The Neurology Residency Training Program at
Jackson Memorial Hospital

The Mission and Vision
Service and Program Overview
The Neurology Residency Training Program
Goals and Objectives
Program Strengths
Application Information
Eligibility Requirements
Interviews
Resident Clinician Researcher Program
The Core Curriculum
Internship (PGY-1)
First Year of Neurology Residency (PGY-2)
Second Year of Neurology Residency (PGY-3)
Third Year of Neurology Residency (PGY-4)
Summary of Daily Conference Schedule
Neurology Fellowships
Medical Student Electives and Mini Research Fellowships
Life in Miami and South Florida

Residency Training Program in Neurology

The Mission and Vision:
Mission: The Neurology Residency Program at Jackson Memorial Hospital aims to provide outstanding training in clinical care, neuroscience research, and medical education to the next generation of practitioners and academic neurologists.

Vision: The Jackson neurology service works continuously to excel in neurological care of patients and their families, striving to create new methods for evaluation and management of the diseases of the nervous system, fostering strategic alliances with allied clinical disciplines, competing for cutting-edge clinical and basic neuroscience research funding, and preparing its trainees for life-long medical teaching and learning.

Service and Program Overview:
The Jackson Memorial Hospital and the Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Center, both located at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, provide over 2300 hospital beds, making UM/Jackson the largest hospital facility in the southeast United States. Jackson is the main referral hospital for communities in South Florida and in Central and South America. Thirty full-time clinical attendings and 17 research faculty of the UM School of Medicine's Department of Neurology serve as attending physicians in Jackson's residency training program in neurology and provide the latest knowledge and experience in clinical neurology and neuroscience research. Every subspecialty area of neurology is represented in our staff, and active recruitment is always under way to broaden the program.

Areas of particular strength in patient care, research and teaching within the neurology service include: cerebrovascular diseases, neuromuscular disorders, movement disorders, epilepsy and EEG, multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology, behavioral neuroscience and cognitive disorders, neuro-oncology, neurovirology, and sleep medicine. There also are well-funded basic research programs in cerebrovascular disease, cerebral metabolism, neurotrauma, cell biology and molecular genetics, mitochondrial biology, neurovirology, neuroimmunology, and several other research fields. The School of Medicine's Center for Research in Medical Education provides innovative neurological clinical teaching at undergraduate and graduate levels.

Neurology Residency Training Program:
Jackson is home to one of the largest neurology residency training programs in the United States. The program offers training for both adult and pediatric neurology. The program provides intensive clinical training on the neurology services of two large general hospitals, detailed instruction in basic and related clinical neurosciences, exposure to investigative laboratory science, and a variety of conferences and specialized neurological clinics. The residency training schedule is designed for flexibility. After the first year of basic clinical neurology training, every effort is made to accommodate the request of each resident for elective rotations that are chosen in concert with individualized career goals. For hands-on experience in clinical or bench research, each resident is assigned to a mentor under whose guidance the residents pursue scholarly research projects during the period of their residency. Substantial elective time is provided in the final years of training. The program emphasizes excellence in clinical neurology and has produced academic neurologists, practitioners of neurology, researchers, and teachers of national and international repute.

Goals and Objectives:
The primary goals of the training program are to provide:

• Excellent clinical training in the practice of neurology
• Opportunities to take part in clinical research
• Opportunities to develop and pursue an investigative career in basic neuroscience
• Foundation of knowledge from which future educational activities can grow

Program Strengths:

• The breadth and depth of attending physicians, including many nationally and internationally recognized clinician-teachers and clinician-researchers.
• Wide spectrum of neurological disorders are treated, including tropical neurological disorders and at large tertiary care.
• Significant outpatient and ambulatory neurology experience in the context of changing market forces and community needs.
• Mentorship for each resident to pursue scholarly research project.
• A unique resident clinician researcher program for career in research-oriented academic neurology.
• A close-knit atmosphere among attendings and residents.
• An optional four-year categorical neurology residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
• A large amount of elective time in senior years allowing residents to develop individualized educational programs.
• A reasonable hospital 'night call' schedule for residents.
• Affordable and high quality lifestyle in the truly exceptional South Florida area.

