Ophthalmology Residency Program at UMDNJ-NJMS

The Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science


PROGRAM STRUCTURE

Rotations		Didactics
Intoductory Course		Interaction With Faculty
The First Year		Research
The Second Year		Duties & Benefits
The Third Year

THE THIRD YEAR

Third-year residents complete 2 subspecialty rotations at University Hospital in glaucoma/oculoplastics and cornea/refractive surgery. Here again, residents work closely with faculty and function essentially as clinical fellows. The resident doing the cornea rotation, for example, devotes time to the operating room, the Cornea and Laser Vision Institute (in Teaneck, NJ), private cornea practice, and cornea clinics, working one-on-one with full-time faculty members in each setting. The unique experience at the Cornea and Laser Vision Institute—one of the few resident rotations of its kind in the country—ensures that the resident will be certified in excimer laser refractive surgery by the end of the rotation.

During the remaining 3 rotations, the third-year resident functions as Chief of the Ophthalmology Clinic at each of the 3 affiliated institutions and is responsible (under the supervision of the attending physicians) for all patient care redered by the service. At each institution, the resident undergoes rigorous surgical instruction in phacoemulsification, trabeculectomy, ophthalmic plastic surgery, and vitreoretinal surgery, again, under close, individual supervision of clinical faculty. Moreover, during each of the 10-week rotations at Jersey City Medical Center and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, third-year residents supervise more junior residents in the clinic and in the microsurgery practice laboratory. The third year is one of intense surgical training, and, by the end of the year, each graduating resident will have performed over 350 major ocular procedures as primary surgeon (and an additional 200 laser procedures), each procedure assisted by an attending physician.

DIDACTICS

All didactic lectures, rounds, and conferences are conducted at the Doctors Office Center, the central teaching facility of this program. The didactic schedule comprises lectures and conferences on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings and are conducted primarily by the full-time faculty. Didactic lectures can be viewed by teleconference at the Jersey City Medical Center.

On Monday mornings, lectures alternate among the neuro-ophthalmology, retina, cornea, and glaucoma services. Wednesday morning lectures comprise retinal lectures, pathology didactic lectures, and fluorescein conferences. In addition, on the fourth Wednesday morning of the month, the first-year residents will attend an ophthalmic pathology lecture by Dr. Mirani in the Department of Pathology, followed by a 30-minute review of all pathologic specimens generated the previous week.

On the second and fourth Friday of each month, all residents are required to attend the Mortality and Morbidity conference run by Drs. Zarbin, Langer, Guo, and Khouri at 6:45 AM. On the first Friday morning of the month at 7:00 AM, a neuro conference or a retina lecture is held. The third Friday morning of the month is dedicated to Orbital Conference, a multispecialty conference involving orbital surgery, neuroradiology, and pathology. The third-year resident on the plastics rotation and the second-year neuro resident are responsible for preparing the cases with input and assistance from Drs. Langer and Turbin. Grand Rounds are held the third Monday evening of each month and include a resident lecture followed by the main presentation.

The second Friday morning of each month is devoted entirely to didactic teaching. All clinics throughout the residency are cancelled on these days. Following the Mortality and Morbidity Conference, residents present cases to the faculty and residents for discussion, followed by two to three hours of lectures and conferences.

Each thirrd-year resident also sponsors one journal club during which current ophthalmic literature is critically analyzed under the guidance of an attending physician. These 5 yearly journal clubs are held in the evenings over dinner at local restaurants, allowing for the residents to interact with full time faculty in a relaxed atmosphere.

First-year residents are subsidized to attend the free optics review course held one weekend in March at Baylor in Houston, Texas, for which the department pays airfare and housing. Finally, the department offers an introductory microsurgery course every August to orient new residents to the surgical aspects of ophthalmology.