Residency in Plastic Surgery
This is a five-year graduate educational program.
In 1998, the Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery approved
the UTMB program as an integrated plan. The curriculum will provide
specific experiences as required by the Plastic Surgery Residency
Review Committee to progress through an integrated program of
five years duration. Each of the clinical experiences requires
preoperative evaluation and postoperative management of the patients
in addition to operative care. The program will allow experiences
of progressive responsibility as the resident rotates through
two years of basic surgical sciences followed by three years of
core plastic surgery experience. During the fifth year, the resident
on the adult service takes on the additional responsibility of
Chief Administrative Resident for the entire program. An optional
one- or two-year research experience is available after the second
clinical year. This would increase the time in Galveston, as the
clinical experience must remain five years. The Plastic Surgery
Residency Review Committee has approved the UTMB program for three
residents per year for a total of 15 residents.
Residents in the third year of the program are assigned specific ward and operating room responsibilities, as well as patient management in the outpatient and emergency clinics. Additionally, they are assigned to the adult and pediatric burn units for a period of four months to engage in acute burn management and are expected to take an active role in student teaching throughout the entire period of rotations. A special rotation in microsurgery completes the year.
The fourth-year residents are involved in two unique educational experiences. Four months are spent in Shriners Burns Hospital to perfect skills in burn reconstruction and the correction of craniofacial anomalies. Another four-month block is spent in the basic science wound healing laboratory.
Senior resident responsibilities include independent planning and executing of the operating room schedule. The senior resident assumes overall ward outpatient and service responsibilities, as well as the responsibility for inpatient consultation services. Teaching and research duties are continued, and the senior resident serves as the administrative resident. For four months the senior resident works in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Hospital.
Typical Schedule of Instructions
| Shrine Reconstructive Rounds | Weekly |
| Plastic Surgery Grand Rounds | Weekly |
| Cleft Palate Conference | Weekly |
| Burn Reconstructive Conference | Weekly |
| Indications Conference | Bi-Weekly |
| Anatomy | Monthly |
| Journal Club | Bi-Weekly |
| Hands-on Workshops (varied topics) | Weekly |
| Video Conference | Bi-Weekly |
| Plastic ENT Oral Surgery | Monthly |
| Hand Conference | Weekly |
| Competency Case Presentations | Quarterly |
Application Procedure
Resident selection for the five-year program is through the Plastic Surgery Matching Program. Our integrated program matches students straight out of medical school. We participate in the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP).
