The Neurology residency training program at The UCMC provides full training in clinical neurology. The objective is to educate residents by exposing them to an excellent clinical and research environment, which will allow them to make well-informed decisions about their ultimate career choice and allow for excellent patient care. Resident physicians completing this three-year program will be eligible for board certification from the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

We emphasize an anatomically and physiologically based approach to the diagnosis and management of neurological diseases. Our department is supported by a full array of complementary resources consisting of neuroradiology, neurophysiology, neuro-oncology, neuropsychiatry, and neuro-ophthalmology. A broad spectrum of neurological disease is seen in both the inpatient and outpatient setting. Clinical rotation in the neurological intensive care unit augments the inpatient experience. Many of the diseases seen here are the object of active investigation by members of the Departments of Neurology, Pediatrics, and Pathology as well as by members of the basic science departments including Neurobiology, Pharmacology, Physiology, and Human Genetics.

Residents enter the program at the PGY-II level after completing a preliminary year in internal medicine. Graded responsibility is incorporated at all levels of training. First year residents are supervised by senior residents and attending physicians. Second and third year residents are generally supervised by attending physicians. Every new patient encounter is discussed with a senior resident and/or attending physician. ,The resident is always the initial point of contact in the Emergency department, on the inpatient and consult services and in the Neurological Intensive Care Unit.

Neurology residents are required to complete 36 months of training. Rotations are organized in 4-week months as follows: 19 months of clinical adult neurology, three months of pediatric neurology supervised by pediatric neurologists, six to eight months of elective, one month of psychiatry, one month of neuroradiology, two to four months of neurophysiology, two months of neuropathology and three months of vacation. The 19 months of adult neurology consist of eight months of inpatient wards as junior resident, three months of Neuro-ICU, three months of inpatient consultation service, two and a half months as ward senior resident, and two and a half months of outpatient clinic (OPC) including urgent care and subspecialty clinic. While rotating in pediatric neurology, residents have responsibilities for inpatient care and outpatient pediatric neurology clinics. Elective time during the residency can be arranged with the approval of the Residency Program Director.

Early in the first year of training, residents begin their continuity clinics that meet one half day per week and continue throughout the three years of training. Residents see their own list of patients and are directly supervised by an attending physician. In addition to their continuity clinics, residents work in subspecialty clinics comprised of neuromuscular diseases, epilepsy, movement disorders, memory disorders, multiple sclerosis, neuro-oncology in addition to outpatient urgent care evaluations in the PGY-IV year.

Education by hands-on patient care is supplemented with bedside teaching on rounds, didactic lectures, and access to Medline and other educational resources and references throughout the medical center. In addition, there are neurology and neurophysiology textbooks available on the ward, in the clinics, and in Marla’s office (which can be signed out).

Weekly and bi-weekly conferences consist of grand rounds, neuromuscular pathology, general clinical neurology, pediatric neurology, Professor’s rounds, morning report, clinical vignettes/localization talks, and brain cutting.  Journal club occurs monthly.  M&M conferences take place quarterly.

Residents also function as educators. Senior residents teach medical students and junior residents and junior residents have the opportunity to guide medical students on the wards.

• Behavioral neurology
• Cerebrovascular diseases
• Congenital malformations of the nervous system
• Dementia
• Demyelinating diseases both central and peripheral
• EEG/evoked potentials
• EMG/NC studies
• Epilepsy
• Headache
• Infections of the CNS
• Movement disorders
• Neuroanatomy
• Neurodegenerative diseases
• Neurogenetics
• Neuroimmunology
• Neurological history, physical and localization
• Neuromuscular diseases
• Neuropathology
• Neuropharmacology
• Neuroradiology
• Pain management
• Pediatric neurology
• Psychiatric disorders
• Sleep disorders
• Spinal cord disorders
• Stupor and coma
• Toxic, metabolic and nutritional diseases
• Trauma
• Tumors of the nervous system