Stephen McHugh, MD
As physicians, your intern year is what lays the groundwork for everything you learn during the rest of your medical training and throughout your career. Graduating medical school gives you an MD or DO degree, but it is your intern year that truly makes you a Doctor. We believe that our CBY program will provide world-class preparation for your future in perioperative medicine.
The focus of our intern year is on education. You will rotate through a diverse group of rotations and be exposed to a wide range of patients, from one-year-olds in the pediatric emergency room to 99-year-olds in the ICU. This experience will prepare you to care for these patients in the ORs and other environments during the rest of your residency. However, despite this broad exposure, you are a member of our department from day one. Our interns are all routinely released from clinical duties to attend our monthly noon lecture series. This is hosted within our department and run by department faculty to promote continuity of education and camaraderie amongst the class and attendings. We strictly adhere to ACGME duty hour requirements regardless of the rotation and are serious about fostering an appropriate balance between clinical responsibilities and life outside of the hospital to promote wellness. For this reason, all interns have a dedicated block of time off surrounding the winter holidays, regardless of their current rotation.
Our CBY program has had great stability since its inception, which is a testament to the efforts of its previous directors, Drs. Shawn Beaman and Keith Vogt. Each year we critically evaluate each rotation for its value to ensure the quality of the program. Feedback from current residents regarding the intern year is valued highly. We work closely with our colleagues within and outside of our department to maintain this standard.
A unique component of the Clinical Base Year is the Anesthesiology Professional Practice (APP) Rotation, run by Drs. Keith Vogt and Ted Sakai. All interns within our department come together for this rotation and have the opportunity to attend the ASA Annual Meeting as a class. This is another opportunity to build relationships with co-residents and other members of the department.
Another advantage of the CBY program is the ability to get involved with research and leadership positions as an intern. Dr. Ted Sakai is the Director of Resident Scholarly Education and is eager to help any resident pursue their research interests. There are ample opportunities and significant departmental resources to support these endeavors. Although there is no requirement for this, multiple interns have presented or published work completed during their Clinical Base Year.
If any prospective applicants have questions about the CBY program, our department, or life in Pittsburgh, please feel free to contact me: mchughsm@upmc.edu