Curriculum

Our residency is a four-year (PGY 1-4) program with fourteen residency positions offered each year through the NRMP match. Our curriculum is repeatedly evaluated and refined to provide an environment of academic inquiry and to challenge residents to develop their clinical, teaching, administrative, and research skills. The residency works within a framework of evidence-based medicine and graduated clinical responsibility. As residents progress through the program, clinical responsibilities reflect their broadening knowledge and experience.

Didactics

Our program hosts didactics for five hours on Wednesday mornings.  The lecture curriculum is varied and emphasizes dynamic learning and interactive content.  Our lecture curriculum is devised by both faculty and resident leaders, and the topics/content are frequently evaluated and refined.  Evidence-based content and principles are identified and emphasized. Each month one conference day is held in our simulation center with a mix of high-fidelity simulation, hands-on procedural practice, and interactive small groups.

Resus University

Our PGY-2 residents take on the role of the “Resus Resident” in our department, responsible for all medical resuscitations and major procedures. Each July we hold a month-long boot camp called “Resus University” for the PGY-2 class to prepare them for this role. This month features advanced procedural workshops, simulation sessions, team communication training, and structured clinical shifts with senior residents serving and near-peer mentors.

Scholarship

Working alongside our expanding fellowship program, our residents have a history of success and ongoing opportunities to pursue scholarships from within various academic divisions.  Our residents honor the ACGME-required scholarship participation in a variety of ways including:

BMC has a high level of expectation for our residents. Our graduates leave with the skills and confidence necessary to become leaders in the field of EM.

PGY1

Intern year training establishes a foundation in emergency medicine principles and management of common complaints.  Interns learn to approach the undifferentiated patient, and to devise and execute their own management plans, within the construct of the treatment team.  Interns are introduced to the management of critically ill patients in the trauma room, and progressively develop their multipatient management skills throughout that first year.

  • Orientation: 1 week
  • BMC ED: 26 weeks
  • Good Samaritan ED: 4 weeks
  • Pedi ED: 4 weeks
  • Ultrasound: 4 weeks
  • SICU: 2 weeks
  • MICU: 4 weeks
  • Obstetrics: 4 weeks
  • EMS/Ophthalmology/Orthopedics: 4 weeks
  • Vacation: 4 weeks
  • Intern Retreat: 1 week

PGY2

PGY2 year is structured for learners to master procedural skills, and to learn to run a code, to lead a medical resuscitation.  Coined the “Resus Resident” (aka “The Procedure Residents”), our PGY2 has first priority for all procedures completed in the department, utilizing the principles of deliberate practice and spaced repetition to develop expertise.  The PGY2s are code leaders for every medical patient ill enough to require our ‘trauma rooms’. PGY2s broaden their educational experience by rotating in the ED’s of our three affiliate hospitals: Boston Children’s Hospital, Lahey Medical Center, and St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center. In addition, all PGY2s receive time off and are funded to attend the annual Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) conference each spring.

  • Advanced ED Skills: 4 weeks
  • BMC ED: 16 weeks
  • Anesthesia: 4 weeks
  • Children’s PICU: 4 weeks
  • Lahey ED: 4 weeks
  • St. Elizabeth ED: 4 weeks
  • CCU: 4 weeks
  • Neuro Critical Care: 4 weeks
  • Elective: 4 weeks
  • Vacation: 4 weeks

PGY3

PGY3 year is the most rigorous year of training in our program.  In one role in our ED, our PGY3s serve as the ‘A side senior’, supervising the care provided to all the patients on one side of our ED, taking presentations from students and juniors, developing department oversight skills that are imperative to independent practice in emergency medicine.  On separate shifts, our PGY3s also serve as the ‘Trauma Resident’, supervising the care of critically injured patients presenting to the ED, coordinating care with consultants, managing every airway and intubation we perform in the ED. Because of BMC’s affiliation with Boston EMS, PGY3s provide on-line medical control for all 911 calls in the City of Boston through the regional Central Medical Emergency Direction (CMED) radio system.

  • BMC ED: 28 weeks
  • MICU: 4 weeks
  • Elective: 8 weeks
  • Vacation: 4 weeks
  • Good Samaritan ED: 4 weeks
  • Children’s ED: 4 weeks

PGY4

PGY4 provides an opportunity to refine clinical skills of oversight, supervision and multipatient management, alongside advanced training in pediatric EM and toxicology.  That plus elective opportunities make the PGY4 year a favorite for many of our trainees. In addition, all PGY4s receive time off and are funded to attend the annual American College of Emergency Medicine (ACEP) conference each fall.

  • BMC ED: 24 weeks
  • Teaching Advanced ED Skills: 4 weeks
  • Toxicology/Simulation: 4 weeks
  • Children’s ED: 4 weeks
  • Lahey ED: 4 weeks
  • Elective: 8 weeks
  • Vacation: 4 weeks