Yale Plastic Surgery Program Director Message

November 03, 2022

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00:09Hi, my name is Henry Shaw.
00:11I'm a faculty member in the division
00:14of Plastic Surgery at the Yale
00:15School of Medicine and also the
00:17program director for the Yale
00:19Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency.
00:21We'll be doing virtual interviews again
00:22this year and I'm pleased to have this
00:24chance to talk to you about our program.
00:26Please be sure to watch your companion
00:28video produced by residents and
00:29narrated by our own senior resident,
00:31Martin Carney.
00:31It conveys the residents perspective
00:33and provides many important
00:34details about the program and what
00:36you might expect as a trainee.
00:37Here in this video, my focus?
00:40Will be on our training philosophy and
00:42offering my own perspectives on the program.
00:44So you can think of residency as a marathon,
00:46where your journey from being
00:48a medical student to a plastic
00:50surgeon in independent practice.
00:51But it's marathon that you don't run alone.
00:54When you join your residency program,
00:55you become part of a team A-Team
00:57that's entrusted with the baton of
00:59responsibility for patient care,
01:01education and other duties.
01:02But Tom,
01:03that's shared and passed among your
01:05fellow residents over several years
01:06as you each work on and develop
01:08your own clinical,
01:09technical and professional skills
01:10and eventually grow and develop
01:12into fully skilled plastic surgeons
01:14here at Yale plastic surgery.
01:16Our goal is to help you finish
01:18that marathon in stellar fashion.
01:20This year marks the 52nd anniversary of
01:22our status as an uncredited plastic surgery.
01:24Residency program.
01:25So we can honestly say we've had over
01:281/2 century of experience in helping
01:31residents finish this marathon.
01:32And one thing that long experience has
01:34shaped is our training philosophy,
01:36which recognizes that comparing medical
01:38student and resident education is
01:40like comparing apples to oranges.
01:42While you may have had already
01:43had plenty of clinical experiences
01:45as a medical student,
01:46now that you're an individual who
01:47is a paid professional with all
01:50the elevated expectations and
01:51responsibilities of a professional,
01:53your educational experience
01:54in the clinical setting.
01:55Likely to be quite different and
01:57learning strategies that work for
01:58you when you are a student may
01:59not be as effective or work at all
02:01once you become a resident.
02:04As you know,
02:05patients and their problems don't follow
02:06any academic syllabus or curriculum.
02:09Unlike a science lab force you took
02:10in college where you got to learn
02:12all about the scientific theory
02:13and concepts first before going to
02:15the lab to apply those principles
02:16in a hands on manner.
02:18In residency,
02:18the didactic and practical aspects of
02:21surgical learning are not synchronized.
02:22You might be expect to apply surgical
02:24concepts long after or even well.
02:26For any formal like that,
02:27discussion of those concepts plus
02:29what you're expected to learn
02:31and become proficient in,
02:32goes far beyond what you might find
02:35in a textbook or an online curriculum.
02:38Plus,
02:38our program believes professionalism
02:40and being able to function effectively
02:42in our healthcare system is just
02:44as important as technical skill for
02:46any plastic surgeon to be successful
02:47in
02:48this day and age.
02:49And being a professional doesn't always
02:51come easily and requires practice
02:52just like any technical skill does and
02:55requires getting out of your comfort zone.
02:57But we believe that it's possible with
02:59the proper training and repetition
03:01to make those skills second nature,
03:02including the ability to learn from
03:04your mistakes and how to deal with
03:06the constant judgment of patients.
03:07Other providers and the public at large.
03:11So here at Yale, we help you develop
03:12not only the appropriate content,
03:14expertise and surgical skill,
03:15but also, through a conference
03:17structure and research program,
03:18a mindset of lifelong learning that
03:20will help you long after you've
03:22graduated from our program to become
03:23the most effective surgeon you can be.
03:26And of course, this all conforms
03:27with what the ACC Jimmy wants.
03:29If you look at the list of competencies
03:31and abilities that all ACGME accredited
03:33programs are required to train residents in,
03:35you can divide them into
03:37internal and external abilities.
03:39Internal abilities are those
03:40competencies which are dependent
03:41on your own skills and efforts,
03:43like medical knowledge,
03:44which is your ability to show what you know.
03:47Patient care,
03:47the ability to apply what you
03:49know to clinical experiences,
03:51procedural competence,
03:52the ability to apply what you
03:54know inside the operating room,
03:56and practice based learning,
03:57which is the ability to use your clinical
04:00experiences to improve what you know,
04:02which is a fancy way of saying that
04:04you're able to learn from your stakes
04:06in a rigorous and systematic fashion.
04:08And then there are the external abilities,
04:10which depend on how you interact and
04:12are perceived by those around you,
04:13like interpersonal and communication skills,
04:16which is ultimately the ability
04:17to get other people to trust you.
04:19Something that any surgeon must have now
04:21to be truly effective systems based practice.
