Family Medicine Residency

Curriculum

We are well known for our innovative curriculum, which maximizes practical family medicine-oriented practice experience.

Family Medicine Inpatient Service

The Family Medicine Inpatient Service provides continuity of care for our Atrium Health Navicent Primary Care West Macon, a Facility of Atrium Health Navicent The Medical Center patients requiring hospitalization. The FMIS also serves as a hospitalist service for local and regional family physicians who participate in teaching rounds with our residents. Residents are taught to view patients holistically, and Wednesday rounds include behavioral science rounds with Bonnie Cole, JD, LMFT to train residents to recognize and treat the psychosocial aspects of their illness. Service with the palliative care faculty allows residents to develop optimal skills in providing comfort and symptom-oriented care as well as family crisis support techniques. Family Medicine residents on FMIS run 25% of the ACLS codes on a rotating schedule with the Internal Medicine residents.

Peripartum Care

PGY-1 residents learn the basics of maternity care on Obstetric Rotations, and care of the infant onward Pediatric Rotations. The Peripartum care rotation is designed to maximize their learning about the optimal care of the maternal - neonatal dyad. On Peripartum Care, the resident participates in deliveries, and then follows both the mothers and babies. Residents learn to provide anticipatory guidance to parents and siblings of newborns, and round with the lactation consultants to learn to optimize breastfeeding initiation and maintenance.

Night Float

Upper level PGY 2-3 residents participate in night float call system which is synchronized with week-long attending call. While on FMIS rotation, upper level residents take turns covering the Service for a 5-night block on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights from 6PM - 8AM the following morning. All Friday evening, Saturday and daytime Sunday calls are provided by other upper level residents. Residents have an average of 5 Night Float weeks over 2 years. This system provides continuity of care on the Inpatient Service during the week, and allows residents to minimize time actually spent on call.

Longitudinal Rotations

In the PGY 2 and 3 years, all medical and surgical subspecialties, women and children's health and community medicine are covered in a longitudinal, 12-week block format, rather than in separate 2 and 4 week blocks. For example, a resident on medical subspecialties may spend 2 half-days on cardiology, 2 half-days on dermatology, and a half-day on neurology, with 4 half days seeing their continuity patient at the Atrium Health Navicent Primary Care West Macon, a Facility of Atrium Health Navicent The Medical Center and one half-day for Tuesday Teaching. This allows the resident to see patients' diagnoses, treatment and follow up all in the course of the one rotation, and demonstrates the normal sequence of patient care by referral physicians. This format also allows the resident to be absent for CME or vacation with minimum loss of pedagogical content.

Geriatric Care

Geriatrics has long been a strong component of our curriculum, and indeed the Geriatric Fellowship has developed due to the success of the Geriatric Care services provided by the residency. Residents on geriatrics care rotate with the FMIS to care for inpatient geriatric home patients. In addition, they round on the Palliative Care Unit, a unit specializing in short-term end-of-life care in a hospice-like setting.