Application Information:
Please complete an application form (ERAS) and submit the documents requested in the application information.  The application requires a personal statement, your medical school transcript, USMLE scores for steps 1 and 2, three letters of reference, and the dean's letter.

All correspondence concerning the residency training program at Jackson should be addressed to:

Neurology Residency Training Program
House Staff Office
Jackson Memorial Hospital
1611 NW 12th Avenue
Miami, FL 33136-1094

You may also contact the program office via telephone, fax or through electronic mail

Tel (305) 243-3902
Fax (305) 324-6546
Email vmaldona@med.miami.edu

Eligibility Requirements:
Each applicant to the neurology residency training program at Jackson Memorial Hospital must be a graduate of an approved United States or Canadian medical school, or a foreign medical graduate who has been certified through the ECFMG and who is eligible for a J-1 visa. We also accept applications for a four-year Categorical Neurology Program (Resident Clinician Researcher Program, see below). Those who wish to be matched at the PGY-2 position must complete at least one year of graduate training in internal medicine or a transitional year in an accredited program in the United States or Canada. Information about Categorical and Preliminary Internal Medicine Programs at Jackson may be found at the Residency / Fellowship Training Programs website. You also may write directly to Dr. Mark Gelbard, program director, at:

Internal Medicine Service
Jackson Memorial Hospital, C600
1611 NW 12 Avenue
Miami, FL 33136-1094
(305) 585-5215

Interviews:
Interviews for invited applicants take place from late October through January, and usually lasts one day. A two-day interview can be arranged for applicants to the Resident Clinician Researcher Program in Neurology (RCRPN), who wish to interact with additional research faculty or who desire site-visits to the research laboratories. The interview format is flexible to accommodate the applicant's schedule. We meet on Thursday evening at 6 pm for dinner, and on Friday, the day begins at 8 AM and concludes no later than 4:15 PM. The applicant's interview includes an orientation meeting with the Program Director, tours of the ward floors, medical campus and neurointensive care facility by resident staff, attendance at Grand Rounds, lunch with the Program Director and residents, followed by individual interviews with 4-5 members of the faculty. To accommodate large number of applicants, interviews may be arranged in small groups. Applicants are encouraged to indicate any special clinical or research interests so that additional interviews can be arranged.

The Resident Clinician Researcher Program in Neurology:
The Resident Clinician Researcher Program in Neurology (RCRPN) is geared toward identify applicants with interest in clinical and basic neuroscience research and provides mentorship, infrastructure, guidance, and supervision to groom participants into future academic faculty and neuroscience researchers. The RCRPN curriculum for a particular resident is tailored to account for the individual's research interest and necessary clinical training required toward accreditation by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. A resident in RCRPN will be a potential faculty member after the completion of neurology residency.

All applications for the RCRPN must be submitted in the standard format for other applications, such through the Central Application Service sponsored by the San Francisco Match. Applicants interested in this program are encouraged to state the interest clearly in their personal statement supported by necessary documents, such as previous research exposure. Interviews for invited applicants may include meeting with additional research faculty and site-visits to specific clinical centers or research laboratories of the neurology service. Interviews for RCRPN positions are completed in one or two days, depending upon the applicant's schedule.

Residents enrolled in the RCRPN will likely join a four-year Categorical Neurology Program (PGY-1 through PGY-4) at Jackson Memorial Hospital. In addition to the core curriculum described below, the RCRPN resident will spend electives of at least two months each in PGY-1 through PGY-3 years and six months in PGY-4 year with a mentor in the area of their research interest. The assigned attending mentor and program directors will closely monitor the progress of residents in the RCRPN track. It is expected that such residents will accumulate enough preliminary data to submit an Investigator Development Grant, such as a K08 Grant of the NIH, by the end of their residency training.

Core Curriculum

Internship (PGY-1):
The core curriculum for preliminary medicine/neurology Residents is similar to that of first year categorical medicine residents. It includes experience in inpatient general medicine (5 months), emergency medicine (1 month), critical care medicine (1 month), ambulatory medicine (1 month), inpatient oncology (1 month) and neurology (2 months). All core experience during internship takes place at Jackson and VA Center. Throughout the year, preliminary medicine/neurology residents have a one half-day each week of ambulatory continuity clinic, organized by the internal medicine service.