04:24The ability to provide optimal care
04:27within administrative context,
04:28which is a fancy way of describing
04:29the ability to work with others as a
04:31team to provide the most effective
04:32care for your patient,
04:34and finally professionalism,
04:35which is ultimately the ability
04:36to do your job well at all.
04:38Times,
04:39even when you're not at your very best.
04:42And so here at Yale,
04:43we do our very best to help
04:45you develop those abilities.
04:46And we do that by providing a
04:48learning environment that does
04:49its best to optimize a balance
04:51between structure and autonomy.
04:53The program offers structured
04:54hands on sessions including Botox
04:56and filler injection workshops,
04:57as well as cadaver labs where you
04:59get practice at technical skills
05:00like the sickening out muscle flaps.
05:02And we have a certified right
05:04microsurgery lab where resins can
05:06follow a curriculum design here
05:07at Yale to learn and practice
05:09techniques like performing Micronesia.
05:11Threes well before you have to do
05:13it on live patients and we also have
05:16attending lead workshops for splinting
05:18and other important technical skills.
05:20I mentioned before that one of
05:21our goals is to foster a mindset
05:23of lifelong learning and our
05:24educational program
05:25is designed to promote this habit
05:27by empowering our residents to set
05:28the schedule and choose the speaker.
05:30So they want to come as visiting professors,
05:32which means several times a year having
05:33some of the biggest names in plastic
05:35surgery come to New Haven to spend
05:36dedicated and exclusive time with
05:37the residents who are excused from
05:39clinical duties during those hours.
05:41In addition to our weekly ground rounds,
05:43we also have a dedicated conference
05:44series just for the residents on
05:46Friday mornings and in order to
05:48further develop that attitude and.
05:50Have habit of lifelong learning.
05:52We have resins starting as interns,
05:53preparing and giving talks on basic
05:56and essential plastic surgery topics.
05:58It might seem strange to have Peggy ones
06:00and other relatively junior members
06:01of the team teaching everyone else,
06:03but it helps reinforce the concept that
06:05all of us share in the responsibility
06:07for your education and development.
06:09And the habits you develop in preparing
06:11for these talks are no different
06:12than what you'll need someday in
06:13the future when you want to develop
06:15that groundbreaking new operation
06:16that's never been done before.
06:18And our program supports you by
06:19providing access to an array of.
06:21Electronic textbooks,
06:22journals and other resources
06:23through the Yale Medical Library.
06:25But of course,
06:26it's not just residents who are teaching.
06:27Attendings lead many clinically oriented
06:29sessions to give residents further
06:30opportunities to apply their knowledge.
06:32And the faculty also provides
06:33feedback on your talks and teaching
06:35technique as a resident,
06:36training you not just to
06:38become outstanding surgeons,
06:39but also our next generation
06:42of outstanding educators.
06:43And through such experiences,
06:44our program helps you figure out and
06:46develop a system to organize your
06:48clinical experiences that you can turn
06:49them into effective knowledge that you'll
06:51be able to apply for the rest of your career.
06:54But our program recognizes that learning also
06:56happens because of the people around you,
06:58which doesn't just include
06:59attendings and other residents.
07:00There's also our nurses and
07:02advanced practice providers.
07:03And we recognize that the most
07:05effective care is carried out by teams,
07:06not individuals.
07:07And so we emphasize the importance
07:09of developing team relationships and
07:10collaboration with each other and other
07:12services in order to provide the best.
07:14Learning environment as well as patient care.
07:16In fact,
07:17I see the off service rotations that
07:18are residents do with general surgery,
07:20ENT orthopedics,
07:21neurosurgery and other services as
07:23very important opportunities for our
07:25residents to begin to develop the
07:27collaborative relationships that you'll
07:28depend on in your future careers.
07:30And of course,
07:31the most important people that
07:32you'll learn from are our patients.
07:34We recognize that if there are no
07:36patients then residents cannot learn.
07:38However,
07:38we also recognize the tension
07:40between residents,
07:40educational needs and the absolute
07:42mandate to provide the best possible.
07:44Patient care.
07:45After all,
07:45we're all here and go to the
07:47hospital every day to help patients.
07:49Our profession exists for the benefit of
07:51our patients and not the other way around.
07:55That our program recognizes
07:57that because of this tension,
07:58a residence education can easily get lost
08:00in this Bermuda Triangle of relationships
08:03between attending patient and resident.
08:05Fortunately, we have an outstanding
08:07array of faculty who are experts
08:08across all the key domains of plastic
08:10surgery and who are committed to
08:12developing residents into the next
08:14generation of outstanding surgeons.
08:15Over the past few years,
08:16our faculty have been augmented by the
08:18rival of several new and talented surgeons.
08:21I invite you to explore and learn more
08:22about the interests of our individual
08:24family members by going to the link.
08:25Shown here in the bottom left hand corner,
08:29I mentioned before the need to learn
08:30how to work well as a member of a team.
