Inpatient and Outpatient Experiences
- Three year program, each year divided into 14 rotation blocks
- Excellent inpatient family medicine training, with daily educational rounds
- Strong pediatric and obstetrical experiences in both inpatient and outpatient settings
- Specialty rotations incorporate geriatrics, surgery, emergency medicine, orthopedics, gynecology, pulmonary, cardiology, neurology, dermatology, ENT, urology, ophthalmology and sports medicine
- Five elective blocks for PGY3
- Solid community medicine rotation with commitment to aiding local school programs and senior centers
- Advanced Hospital Medicine Fellowship Curriculum
Sports Medicine
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Sports Medicine is an exciting an integral part of the curriculum at the Northridge Family Medicine Residency Program. The Sports Medicine program is headed by our very own Primary Care Sports Medicine Specialist, Dr. James Ting. Residents, as well as rotating medical students under the supervision of Dr. Ting, have the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in evaluating and managing a variety of musculoskeletal conditions through our Sports Medicine clinics, which are held twice a week at the Family Practice Center. In addition to these clinics, residents also rotate through dedicated Sports Medicine and Orthopedic electives in their third and second year of residency, respectively. At the completion of their residency training, residents will have successfully attained and honed skills in such areas as the orthopedic physical exam, the evaluation, management, and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries and conditions, splinting and casting of fractures, and joint aspiration and injection.
Residents also have ample opportunity to enhance their Sports Medicine experience, while at the same time performing a valuable community service, by serving as team physicians and participating in athletic event coverage. Dr. Ting is one of the Team Physicians for California State University Northridge, a nearby NCAA Division 1 level college. In addition, the residency program under the supervision of Dr. Ting serves as the Team Physician for James Monroe High School. Through these affiliations as well as many others within the local community, residents have the ability to be actively involved in covering events and treating athletes at the recreational, high school, and elite levels. Among the many sports that the residency program is involved in covering are football, basketball, soccer, and track & field.
With the experience and skills gained in Sports Medicine through the course of their residency training, many of our residents have gone on to be team physicians in their own right upon graduation. In fact, if you were to drive around Southern California on a Friday night in the fall, there’s a good chance that a graduate of our program is out there covering a game! Fellowships in Primary Care Sports Medicine have become increasingly more popular and competitive in recent years. All of our residents that have desired to specialize in this dynamic and growing field have been able to take the knowledge and experience they attained during residency to successfully pursue additional fellowship training. No matter what your career path may be, the ability to care for musculoskeletal conditions and athletes is a vital and rewarding aspect of any practice, and it is a skill we are confident that you will be competent in upon the successful completion of your residency training here at the Northridge Family Medicine Residency Program.
Behavorial Medicine
Family medicine at its best uses a bio-psycho-social approach in every patient interaction. We believe that we can help treat disease and enhance wellness more effectively by understanding the patient in the context of family, culture, and community.
Developing skills in the assessment of psychiatric and social issues, brief office-based counseling and psychopharmacology are important aspects of our program. Learning how to effectively motivate patients to collaborate in their own health care is a crucial skill residents develop. Our faculty psychologist, Dr. Joel Crohn, serves as a consultant for outpatient cases and shadows our residents on inpatient rounds. Dr. Crohn also assists residents in community medicine and research projects involving significant psycho-social issues.
Recent projects have used video to conduct oral histories with Alzheimer’s and HIV patients and to explore the medical and psychological impact on adults who have experienced childhood trauma. Residents have had the opportunity to present their projects at UCLA Residency Programs Research Day and hospital grand rounds.
Research Opportunities
The Joseph F. Farivar Educational Foundation has provided us with funds to support resident research projects. Residents who design projects focused on their specific interests in collaboration with a faculty sponsor are eligible to apply for these grants. We encourage residents to design focused, small scale projects that are manageable in the context of residency training. Residents who are interested in HIV, sports, geriatric or other fellowships may find these opportunities especially attractive.
Advancements in Technology
Electronic Medical Records
As an ongoing goal to provide optimal patient care, the Family Practice Center implemented an electronic medical record system in February 2007. This system enhances the Center's efficiency, ensures adequate care is provided for chronic illnesses, and increases resident teaching opportunities. An additional benefit is that the system can be accessed remotely, thus ensuring continuity between the inpatient and outpatient settings. To access the system, residents are provided with a wireless tablet computer for their personal use during their three years of residency.
Available Resources
Northridge Hospital supports ongoing learning and provides residents with Internet access to MDConsult and the New England Journal of Medicine. The Northridge Hospital Library is equipped with the most current journals and textbooks, including the electronic journal UpToDate.
Residency Management System
New Innovations, a web-based residency management system, allows Residents 24 hour access to their call and office schedules, report work hours, review rotation curriculum, access the educational calendar, complete rotation evaluations and view their performance evaluations. Residents and Faculty utilize Personal Digital Assistants for following hospital patients and accessing reference software and formularies.