First-Year Neurology Residency (PGY-2):
During the first year of the neurology residency training program, the resident is exposed to wide spectrum of neurological disorders, including those that are common and rare, acute and chronic. A two-month introductory lecture series (two hours each Friday) is organized for new residents and covers management of acute and emergent neurological conditions. First-year neurology trainees (PGY-2) spend six months at the Jackson inpatient services, two months at VA Center's inpatient services, two months in neuropathology, and one month in neuroradiology rotations.

Jackson Memorial Hospital is a1567-bed tertiary care hospital. It is the major teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Miami School of Medicine. The hospital has a wide referral base, including south and central Florida and Central and South America, providing exceptional selection of teaching cases.

The Jackson inpatient neurology service consists of staff and private patients in approximately 40 beds located in the west wing. There are about 1500 adult neurology admissions to Jackson each year. The neurorehabilitation service has 30 beds and the intermediate head-injury service another 10 beds. Extensive outpatient facilities are available at Jackson clinics, with over 6000 adult neurology outpatient visits per year.

The Veterans Affairs Center is located across the street from Jackson and is an 800-bed hospital facility. The inpatient neurology service at the VA Center has approximately 10 inpatient beds and admits over 400 patients each year. The neurology outpatient clinic at the VA Center handles about 4000 patients per year.

Second-Year Neurology Residency (PGY-3):
The second year neurology resident spends most of the year in consultation services at the Jackson and the VA Center. Two PGY-3 neurology residents, several interns, rotating residents from other medical specialties, medical students, and a neurology attending comprise a typical neurology consultation team. The PGY-3 residents (under attending staff supervision) cover the hospital-wide consultation service round the clock, seven days a week.

Elective schedules during PGY-3, including the choice and duration of particular electives, are arranged to meet the career plans of the individual resident and to satisfy requirements of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. A wide range of elective rotations are available, including neuroradiology, neuropathology, neurorehabilitation, neuro-ophthalmology, neuro-oncology, neurosurgery, psychiatry, neurophysiology, sleep medicine, and basic neuroscience research.

Third-Year Neurology Residency (PGY-4):
The third year neurology resident spends two months each of chief residency each at Jackson and the VA Center inpatient services, three months in pediatric neurology, two months in advanced clinical electrophysiology, and two months in electives.

Responsibilities of the chief resident include supervision of junior residents at Jackson and the VA Center, overseeing the care of acutely ill patients with neurological disorders in the intensive care units, and teaching residents and medical students. The chief resident conducts daily early morning service rounds and evening sign-out rounds, during which clinical care of the patients on the neurology service is reviewed. The chief resident also monitors hospital admissions and discharges, conducts teaching conferences, and is responsible for maintaining an overall high quality of neurological care provided by residents on all the neurology services.

The advanced neurophysiology rotation during PGY-4 is a two-month block devoted to the study of EEG, EMG, and evoked potentials. The resident also develops skills in interpreting EEGs and long-term EEG monitoring videos of patients with intractable epilepsy. The EMG rotation is devoted to the study of EMG and disorders of the nerves and muscles. During this rotation, the resident learns how to use nerve conduction studies and EMG to precisely localize lesions of the motor unit and determine the pathophysiology of these lesions. Nerve and muscle pathology sessions and didactic lectures and rounds in neurophysiology provide the breadth and depth of the learning experience for the resident.

Summary of Daily Resident Conference Schedule:
MONDAY

6:30 AM Work rounds with chief resident
7:15 AM Morning report with teaching faculty
8:00 AM Neuroradiology conference
9:00 AM Attending rounds
11:00 AM VA ward discharge rounds
12:00 Noon Electrophysiology lecture
Stroke conference
1:30 PM Chief resident's lecture
3:30 PM Neurologic exam review for students
5:00 PM Sign-out rounds

