases that family physicians and pediatricians throughout the county have referred will give you the broadest possible exposure to disease pathology. 

Fortunately, children are healthy most of the time. You will gain much exposure to well child care, developmental assessment, sports participation physicals and parent and patient education.  You will see many adolescents and help them deal with the common challenges that face their health.

Surgery - 4 weeks

Much of the disease encountered in family medicine happens to best be treated by surgical means.  Cholecystitis, thyroid nodules, breast lumps, appendicitis, bowel obstruction, lower GI bleeding, lymphadenopathy, subcutaneous masses and many other conditions are often dealt with by surgical means.  It is our belief at VCMC that family physicians need to be well versed in handling these diseases.  It is for this reason that the surgery rotation is one of the most popular among many of our residents.

Our surgeons are approachable and anxious to teach family medicine residents.  You will learn to evaluate patients with abdominal pain, trauma, tumors and a host of other conditions.  Your competence in suturing will grow tremendously.  You will be able to assist in most operations and perform many by the time you graduate.  Residents who are interested in international medicine have often come to our program to learn to help in medically underserved regions.

Night ICU experience - 2 weeks

The night ICU experience rotation consists of 2 weeks of working from 6pm to 6am covering the Intensive Care Unit from Monday to Friday. This rotation has received very positive feedback since its inception because of the improved continuity of care for the critically ill patients. Working from Monday to Friday made the night ICU resident an active participant in the care of the ICU patient along with the daytime ICU team.

Through this rotation, residents are the first responders to critically ill patients that need admission to the hosptial, to patients already admitted that have a decline in their status, and all medical and trauma codes.

This is a procedurally heavy rotation, as most residents report doing many of their intubations, central lines and arterial lines on this service. It is a rotation where a resident really grows, and is encouraged to make quick decisions regarding patient care. Though it is not that the resident is left without help, as the ICU attendings are always available over the phone and will come into the hospital to help out in the middle of the night.

Night on Obstetrics - 2 weeks

This is a new 2 week experience that we will begin this academic year. Since we have had such a positive response to the night ICU experience, we decided also to provide a cohesive experience managing Labor and Delivery during the night hours from Wednesday through Sunday.

We anticipate the after the 2 weeks on Obstetrics, residents will really feel ready for anything that comes in. Additionally, it helps redistribute our call schedule such that there is less overnight call for the other residents.

Elective - 8 weeks

There are a wide variety of local and away choices available. Among the many options (just to name a few):

Many of our second and third year residents spend some elective time in a variety of family physician offices where they may be considering joining or to get "real world" experience in practice management

Most of our residents do some elective time away, many overseas. Common locations include Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Africa, China, Thailand, Nepal, South and Central America, Haiti and many others.

A wide variety of medical and surgical subspecialties to expand on the basic, required curriculum such as dermatology, cardiology, pulmonary, endocrinology, ENT, others

 

 

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3rd Year:

 

 

 

What I liked about Med/Peds were all the procedures.  I really appreciated the amazing complexity of our county patients.  I never thought I would see all the different rare pathology we see here!

What I liked about Night Emergency Room Doctor (NERD) was finally feeling confident about my abilities as a physician.  You really grow your wings during that month.

Khristina Mueller, MD

Khristina Mueller, MD
Class of 2007

 

 

 

 

 

During Outpatient Specialties I enjoyed the 1 on 1 interaction with amazing specialists like Dr. Ficks (Endocrine) and Dr. Gandhi (Renal). You can really apply what you learn to the care of your continuity patients at Family Care Center.

 

Night ICU is the time to really show what you know! You're responsible for airway stabilization and all codes. You care for many seriously ill patients. You really feel confident at your skills of intubation, line placement, etc. by the end of the rotation.

 

Surgery/OB - What do you mean you just retract at your program?? No way. You are 1st assist on almost every general surgery, OB case - Appy's, Lap Chole's, Bowel Resections, C-sections, hysterectomies, etc. Very hands on program.

Tamajah Gibson, MD

Tamajah Gibson, MD
Class of 2007

 

 

 

 

 

Enough Intensive Care Unit experience to practice critical care as part of a hospitalist practice. Great Attendings.

Jared Hubbell, MD

Jared Hubbell, MD
Class of 2007

 

 

 

 

 

Med Peds rocks because all of the attendings (spare none) are excellent clinicians.  Intuitive, practical and yet devoutly evidence-based, they are uniformly committed and skilled teachers with tremendous funds of knowledge.  The learning curve is steep, which is exactly what you want out of residency.

The ICU rotations are similar to Med Peds partly because you are with the same excellent attendings.  Beyond that, you learn to competently manage very sick patients over a large variety of illnesses.  The procedural training is excellent and the ICU patients are always at the center of hospital hubbub creating a community of residents and attendings who are privy to the histories, diagnostic challenges and treatments.

franchot van slot

Franchot van Slot, MD
Class of 2007