Return to Main Menu

Campus welcomes new residency program by Cindy Abole Public Relations Training and developing emergency medicine physicians who can provide skilled, compassionate care to South Carolina patients is the mission of MUSC’s new Emergency Medicine (EM) Residency Program.   Emergency Medicine director Dr. Larry Raney assists EM resident Dr. Andy Pazo with a suturing technique at Charleston Memorial Hospital Emergency Department while nurse Allison Rogers assists. The program began in February 2006 following a rigorous process dedicated to the application, faculty collaboration, staff and support from the institutional leadership, to make this shared goal work.   On July 1, six physicians from around the country and the Caribbean reported to MUSC as the program’s first class of EM residents. In three years, these men and women will emerge as the program’s first graduates trained to practice emergency medicine.   “This is a great achievement for us,” said Sam Kini, M.D., associate professor and residency director, Division of Emergency Medicine. “Our residents are very excited to be here, as is our faculty and staff to have them. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but all of us are committed to providing them with the best education and experiences available. Together, we look forward to enjoying the next three years.”   MUSC’s EM residents include Bonnie Dellinger, M.D., St. George’s University (SGU) School of Medicine in Grenada; Jamie Do, M.D., LSU School of Medicine; Jennifer Laughlin, M.D., SGU School of Medicine; Joe Mahoney, M.D., Florida State University College of Medicine; Andy Pazo, M.D., SGU School of Medicine; and Andrew Ross, M.D., Eastern Virginia Medical School.   The physicians were selected from 560 residency applications coordinated through the American Association of Medical College’s Electronic Residency Application Service, which handles applications for more than 62 accredited medical residency and fellowship programs. Comprehensive training With MUSC’s emergency department receiving more than 55,000 patient visits each year, cultivating and preparing South Carolina’s next generation of trained, experienced EM physicians is critical, , according to the S.C. Hospital Association.   As one of two EM residency programs in the state (the other is at Palmetto-Richland Memorial Hospital in Columbia), MUSC provides a combination of comprehensive training within a Level 1 Trauma Center and an established, highly-acclaimed academic health center environment.      One of the first priorities was to establish the program’s residency curriculum and clinical practice within the institution, according to Larry Raney, M.D., associate professor and director of the Division of Emergency Medicine. In 2005, Raney worked with Jerry Reves, M.D., College of Medicine dean and vice president of clinical affairs, and John Feussner, M.D., chairman of the Department of Medicine, to reorganize emergency medicine under the Department of Medicine. In 2006, MUSC was allotted 18 of the 25 EM residency slots available for physician residency training through the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). For this inaugural year, only six EM residency positions were assigned, with the remaining slots to be added in the next few years.      “I’m very proud,” said Feussner, remarking on the program’s success in achieving ACGME program accreditation. “What’s remarkable is that we got it on the first try despite doubts from a qualified independent consultant and others. We got it through hard work, guts and determination shared by a dedicated team of faculty and individuals who are committed to improving the state of emergency medical care in South Carolina. This program will answer what’s already recognized as a serious shortage of trained EM physicians in our state and provide excellent spin-offs to improving tomorrow’s health care for South Carolina patients.”      The three-year EM training program is organized by three levels, PGY I, II and III. It was approved by the Residency Review Committee for Emergency Medicine  and won full accreditation for three years from graduate medical education’s accrediting body, the ACGME.   The program is managed under the direction of Kini,  a long-time educator and general surgeon who worked in emergency medicine for the past 20 years. Kini is supported by Raney and Lindy K. Carter, who joined the staff last August as the EM residency program coordinator. Other residency program contributors include an interdisciplinary team of EM faculty and staff.      “From the beginning, so many people have played a supportive role in helping us establish this program,” said Raney. “I’m grateful to Drs. Reves and Feussner and other core faculty and staff for their unending support in this achievement. We’re excited that our interns are here and busy learning and applying their skills. We look forward to next June and the time when these interns will collaborate with our EM team’s physician assistants, nursing staff, medical faculty and students in making primary clinical decisions and serve as off-service residents.” Curriculum of education and clinical experiences EM residents will follow a core curriculum that models the clinical practice of EM and critical care. As required by all ACGME-accredited residency programs, physician residents must meet six core competencies that include patient care, medical knowledge, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal skills, professionalism and systems-based management.   