Post Graduate Year 3
Rotation Schedule
| Emergency Medicine- | BIDMC: | 22 Weeks |
| Mount Auburn Hospital: 2 weeks | St. Luke's Hospital: | 4 Weeks |
| Thoracic Surgery: 2 weeks | St. Vincent's Hospital: | 4 Weeks |
| Pediatric Emergency Medicine- | Boston Children's Hospital: | 4 Weeks |
| Pediatric Intensive Care- | Tufts Medical Center: | 4 Weeks |
| Emergency Medical Services & Administration- | BIDMC: | 3 Weeks |
| Elective- | | 6 Weeks |
| Vacation- | | 4 Weeks |
Emergency Medicine
The third year rotation in Emergency Medicine stresses the development of emergency physician leadership. PGY3 residents assume the role of clinical leader in the emergency department with close emergency faculty supervision. They direct patient care in critical medical, surgical, trauma, psychiatric, and obstetric/gynecologic care situations. The PGY3 resident is responsible for supervising junior residents and medical students in the emergency department.
St. Luke's & St. Vincent
As the only emergency medicine residents at these busy community hospitals, the PGY 3 residents are responsible for seeing the sickest medical and surgical patients and performing all the procedures. The residents gain firsthand experience of practicing in high volume, high acuity community hospitals.
Thoracic Surgery
For one week, PGY 3 residents participate as a member of the Thoracic Surgery team. The residents participate in surgical cases and appropriate floor and emergency department consults. The PGY 3 develops skills in chest tube and pigtail placement and management. They also participate in broncoscopy. The residents attend the outpatient clinic one day per week and review chest CT scans with the Thoracic Surgery fellows and attendings.
Pediatric Emergency Medicine
The PGY3 residents are responsible for all facets of the patient’s clinical management while rotating in the Emergency Department at Children’s Hospital Boston. They have the opportunity to direct pediatric medical and trauma resuscitations and perform advanced procedures.
Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
The PGY3 residents spend four weeks as members of the pediatric intensive care team at Tufts Medical Center. Tufts Medical Center is a level 1 pediatric trauma center with a 15 bed ICU. This team is composed of PGY2 and PGY3 residents in both Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics and team members are responsible for all facets of clinical management. As the primary physician for his/her patients, the EM resident is responsible for ordering all therapies and diagnostic studies in addition to performing all indicated procedures. PGY3 residents also participate in critical care transport of pediatric patients from outlying hospitals to the intensive care unit at Tufts Medical Center.
Emergency Medical Services & Administration
PGY3 residents spend 3 weeks involved with a full range of EMS activities within the City of Boston, several suburban EMS systems and Boston MedFlight. They attend local, regional, and statewide meetings related to various aspects of EMS. Residents are exposed to mass gathering emergency care by working as physicians for Fenway Park during Boston Red Sox home games and special events. Time is also spent working with the chairman of Emergency Medicine acquiring a practical understanding of administrative issues (i.e. leadership, continuous quality improvement, risk management, managed care, marketing, computer systems, ethics) necessary to become an effective manager in Emergency Medicine. A quality assurance project is also completed during this rotation. Residents spend time at the Harvard Risk Management Foundation. Here they learn the basics of risk management and review closed malpractice cases.
Elective
Residents have 6 weeks of elective time in their PGY3 year. Residents can choose from a large number of previously arranged electives or can design their own educational elective.
Electives have included pediatric anesthesia at a high-volume community hospital, medical direction and oversight of a local EMS service, clinical research in a specific area of interest and the evaluation and management of patients presenting to the ED in shock.
Harvard’s Humanitarian Studies Initiative for Residents (HSIR) offers a six-week elective that combines intensive class work with an international field placement.