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 The residency in general surgery at SIU is a comprehensive five-year educational experience encompassing an experience in all major areas of the specialty. Three categorical chief residents from the program each year have entered into a diverse variety of careers. The two key concepts embraced by the residency program are flexibility and collaboration.
The training is comprehensive in all areas of surgery that provides tremendous flexibility for the resident to concentrate in areas that will best prepare him or her for a successful career in what ever area of surgery is chosen.
A research rotation is incorporated into the schedule during the second, third and forth year. Education skills are enhanced by periodic "Resident as Teacher" sessions. Training opportunities in the hospital and in the clinic are emphasized to provide as much continuity in patient care as possible.
All of the training is done in a collaborative setting with the full-time and part-time faculty. All of us in the Department, both faculty and residents, have common missions: to provide good patient care and foster an environment that stresses quality educational opportunities. To achieve success, the faculty and residents work together as colleagues to gain as much as possible from the common experience. This has resulted in the well deserved reputation of SIU as a leader in innovative surgical education throughout the country.
 Residency training takes place at the two major hospitals in Springfield, Memorial Medical Center (562 beds) and St John's Hospital ( 731 beds ). The first two years of the residency provides experience not only in general surgery and trauma, but also orthopaedics, urology, neurosurgery, burns, anesthesia, vascular and critical care. The third and forth year expands the experience in general surgery and trauma with the addition of cardiothoracic, vascular and pediatric surgery.
The chief year is centered on the general surgery clinical experience but also provides opportunities to manage the administrative aspects of patient care. Operative experience is offered early in the program and by the time the resident finishes, he or she will have performed an average of 1100-1200 cases. Weekly didactic sessions include grand rounds core curriculum sessions, x-ray conference, mortality and morbidity conference, and Professor's rounds.
 In the general surgery program, residents profit from the best of two worlds -- the abundant and diverse patient volume of two busy community hospitals supported by the academic strength of organized teaching, research, and supervision.
Residents begin with two years of diverse basic surgery experience. Residents spend forty percent of their time in general surgery with rotations in neurosurgery, urology, orthopaedics, anesthesia, burns/plastics, vascular, gastroenterology, and gynecology.
The third year includes two three-month general surgery rotations, one three-month rotation in cardiothoracic surgery and six weeks each in an elective and plastic surgery. During the fourth year, residents spend two three-month rotations in general surgery, one three-month rotation running a vascular surgery service, and one three-month rotation divided between an elective and head/neck surgery. In the fifth year, residents run the service as chief resident for six months on each of two services.
 Each of the two large affiliated hospitals has centers of surgical expertise. Memorial Medical Center has a 10-bed Regional Burn Center, a multidisciplinary Breast Center, and an active dialysis and renal transplant program. St. John's Hospital has a more active pediatric service which generates considerable surgical experience. There is joint hospital support for a community-wide Level I Trauma Center.
The operative experience begins early in the program and increases with progressive complexity and numbers, resulting in an average of approximately 1,000 cases as operative surgeon during the five years. Our residency has a minimum of "scut work," allowing time to attend the many teaching sessions and conferences. The formal surgical educational program is based in the Grand Rounds, mortality-morbidity, and surgical X-ray conferences, as well as journal club and a weekly core curriculum. The US Surgical/SIU Surgical Skills Training and Research Center opened in February 2000 and all PGY I , II and III residents participate in a surgical skills curriculum.
Other residency links: Plastic Surgery | orthopaedics | Urology | Otolaryngology
Residents completing the program are eligible to sit for the American Board of Surgery.
 
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