TUESDAY

6:30 AM Work rounds with chief resident
7:15 AM Morning report with teaching faculty
8:00 AM Neuroradiology conference
9:00 AM Attending rounds
Epilepsy surgery conference
12:00 Noon Interdisciplinary clinical rounds
12:30 PM VA outpatient clinic
3:00 PM Neurology tumor board conference
5:00 PM Sign-out rounds

WEDNESDAY

6:30 AM Work rounds with chief resident
7:15 AM Morning report with teaching faculty
8:00 AM Attending rounds
9:00 AM Jackson general neurology clinic
11:00 AM VA ward discharge rounds
12:00 Noon Luncheon clinical conference
Basic neuroscience lectures
3:30 PM Neuro-ophthalmology case conference
5:00 PM Sign-out rounds

THURSDAY

6:30 AM Work rounds with chief resident
7:15 AM Morning report with teaching faculty
Neurosurgery grand rounds
8:00 AM Neuroradiology conference
9:00 AM Attending rounds
10:00 AM Brain cutting session
Neuro-ophthalmology grand rounds
11:00 AM Dr. Bradley chief's rounds
12:00 Noon Clinical conference series
Neuromuscular conference
Nerve and muscle biopsy session
5:00 PM Sign-out rounds

FRIDAY

6:30 AM Work rounds with chief resident
7:15 AM Morning report with teaching faculty
7:30 AM EEG conference
8:00 AM Attending rounds
10:00 AM Introductory neurology lecture series
Neurology grand rounds
12:00 Noon Quality assurance conference (first Friday of each month)
5:00 PM Sign-out rounds

SATURDAY

9:00 AM Service rounds
12:00 Noon Sign-out rounds

SUNDAY

9:00 AM Service rounds
12:00 Noon Sign-out rounds

Neurology Fellowships:
Fellowship opportunities encompassing clinical care and basic and clinical research are available in the following areas:

1. Cerebrovascular diseases
2. Neuromuscular disease and EMG
3. Epilepsy and EEG
4. Multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology
5. Movement disorders
6. Behavior and cognitive neurology
7. Neuro-oncology
8. Sleep disorders
9. Lab-based stroke research
10. Molecular genetics

Medical Student Electives and Mini Research Fellowships:
The Department of Neurology and JMH offers a four-week elective rotation to medical students desiring to gain extra experience in neurology during their senior years. Clinical neurology electives are available on the neurology inpatient service or neurology consultation service at the Jackson. Extended electives in clinical or bench research lasting for up to 12 weeks also are available. Clinical electives in neurology subspecialty services also are available. The students work closely with residents and attending during these electives. Economic housing on the medical school campus can be arranged for out of town students for the duration of these electives. Over the years, senior students have found such elective rotations useful for direct interaction with faculty and resident staff, hands-on experience in neuroscience research, and exposure to South Florida. However, students' electives are neither required nor necessarily encouraged for prospective neurology residency training applicants.

Life in Miami and South Florida
South Florida is a vibrant growing area that offers an exceptional lifestyle and many opportunities. Activities include year-round swimming, boating, water skiing, fishing, snorkeling, tennis, and golf for enjoyment and relaxation. The greater metropolitan area including Miami and surrounding Miami-Dade County has a population of over 2.2 million. The area has all the cultural and sporting facilities one expects to find in large population centers, and much more. These include symphony, ballet, opera, theaters, museums, and zoological and botanical centers. There are major league teams in baseball, basketball, football, and ice hockey. The University of Miami also has outstanding college teams in football, baseball, and basketball. Abundantly diverse restaurants, stores, and services of all types, styles, and prices are to be found throughout the metro Dade area. There are many fashionable and interesting places to visit and shop, such as Bayside in the downtown waterfront area, Coconut Grove, and South Beach.

The Jackson Memorial Hospital neurology residency training program combines the best in neurology training with world's most attractive place to live. No website or brochure can answer every candidate's questions. We encourage you to call us if we can clarify or expand on any components of our program. Visit us, and we will show you in person why this can be an outstanding career opportunity.

Neurology Residency Training Program Director
House Staff Office
Jackson Memorial Hospital
1611 NW 12th Avenue
Miami, FL 33136-1094

Tel (305) 243-5195
Fax (305) 324-3210

e-mail: vmaldona@med.miami.edu