Residents’ comments and feedback also are considered key to the program’s evaluation process. EM residents will receive regular rotation summaries, and they also will be asked to provide written evaluations based on their experiences. In addition, a “breakfast with the chief” series with Raney, along with individual conferences with the residency director, will provide regular assessments of each resident’s progress.   “The EM residency program is in great shape to soar on its own merits,” said Harry S. Clarke Jr., M.D., Ph.D., associate dean for Graduate Medical Education and interim ACGME Institutional Official. “Drs. Kini and Raney have developed an excellent program to train ER physicians, which the State of South Carolina really needs. The GME office stands ready to help them in any way they may need it along the way, as we are here for all of our many GME programs.”   Throughout their residency, physicians will participate in a variety of clinical and didactic learning experiences. They will work closely with experienced faculty and a multidisciplinary team of clinicians and educators. Residents also will complete monthlong practice rotations within various medical departments such as anesthesiology, labor and delivery, medicine, radiology, orthopedics, pediatrics, medical and cardiothoracic ICUs, and adult and pediatric emergency departments.   Residents will participate in case conferences on topics such as morbidity and mortality, EKG rounds, X-ray/visual diagnosis. They will master medical procedures taught at bedside and in regularly scheduled labs, including invasive procedures, airway/megacode, wound management, joint splinting methods, emergency ultrasound and other radiology techniques, etc. Additionally, residents will gain from completing an EMS rotation with Charleston County EMS and Meducare, MUSC’s own ambulance service and its helicopter transport service, along with conducting faculty-supported research.      “MUSC faculty will be available and on stand-by to respond and teach our interns and residents when they rotate on their service. The commitment from staff and departments exists but still needs to be more established,” Kini said.   Residents will follow the text, “Model of the Clinical Practice of Emergency Medicine,” which will be supplemented by reading assignments, attending lectures and reviewing practice exams as they study and prepare for the American Board of Emergency Medicine exams.   “Residents are very excited to be here,” Kini said. “All are appreciative for being chosen in this first class. All of us look forward to enjoying the next three years. I feel it is our job to make sure they’re happy and provide them with the education and resources they came here for. I’m confident that together we can work very hard to make this program one of the most competitive, respected emergency medicine residency programs in the country. It will take a lot of hard work and commitment from many people, but I believe we’re ready to do so.” EM residents as diverse as their experiences The six emergency medicine resident physicians who began their residency experience July 1 come from a variety of locations and bring a wealth of exceptional experiences.   Jamie Do Kuo, M.D., comes from a line of EM physicians in her family. Her older sister and brother-in-law are EM physicians practicing in Louisiana. Kuo and her husband, Ben, a dermatology resident, both came to MUSC after completing medical school at Louisiana State University (LSU) in New Orleans.   “This was a new start for me coming from LSU and New Orleans,” Kuo said. “Within weeks of starting this residency, I was 100 percent sure that it was the right one for me. It’s an amazing program.”   Among her goals during her intern year is to make contributions to help shape the program’s structure while building bridges between people and departments to help establish the program's and the resident team’s credibility.      “As a group, we need to show others that our team is committed to put out 120 percent in everything that we do,” Kuo said.      Boston’s Andrew Ross, M.D., echoes Kuo’s zeal for the program. “There’s so much enthusiasm in the air because everyone’s committed and wants the program to succeed,” said Ross, who spent a month at MUSC in 2006 completing a fourth-year EM externship. “So far, it’s been a great experience. The clinical teachers and staff have been superb.”   Adner “Andy” Pazo, M.D., a Miami native, is one of three EM program residents who came to MUSC by way of St. Georges University in Grenada.   “As interns, our challenge is to learn and gain knowledge from our studies and clinical experiences throughout this first year. I want to be able to learn what’s needed for me to perform my job of treating and caring for patients to the best of my ability,” said Pazo. “I have no doubt that in 36 months, we will emerge as residents who have successfully completed the program. I know this can happen at MUSC with its experienced faculty and staff and world-class focus on patient care, education and research.”     Friday, Aug. 31, 2007 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.