Hand/Microsurgery Fellowship
The Hand / Microsurgery Fellowship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) is a one-year accredited post-residency fellowship training program of the ACGME
under the direction of Joseph Upton, MD, Fellowship Director, and Amir Taghinia, MD, Co-Director. As part of the fellowship experience, fellows have the opportunity to work with hand attending faculty from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Children's Hospital Boston, and Shriner's Burns Hospital. There are also elective rotations at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the New England Baptist Hospital.
The program begins each year on July 1 and concludes on June 30th of the following year. The program participates in the National Residency Match Program, and it is highly highly competitive. Applicant interviews typically begin in late December and conclude at the end of March.
Interested applications should submit a universal hand application, CV, personal statement and 3 letters of reference to:
Hand Fellowship Program(s), BIDMC, Dept of Orthopedic Surgery, Stoneman 10, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.
Eligibility
Any resident who has completed a plastic surgery, orthopedic surgery, or general surgery residency program. The final applicant must be eligible to obtain a medical license in the Commonwealth of Massachusets and meet all of the credentialing criteria of the Beth Israel.
Program Goals
The goal of the Hand Fellowship is to train fellows in the art and science of upper extremity pathology and surgery. The fellowship provides comprehensive training in the medical treatment of the upper extremity. The program helps the trainee to refine his/her competence and to demonstrate proficiency in the preoperative, operative, and postoperative management of all types of upper extremity surgery. Hand fellows are responsible for the care of patients with a wide range of acquired and congenital defects requiring reconstruction. Through close supervision and progressive responsibility, fellows are taught the necessary diagnostic, clinical judgment, and technical skills to carry out a complete range of medical and surgical treatment for the upper extremity. They are also taught to be compassionate and to effectively communicate with patients and their families, observing the highest level of ethics in all of their professional relations.
Clinical Rotations
BIDMC Hand Fellows rotate in a multitude of surgical and ambulatory settings, all of which expand the fellows experience in hand surgery. Throughout the year, the fellow rotates on the following services:
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Adult Hand Plastic Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
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Adult Hand Orthopaedic Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
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Pediatric Surgery, Children's Hospital Boston
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Pediatric and Burn Surgery, Shriner's Burns Hospital
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Orthopedic Hand Elective Surgeries, New England Baptist Hospital
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Hand Service, Massachusetts General Hospital (2-month elective)
By spending dedicated time on both the orthopedic and plastics surgery hand services, working under the supervision of diverse faculty, as well working on rotations in a multitude of settings, the hand fellow will have broad exposure to treating the hand.
The fellow will be responsible for covering cases in the ER, OR, and in resident and private clinics. He/She will have multiple exposures to diverse approaches in treating problems of the hand. This collaboration and cross-fertilization will result in better care of patients, better trained hand surgeons, and more innovative approaches in the medical treatment of the upper extremity.
Fellow Responsibilities & Didactics
The hand fellow spends three to four days per week in the operating room. He/She also spends at least a day per week in the ambulatory setting, participating in clinics of the attending faculty, as well as a resident hand clinic. The hand/microsurgery fellow works closely with the hand orthopaedic fellow, sharing call. The two fellows work together in a weekly resident hand conference, a weekly hand clinic, where they see patients and also supervise plastic surgery residents, interns and medical students.
The Hand Microsurgery Fellowship offers a wealth of resources and ample learning opportunities. The hand fellow attends a weekly Hand Surgery Indications Confer
ence and a weekly classic article session. He/ She participates in the weekly meetings of the Division of Plastic Surgery (BIDMC), and can also attend the Grand Rounds for the Harvard Plastic Surgery Training Program, and the Vascular Anomalies Conference at Childrens Hospital. Monthly, the fellow attends a city-wide monthly Hand Journal Club attended by hand fellows and faculty from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Childrens Hospital and the Massachusetts General Hospital. Once or twice a year, a hand dissection and cadaver lab is also offered.
The fellow is expected to be a mentor and educator for the residents and medical students. While on plastic surgery, he/she is required to give an hour long hand conference once a month. While on his/her orthopedic rotation, he/she is responsible for organizing the weekly Hands Surgical Indications Conference. He/She will also be required to give a year-end presentation at Grand Rounds for Harvard Plastic Surgery.
Throughout the year, the hand fellow is encouraged to develop research projects and to participate with faculty in their ongoing clinical research endeavors. Public presentations and the writing of abstracts, original articles, and books chapters are all highly encouraged.
Faculty
Program Director: Joseph Upton, MD (Plastic Surgery)
Associate Director: Amir Taghinia, MD (Plastic Surgery)
Additional Faculty: Charles Day, MD (Orthopedic Surgery)
Martin Dolan, MD (Orthopedic Surgery)
Mary Hochman, MD (Radiology)
Peter Kim, MD (Plastic Surgery)
Samuel Lin, MD (Plastic Surgery)
Tamara Rozental (Orthopedic Surgery)
Recent Fellows
2001-2002 Robert Hagan, MD
2002-2003 Stephen Pap, MD
2003-2004 Brian Labow, MD
2004-2005 Ayman Al-Sheikh, MD
2005-2006 Lifei Guo, MD
2006-2007 Eran Bar-Meir, MD
2007-2008 Amir Taghinia, MD
2008-2009 Matthew Carty, MD
2009-2010 Jorge Brito, MD
2010-2011 Simon Talbot, MD
2011-2012 Reena Bhatt, MD
Contact Us
For questions and more information, contact Geoffrey Brahmer, Fellowship Coordinator, at gbrahmer@bidmc.harvard.edu or 617-632-9839.
