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Vascular Surgery Integrated Residency Curriculum

The five-year Integrated Vascular Surgery Residency Program allows medical students to enter vascular surgery training directly after medical school. Residents join a program with a nearly 40-year legacy of training, culminating in board certification.   

Rotations

Training Sites

Residents train at the following sites:

Exposure to these diverse health care environments allows residents to experience all types of vascular practices and to envision their future careers.

Experiences
  • Open vascular surgery
  • Endovascular surgery
  • Office based vascular procedures
  • Acute care surgery
  • Trauma surgery
  • Transplantation
  • Critical Care surgery
  • Vascular laboratory
  • General surgery
  • Cardiac surgery/cardiology
  • Interventional nephrology
Schedule

In compliance with ACGME requirements, rotations are scheduled in month-long blocks. 

  • Years 1-3: mastery of core surgical principals and skills with six months devoted to vascular surgery
    • First Month: familiarization with vascular surgery service, including didactic program, protocols, procedures, and relationships with faculty and midlevel providers
    • Electives: options including interventional radiology, cardiology, cardiac surgery and research
  • Years 4-5: two years of exclusive vascular surgery rotations equally divided between SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital and Mercy Hospital St. Louis; optional time at SSM St. Clare Hospital and SSM St. Mary’s Hospital
Sample PGY-1
  • July: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • August: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (transplant surgery)
  • September: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • October: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (acute care surgery) 
  • November: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (cardiac surgery) 
  • December: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (general surgery nights) 
  • January-February: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (trauma surgery days) 
  • March: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (trauma ICU)
  • April-May: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • June: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (noninvasive vascular laboratory)
Sample PGY-2
  • July: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • August: John J. Cochran Veterans Hospital (general and vascular surgery)
  • September: SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital–St. Louis (general and vascular surgery)
  • October: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • November: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (thoracic surgery)
  • December: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • January: SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital (general surgery)
  • February: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (trauma ICU)
  • March: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • April-May: John J. Cochran Veterans Hospital (general and vascular surgery)
  • June: SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital–St. Louis (general and vascular surgery)
Sample PGY-3
  • July-August: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • September: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (acute care surgery) 
  • October: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • November: John J. Cochran Veterans Hospital (general and vascular surgery)
  • December: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • January: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (noninvasive vascular laboratory) 
  • February: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • March: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (interventional nephrology) 
  • April-May: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (vascular surgery) 
  • June: John J. Cochran Veterans Hospital (general and vascular surgery)
Sample PGY-4 (All-Vascular Surgery Rotations)
  • July-August: Mercy Hospital St. Louis    
  • September-October: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital
  • November-December: Mercy Hospital St. Louis    
  • January: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital
  • February: Mercy Hospital St. Louis
  • March-April: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital
  • May: Mercy Hospital St. Louis
  • June: Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Sample PGY-5 (All-Vascular Surgery Rotations)
  • July: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital    
  • August: Mercy Hospital St. Louis   
  • September-October: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital    
  • November-December: Mercy Hospital St. Louis   
  • January-February: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital   
  • March-April: Mercy Hospital St. Louis   
  • May-June: SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital   

Academics and Research

Meetings and Conferences
  • Daily (7 a.m. via Zoom): 
    • Patient care updates
    • Procedure discussions for the day
  • Weekly (7-9 a.m. Wednesdays):
    • “How I do it” discussions
    • Rutherford chapter review
    • Root cause analysis
    • Quality improvement
    • Novel technology demonstrations from industry
  • Weekly (4-5 p.m. Wednesdays):
    • Case conferences
    • M&M
    • Indications
    • Vascular lab review
    • Visiting professor lectures
Journal Club/Board Review
  • Monthly dinners
  • Board review questions
  • Journal article review
Resources
Research
  • Faculty Leadership: involved in clinical trials, educational research and clinical research
  • Submission Expectations: required minimum of one annual submission of research/case report to regional or national meetings, or journal
  • Funded Travel: division-funded travel to any meeting where research has been accepted for presentation
  • Recent Presentations:
    • Vascular and endovascular surgery meeting
    • American College of Surgeons annual meeting
    • Midwestern Vascular Surgery Society annual meeting
    • Society for Vascular Surgery annual meeting
    • Strandness Symposium
    • St. Louis Vascular Symposium