Four categorical and 13 preliminary positions in the general surgery residency program are made available each year. The general surgery program requires five clinical years including a straight surgical internship in the first postgraduate year. Assignments during this year are for one-month periods, providing exposure to general and speciality services in the three affiliated hospitals. Emphasis is directed to the fundamentals of both preoperative and postoperative surgical care and to learning fundamental technical skills. Assignments in this year are for three-month periods, focusing on surgical oncology, cardiothoracic surgery, vascular surgery and pediatric surgery.
Assignments are three months long in the third year.
Assignments include the transplant, thoracic surgery, and gastrointestinal surgery services as well as the general surgery service. Another assignment during the fourth year is the general and vascular surgery service at the Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veteran's Affairs Medical Center, where the PGY4 residents assume upper-level responsibility for major general surgery and vascular cases in conjunction with the chief surgical resident. The final rotation is as the chief resident on the general surgery service. Chief residents are assigned to four surgery services. These are the general surgery, surgical oncology and vascular surgery services at the Medical University Hospital, and the general and vascular service at the Ralph H. Johnson Veterans Administration Medical Center.