Conferences

Conferences occur daily and in several different formats. Morning conferences consist of resident report twice per week, weekly departmental morbidity and mortality conference and weekly Department of Medicine Grand Rounds. The Grand Rounds feature speakers invited by the Chief of Medicine to discuss topics of general interest and importance in the training of an internist. The bi-weekly morning resident reports are reserved specifically for second and third year trainees and afford residents the opportunity to teach their co-residents through the presentation of clinical questions and interesting cases.

Daily noon conferences for all house officers include case-based discussions, journal club, formal lectures, and "senior talks," given by residents during their senior year. Topics for "senior talks" are chosen by the individual and can focus on any medical or research topic of interest.

On two days each week, the interns have their own noon conferences, with specifically selected cases to ensure that basic didactic and management topics are covered during the first year. These lectures are protected time for interns as their pagers are signed over to their residents during the hour.

Each Friday, interns and residents gather with their Firm Chiefs and Associate Firm Chiefs, in addition to invited subspecialist consultants and teaching attendings, for firm conference, a 1.5 hour conference highlighting the most interesting cases from the general wards teams.

In addition, afternoon conferences are held four days per week for house officers on general ward rotations. These conferences are led by selected attendings, comprised of general internists and subspecialists, who are assigned monthly to each ward team for the primary purpose of teaching. Cardiology, critical care, and oncology rotations frequently hold their own teaching conferences for rotating house officers. Interns and residents may also attend the weekly conferences of the various subspecialty divisions according to their interest.

A typical week of conferences looks like this: