Rotations during Training at Stanford

The Core General Surgery Residency: Anyone contemplating interviewing at Stanford and becoming part of this training program will want to know something about the rotations during their five clinical years of training. We have chosen to divide the residency into two components; the Core General Surgery Residency and the Senior General Surgery Training Program. At Stanford, the six categorical General Surgery residents are joined by up to four preliminary residents who are entering fields such as Interventional Radiology, Anesthesiology, etc., as well as four first year Orthopedic residents, three first year Plastic Surgery residents, two Urology residents, four Otolaryngology/Head and Neck residents and two Neurosurgery residents. Thus, in the first postgraduate year there are a total of 26 residents at Stanford. In the second year of training there are at least 10 residents and occasionally 11 or 12, consisting of the six categorical General Surgery residents, the three Plastic Surgery residents, two Urology residents, and occasionally one or two individuals seeking a second year of training before going into a different subspecialty. These residents are considered to be part of the Core General Surgery Residency. The assignments of residents are driven by a core curriculum and by the special requirements of the Residency Review Committee. A representative sample of rotations follows this brief narrative description. The goal of the Core General Surgery Residency is to provide residents with graduated responsibilities in the primary components of General Surgery. In addition, it will give them an appropriate experience in subspecialties required by the Residency Review Committee. It is extremely important to point out that during these first two years the residents do a large number of operations under the direct supervision of a faculty attending or in some cases, a senior surgical resident. Our interns and second year residents perform as many as 100-200 cases per year during this time.

PGY-I Rotations:

• General Surgery (SCVMC)              4 weeks
• VA General Surgery                          4 weeks 
• Stanford (Red, White, Gold)           12 weeks
• Thoracic Surgery                                4 weeks
• Liver Transplant                                  4 weeks
• Pediatric Surgery (LPCH)                  4 weeks
• Vascular Surgery (VA or SUMC)      4 weeks
• Orthopedic Surgery                            4 weeks
• Neuro Surgery                                     4 weeks
• Trauma Surgery                                  4 weeks
• ACS (night float)                                  4 weeks
• Vacation Coverage                            4 weeks

PGY-II Rotations:

• General Surgery (Kaiser)                   2 months
• General Surgery (SCVMC)                3 months
• Stanford  (White)                                  1 month
• ICU (Stanford)                                      1 month
• ICU (VAMC)                                         1 month
• Urology (VAMC)                                  1 month
• Plastics & Burns Surgery (SCVMC) 1 month
• Cardiac (VAMC)                                  1 month
• Urology (VAMC)                                  1 month
• Vacation Coverage                             1 month
• ACS/ Consults                                      1 month

PGY-III Rotations:

• General Surgery (Kaiser)                   2 months
• Vascular                                                2 months
• Stanford (Gold)                                    2 months
• ICU                                                        2 months
• Transplant Surgery                             2 months
• Stanford (Red)                                     2 months

PGY-IV Rotations:

• General Surgery (SCVMC)                  2 months
• ACS (Night Float)                                   4 months
• General Surgery (VAMC)                     2 months
• Kaiser                                                       2 months
• Pediatric Surgery                                   2 months

PGY-V Rotations:

• General Surgery (Kaiser)                        2 months
• General Surgery (SCVMC)                     2 months
• Stanford (Red, White, Gold)                    6 months
• Vascular Surgery (VAMC)                       2 months