08:32And that's important not just for
08:34providing the most effective patient care,
08:36but also to develop the ability
08:37to productively balance their
08:38professional responsibilities with
08:40their own personal well-being.
08:41And that balance is not possible,
08:43of residents are not able to work together
08:45as a team and look out for one another,
08:47which is something I'm very happy to
08:48say has been true of our program.
08:50And you can learn more about their
08:51perspective from the residence video,
08:53which also contains their contact info if
08:54you have any more questions about their.
08:56Experience.
08:58And in that video,
08:59you'll hear a great description of
09:00what New Haven and our surrounding
09:02areas have to offer.
09:03I'd like to add that faculty in
09:05residence all live and work in a compact
09:07geographical region that contains a
09:09wide diversity of rural and urban settings.
09:11Even within the city limits of New Haven,
09:13there are great places for hiking,
09:15like East Rock,
09:15shown here we just less than a 15 minute
09:18drive from our main hospital garage.
09:20If you want even more solitude,
09:22you can quickly find that at
09:23many places nearby,
09:24like the Yale Sailing Club,
09:25which sits on Long Island Sound
09:27on a quiet part of the Closeline,
09:29where you can find the occasional
09:30bald eagle and feel like you're
09:32somewhere much farther away,
09:33like Maine.
09:33But you're really just situated a very short
09:36drive away from Yale New Haven Hospital,
09:39and while some time alone
09:40is never a bad thing,
09:41our program recognizes that none
09:42of us live or work in isolation,
09:45and that Yale does not exist in isolation.
09:47And so our global health
09:49opportunities include the animal.
09:50Annual mission trips run by Doctor
09:52Thompson and his handheld organization,
09:54which Martin discusses in his video.
09:57And it's through such opportunities that
09:58our program emphasizes the relevance
10:00and potential impact that our actions
10:01have on the rest of our Community,
10:03whether it's here in New Haven
10:05or in the world beyond.
10:06And.
10:08And it was out of that spirit of
10:09engagement with the world that,
10:10at the suggestion of our own residents,
10:12we were able to make our grand
10:14rounds available more broadly to the
10:16world at large during the lockdown
10:17period in spring 2020 when many
10:19of us were forced to
10:20self isolate and were
10:21unable to gather together.
10:23This is the welcome slide from one of
10:24those sessions during that time period.
10:26And as it shows, we had participants
10:27joining us from over 100 academic
10:29and medical institutions from
10:31across the United States and Canada
10:32as well as ten other countries.
10:34And we know that making up broad impact
10:36can also come through research efforts.
10:38Yale Plastic surgery faculty have
10:40very active research programs,
10:41publishing and major journals in
10:43plastic surgery as well as those
10:45outside plastic surgery like the
10:47journal Science and the Proceedings
10:49of the National Academy of Sciences.
10:51And we expect residents to get
10:53very much involved in research,
10:54starting a speech by two selfless
10:56surgery residents present at
10:57our annual research day,
10:59held every year in May.
11:00The event is sponsored through
11:01the generosity of our alumni,
11:03includes prizes for the best papers
11:04by residents and medical students.
11:06For the first time in three years,
11:07we were able to hold this year's
11:09edition in person.
11:10And we were very happy to be able
11:12to welcome as our guest Judge,
11:13Doctor Dennis Orgel of Brigham
11:15Women's Hospital,
11:16who also delivered a fantastic
11:18talk as our visiting professor.
11:20While our rotations are discussed
11:22in the residence video,
11:23I do want to emphasize that the
11:25tremendous degree of autonomy and control
11:27that our residents have over their
11:29rotation schedules as senior residents,
11:30especially in their pgy 5 year,
11:32and that many of our residents
11:34have used that time to go on away
11:36rotations have helped put them on a
11:38trajectory for successful careers.
11:40I started off talking about how
11:41residency is a marathon and how our
11:43goal is to get you to that finish line.
11:45I want to finish here by showing
11:46you some more of the folks who
11:48have successfully completed this
11:49marathon over the past half.
11:51Century now, as you can see,
11:52they have kept on running,
11:54becoming leaders and making an impact
11:56in all sorts of important ways.
11:58Yale plastic surgery is very
11:59proud of our alumni and our role
12:02in preparing and setting them up
12:03for their successful careers.
12:05We hope that someday you'll be
12:07able to we'll be able to add you
12:09to that roster of yellow alumni.
12:11In the meantime,
12:11we'd like to extend a warm welcome and
12:13to thank you for your interest in Yale.
12:15Just a reminder, if you haven't already,
12:17please wash the companion video
12:19produced by our residents containing
12:20much more information.
12:21In detail about the program,
12:23especially from the resident perspective.
12:25And if you do have any questions,
12:27please feel free to reach out to me
12:29or our residency coordinator Monica at
12:31the emails shown here on the screen.
12:33Thank you so much for your attention
12:35and we hope you all stay safe and
12:37well and wish you all the best.
12:38Take care.