RESIDENCY TRAINING AT STONY BROOK

Pathology is an exciting field of medicine, in part because it offers so many different career opportunities. The Residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University at Stony Brook is designed to prepare pathologists-in-training for diverse career goals, by building curricula around their unique backgrounds, interests and needs. The order, duration and content of rotations are based upon the specific plans of each resident, and are revised as those plans are refined. There is no standardized program or preconceived notion of appropriateness. All individual schedules ultimately include the elements required for Board Certification, but they each contain enrichment with additional experiences needed for particular careers, as well as limited exposures to activities which may not be central to future practice.

Time and convenience are important to busy residents. At Stony Brook, no time is wasted in commutation between training sites. Virtually all activities take place in the University Hospital at Stony Brook, the main teaching hospital of the School of Medicine. The Hospital is one of several towers of the Health Sciences Center arising from a common base which houses the libraries, classrooms, lecture halls, food services, bookstore, bank and other amenities. Other towers, reached by elevator from the base or by upper level "sky" bridges, are the sites of departmental and faculty offices and research laboratories. It is not necessary to put on a jacket or even to allow transit time to go to the library, have a slide prepared by media services, attend a lecture, or return to finish an experiment.

The Stony Brook Department of Pathology is relaxed and congenial. The faculty, many of whom have received awards for teaching, enjoys having residents among them and treats them with respect. Teaching and learning are important to everyone. Faculty, senior residents and fellows always make time to discuss a case or an idea with junior housestaff and with each other. Our conferences are opportunities to share knowledge and experience and everyone makes an effort to attend all of them. In addition to informal and formal educational encounters, the department has frequent luncheon get-togethers that are purely social and provide a chance to laugh at each other's jokes. There is always someone there to help when there is a problem, whether professional or personal. For the most part, we like each other and all of us look forward to coming to work in the morning.

Work is only part of one's life. During the day you may wish to go outside to throw a Frisbee on one of the large green fields surrounding the campus buildings or have lunch at a picnic table. The University at Stony Brook presents its staff and students and their families with many opportunities for recreation and entertainment. The five square mile campus boasts extensive well-maintained bicycle trails. It contains an expansive sports complex where faculty and students can use modern facilities and where Division I sports teams can be seen and cheered on. There is a large Fine Arts Center with a rich program of musical, dancing, and theatrical events throughout the year. In addition to the campus resources, there are a vast number of ocean and bay beaches, parks with ball fields, hiking trails and navigable rivers, golf courses, and the great sailing and boating waters of Long Island Sound and the Great South Bay. The safe and lovely exurban neighborhood of the School and Hospital is complemented by nearby New York City with its unrivaled theatre district, museums, restaurants and cultural diversity.
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The Department of Pathology of the State University of New York at Stony Brook offers comprehensive, integrated residency training in Pathology. Our three to five-year program provides systematic training and experience in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology or Anatomic Pathology only. Individual programs can be oriented toward either service or academic career goals. For most residents, the first 10 - 18 months are devoted to anatomic pathology. Their time is spent largely in general surgical pathology, with interspersed elective rotations in one or more specialty areas such as neuropathology, gynecological or gastrointestinal pathology and a 2 month period at the nearby Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office.

For those who are planning to be certified in both Anatomic and Clinical Pathology the next year is normally committed to Clinical Pathology. Residents elect blocks of two or three months in three or four laboratories. In most laboratories, an organized program of education is adjusted to meet the interests of each resident. Clinical Pathology rotations are viewed as an interlocking set of assignments, with continual attention to quality control, laboratory management, and the integration of laboratory services with clinical functions in the hospital. As the residents progress through the series of related Clinical Pathology experiences, they take on more consultative and decision making responsibilities.

For the remaining time in the program, schedules are very individualized. A large segment of the third year is usually spent in special areas of Anatomic Pathology, although at least one rotation in Clinical Pathology in a section of particular interest to the resident is often included. Most residents continue to work at building skills in general surgical pathology. For those who have an interest in a subspeciality within Anatomic or Clinical Pathology, an early rotation in the third year sets the stage for substantial responsibilities and opportunities in this special field during the following years. This affords the trainee the personal satisfaction of becoming the authoritative expert in a particular subject, to whom colleagues will turn for opinions. For other residents, schedules are based upon logical sequences of exposure in a progressive educational experience. The early part of the fourth year is devoted to the completion of the core of rotations in clinical and anatomic disciplines. In the latter part, each individual structures their education entirely according to personal career goals, and may begin a comprehensive review in anticipation of taking the pathology board exam.

From the second year onward, the consultative role is stressed and clinical contact with the patient encouraged. Residents may participate in research laboratories in parallel with the clinical rotations, or may take blocks of research time as part of a four or five year program. The residents teach medical students and conduct clinical conferences for hospital staff throughout their training. They are encouraged to give lectures and to present results of their studies at professional meetings.
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University Hospital is the central clinical teaching facility for the School of Medicine and is a regional referral center. It is part of the Health Sciences Center which is sited on the university campus.

In addition to the School of Medicine the Health Sciences Center includes Schools of Dentistry, Nursing, Social Welfare and Health Technology and Management, (with programs training laboratory technologists and cytotechnologists). Opened in 1980, the 540-bed hospital contains over 60,000 square feet of fully equipped laboratory space. Modern library, computer facilities, and lecture halls are adjacent, and the Department of Pathology's extensive research laboratories and academic offices are easily accessible to residents.

Physicians with special expertise in each of the disciplines of anatomic and clinical pathology head the sections in the hospital laboratories, and are responsible for the design and implementation of resident rotations in each area. One hundred fifty autopsies, 17,000 surgicals and 4.1 million laboratory determinations are performed at University Hospital. The Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office provides an in depth experience in advanced methods of forensic medicine and intensive training in performing autopsies. An interface with medical jurisprudence is a strong feature of this affiliate which performs toxicology examinations and collaborates with the police crime laboratory. The department, University Hospital and the Health Sciences Center maintain a staff of information specialists and medical specialists whose services are available to residents. Modern computers and media equipment are at the disposal of residents, and trainees are encouraged to develop skills in these important areas.
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The State University of New York at Stony Brook is a 16,000 student general university which offers academic programs in many subjects. Its scholars and their well-funded outstanding research in many fields, are recognized internationally. A large and extraordinarily successful "high tech incubator" for start-up biotechnology enterprises is located immediately adjacent to the Health Sciences Center. Lectures, concerts, art and photography exhibits, films (with an exciting film festival), theatrical and dance performances and athletic events held on campus throughout the year complement Stony Brook's diverse academic programs. The campus is located on 1100 wooded acres of the North Shore of Long Island, 50 miles east of New York City in a region of coves, beaches and small historic villages which retain a distinctive New England flavor. Stony Brook couples the charm of a rural setting minutes from Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean with the cultural, scientific, and industrial resources of the nation's largest city. New York City is easily reached by rail or car, while jet service is available from nearby Islip, La Guardia, and J.F. Kennedy airports.
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Address inquires to:

Bernard P. Lane, M.D.
Director, Residency Training Program
University Hospital, Health Sciences Center
State University of New York at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY 11794-7025

Phone: (631) 444-2224
E-mail: SBUH_Pathology_Residency@notes.cc.sunysb.edu