Training and Curriculum

South Brooklyn Health General Surgery Residency Program

Training and Curriculum

The South Brooklyn Health General Surgery Residency provides broad clinical and operative training within a high-volume safety-net hospital serving a diverse and medically complex patient population. Residents gain extensive experience in acute care surgery, elective general surgery, surgical subspecialties, and complex perioperative management. Training is enriched through collaboration with Neurologic, Orthopedic, Gynecologic, Urologic, Plastic, Thoracic, and Vascular Surgery, as well as Interventional Radiology, Cardiology, Neurology, and Advanced Gastroenterology. Particular emphasis is placed on contemporary open, minimally invasive, and robotic techniques.

Early Residency Training – Foundation Building

The first two years focus on developing the clinical judgement, technical skills, and professional habits required for surgical practice in both inpatient and ambulatory settings. Core areas include:

• Evaluation and triage of surgical patients
• Diagnostic workup and clinical decision-making
• Preoperative and postoperative management
• Inpatient care and discharge planning
• Basic procedures and operative participation
• Patient ownership, communication, and interdisciplinary teamwork.

Progressive Responsibility

Residents assume increasing responsibility as they advance through training. Under close faculty supervision, they develop independence in clinical decision-making, operative planning, team leadership, and management of complex surgical patients.

This graduated approach prepares residents to act confidently, decisively, and safely in both operative and nonoperative settings.

Operative Experience

Residents at South Brooklyn benefit from strong operative exposure across a wide range of procedures in both open and minimally invasive surgery. Faculty are committed to hands-on teaching in the operating room and to helping residents steadily build technical fluency throughout training.

Our program places particular emphasis on contemporary operative approaches, including robotic surgery. Residents train with faculty experienced in robotic techniques and are expected to graduate with meaningful exposure to these platforms, allowing them to enter practice or fellowship with a modern and adaptable surgical skill set.

Educational Curriculum

Residents participate in protected educational time every Wednesday from 7 to 10 am. Educational conferences reinforce core surgical knowledge, encourage active discussion regarding latest research and techniques, and support preparation for the ABSITE and board certification.

The curriculum includes:

• Grand Rounds: Monthly presentations by invited surgical experts and other healthcare leaders; typically, open to all and frequently in collaboration with invited departments and services.
• SCORE-Based Didactics: Weekly faculty lectures, quizzes and board-style questions
• Morbidity and Mortality Conference: Weekly
• Journal Club: Monthly
• Skills Lab: Bi-monthly
• Multidisciplinary Tumor Board: Weekly
• Morning Report: Daily
• Mock Oral Boards: Annually

Educational Resources

Residents receive subsidized access to several learning and board-preparation resources:

• SCORE (Surgical Council on Resident Education)
• TrueLearn General Surgery
• Medical Library
• SESAP (Surgical Education and Self-Assessment Program)

These platforms offer comprehensive curricular content, self-directed learning, and board-style question banks tailored to general surgery training.

Simulation and Technical Skills Development

Technical skill acquisition is a core component of resident education from intern year through chief residency. Residents participate in structured skills training and simulation sessions tailored to their postgraduate year, allowing for deliberate practice and progressive mastery of essential techniques.

Bi-Monthly Skills Lab Sessions – In house

• Knot tying and suturing
• Basic operating room skills
• Procedure-based ‘chalk talks’ covering instrumentation, exposure, sequencing and technical tips.
• Robotic simulation and bedside instruction.
• Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS)

Health + Hospitals Institute for Medical Simulation and Learning (IMSAL) at Jacobi

• Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery (FES)
• Open Surgical Simulation System (OS3) – Sessions twice per year. 

Rotations By Year

Surgery I

• Acute Care and General Surgery
• Colon and Rectal Surgery
• Bariatric Surgery
• Vascular Surgery
• Thoracic Surgery

Surgery II

• Acute Care and General Surgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Head and Neck Surgery
• Breast Surgery
• Plastic Surgery

Rotations by Year

PGY 1

PGY 2

PGY 3

PGY 4

PGY 5

Where You Rotate

NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health, Ruth Bader Ginsberg Hospital

South Brooklyn Health is the home base of our residency and the heart of our training experience. As a modernized municipal safety-net hospital serving southern Brooklyn, it offers residents high-volume operative experience, broad pathology, and the opportunity to care for an exceptionally diverse community within the new Ruth Bader Ginsburg Hospital and its state-of-the-art surgical facilities.

History in South Brooklyn: Moving into the New Ruth Bader Ginsburg Hospital

R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland

Training at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center places residents at one of the most iconic trauma institutions in the country. As the nation’s first and only integrated trauma hospital, Shock Trauma offers unmatched exposure to complex injury, high-acuity resuscitation, and the fast-paced multidisciplinary care that defines modern trauma surgery.

Inside the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center

Cohen Children’s Medical Center

Cohen Children’s Medical Center provides residents with exposure to pediatric surgical care at one of the region’s premier children’s hospitals. As the largest provider of pediatric health services in New York State and a nationally recognized children’s hospital, it offers a dynamic learning environment centered on specialized, family-focused care for infants, children, and adolescents.

An inside look inside Cohen Children’s Medical Center: A Children’s Miracle Network Hospital

Montefiore Einstein Center for Transplantation

At Montefiore Einstein, residents gain exposure to advanced transplant surgery within a center recognized for innovation and care of medically complex patients. The program is a national leader in transplant outcomes across multiple organ systems and is known for pioneering work in complex and high-risk transplantation, making it an outstanding environment for surgical growth.

Inspired Medicine | Montefiore Medical Center

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Memorial Sloan Kettering offers residents the opportunity to learn within one of the world’s leading cancer centers. With an international reputation for excellence in cancer care, research, and education—and a longstanding position among the nation’s top cancer hospitals—MSK provides exceptional exposure to multidisciplinary oncologic surgery and complex cancer care.

See Inside: Tour of MSK’s David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care

Roger William Cancer Center

Roger Williams Medical Center expands resident exposure to academic and oncologic surgery in a setting known for innovation and specialized cancer care. As an academic medical center and Boston University School of Medicine teaching affiliate, with a cancer center recognized for comprehensive oncology services and advanced blood and marrow transplant and cellular therapy, it offers valuable experience in complex multidisciplinary care.

Roger Williams Medical Center | Providence, RI