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May 3, 2023

Residency Program Update: May 2023

Residents, Trainees

— Dr. Michèle Farrugia, Director, Residency Program

Transitions in the Residency Program

Medical training inevitably includes a lot of moving around: new rotations, new hospitals, new people, new responsibilities. If, as physicians, we hadn’t lived it too, we might find it hard to believe how many transitions there can be!  The Royal College recognizes these changes and accordingly labels two of the four stages of residency, in Competence-By-Design (CBD) parlance, Transition to Discipline (first few blocks of PGY1) and Transition to Practice (most of PGY5). 

Royal College stages of training competence diagram, from entry to residency to transition out of professional practice

Not always concurrent with changes in CBD stages, there are several points during residency where transitions involve an increased level of responsibility.  In the Residency Program, we try to support our residents with additional educational activities through these transitions:

  • Incoming PGY1s are matched with a PGY2 or PGY3 mentor before they officially begin residency, so they have a peer to help guide them through the weeks leading into residency. 
  • The first month of residency is spent in our Transition to Residency (TTR) rotation, learning basic skills in our Surgical Skills Lab and gaining some foundational knowledge from faculty and resident teachers before plunging into the intensity of clinical rotations. 
  • Our PGY1s participate in a Longitudinal Ambulatory Rotation (LAR) where they work in clinic with an assigned faculty supervisor every 2-3 weeks, ideally developing a mentoring relationship.
  • Between PGY1 and PGY2, the outgoing PGY2s host a PGY2 Rising/Bootcamp for the incoming PGY2s, giving them tips and tricks to survive a busy and challenging year of growth, learning and service. 
  • Every spring, we host a Chief Residents Bootcamp where our incoming PGY4 Chief Residents learn the ins and outs of being a chief resident from their PGY5 peers, PD and APD.
  • New in 2023-24, once our PGY5s have completed their Royal College written exam and entered the Transition to Practice stage of training, they will be working longitudinally with a faculty supervisor in our Longitudinal Ambulatory Clinical Experience (LACE) in an increasingly independent manner to work on consolidating their clinical, surgical, and administrative skills in preparation for practice.

It is our hope that by the end of residency, all our residents have been able to build connections that will enable them to seek advice and mentorship, facilitating the transition to the next stage of their careers, whether that be fellowship training or directly into practice.