University of Massachusetts Vascular & Endovascular Surgery Residency Program

The integrated vascular surgery residency program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center is designed to provide graduated, incremental training in both vascular and core general surgery during a five-year program. This program leads the individual to qualify for certification in vascular surgery (but not general surgery) by the American Board of Surgery. We have designed a rotation schedule (see below) which integrates appropriate rotations during the first three years, and provides chief residency experience in vascular surgery during the fourth and fifth years. A total of 36 months will be spent on vascular surgery, and 24 months on core or general surgery rotations. The schedule has been designed to interact appropriately with current general surgery, intensive care unit, cardiothoracic surgery, cardiology, radiology, emergency medicine, and anesthesia rotations at the appropriate level to optimize learning.

Training in traditional open vascular surgery will be obtained on our dedicated inpatient vascular surgery services that are currently staffed by seven full time faculty members. By spending four months on these services during each of the first three years and twelve months in the last two years (total twenty-four months) residents will have substantial exposure each year to inpatient management and operative treatment of vascular patients with progressively increasing responsibility. Note also that a considerable volume of combined interventional and open procedures (such as endovascular aneurysm repair) occurs during the vascular surgery inpatient rotation. We perform approximately two thousand procedures per year

Endovascular training will occur during vascular rotations in the first three years and then a more intensive exposure for a total of twelve months during two six-month rotations during the fourth and fifth years. All procedures will be staffed and instructed by vascular surgery faculty. Progressively increasing responsibility will be provided, so that the residents will become well versed in diagnostic arteriography and venography, basic interventional procedures, and ultimately, the most complex interventions, such as carotid stenting. During these rotations, training in vascular laboratory techniques and interpretation will also be conducted during protected time two afternoons a week. We have found in our current training program that this schedule allows our residents to become proficient in vascular duplex imaging and arterial doppler studies, and to interpret sufficient studies (100 each in peripheral, venous, and cerebrovascular, plus abdominal and transcranial duplex) to qualify for the Registered Physician in Vascular Interpretation examination.

Core surgical training will occur primarily on general surgery services that are focused on GI surgery, trauma and critical care, but will also include rotations on minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopic), pediatric surgery, and surgical oncology in a ratio that is optimal for vascular surgeons who will not perform elective general surgery, but will be caring for vascular surgery patients who often develop general surgery problems and require substantial critical care. In addition, rotations on cardiac and non-cardiac thoracic surgery will increase exposure to techniques of median sternotomy and thoracotomy, and care of cardiothoracic patients. This experience will be robust due to the large, growing volume of coronary artery bypass procedures being performed here each year. The residents will receive training in critical care during the two surgical ICU rotations. This critical care training will be supplemented during their rotations on the Cardiac Surgery service where they will manage these patients in the Cardiac Surgery critical care unit. Finally, the residents will rotate on the inpatient and outpatient cardiology services in order to maximize their knowledge of risk factor assessment and treatment and vascular medicine. Rotations have been scheduled each year at levels that provide the optimal experience on each of the non-vascular surgery services, to avoid competition with any current residents on these services.

Andres Schanzer, MD, Program Director
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
55 Lake Avenue North
Worcester, MA 01655

Tel: 508-856-5599
Fax: 508-856-8329
Email: schanzea@ummhc.org

PDF OVERVIEW OF INTEGRATED RESIDENCY

Download and view a PDF outlining the Vascular Surgery Integrated Residency:

UMass Vascular Residency Presentation (488 KB PDF)

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