Urology Residency Program

PGY- 1

The first post-graduate year (PGY-1) is spent in general surgical training, which is designed to provide the trainee with a thorough grounding in general surgical principles, including pre-operative and post-operative care of the surgical patient, surgical intensive care and foundations in technical surgical skills, upon which ongoing urologic training will be based. This year will include a rotation on the Urology service.

PGY- 2

First year training in Urology (PGY-2) is split between Augusta University Medical Center and the VA (four months each).  Three months on the Children's Hospital of Georgia's pediatric urology service and one month of an elective. Responsibilities include completion of history and physical examinations of urologic patients, assistance with surgical cases in the operating room, and pre-operative and post-operative care of all urological patients. The junior residents also receive extensive experience in the Urology outpatient clinics during this year. Techniques in diagnostic evaluation and management of patients with genitourinary disease are emphasized throughout the year.

PGY- 3 & PGY- 4

During the PGY-3 and PGY-4 years of Urology training, the trainee serves as acting chief resident in Urology for six months at the Augusta Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center, three months on the Children's Hospital of Georgia's pediatric urology service, and three months on the Augusta University Medical Center's adult service as senior resident. Four months doing research as a PGY 3 and a three month block of female urology as a PGY 4.  Under the supervision of the Urology faculty members at the VA, the acting chief resident assumes charge of the Urology service. The pediatric urology service rotation at Children's Hospital of Georgia is a specialty rotation with surgical experience similar to many pediatric urology fellowship programs. While on the Augusta University Medical Center's adult urology service, the resident actively participates in all aspects of endourology, open scrotal, penile procedures and increasingly demanding major open oncology and reconstructive procedures as their skills develop. These residents are also intimately involved with all renal transplantation procedures, performing all donor nephrectomies and ureteroneocystostomies. These residents alternately serve as the urology consultants for the other specialties within the institution, including the Level I Trauma Center. Together, these rotations provide a broad training experience, which encompasses all aspects of Urology. The rotation at the VA hospital is comparable in depth, breadth and responsibility to a chief resident year at many other programs, and provides our residents with an unusual clinical opportunity.

PGY- 5, Chief Resident in Urology

The PGY-5 year of urological training is spent predominantly at Augusta University Medical Center as chief resident at adult urology. The chief resident also participates in selected, technically demanding surgical procedures at the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center. During this final year of training, the chief residents are afforded considerable responsibility for patient care in the clinics, on the wards and in the operating rooms. They are also responsible for teaching junior house staff and medical students, administration of the adult service, and organization and participation in regularly scheduled patient and educational conferences.

PGY- 2 to PGY- 5  

Night call is every third to fourth night during the week and can be taken from home when there are no acutely ill patients requiring closer monitoring. Weekend call is every third to fourth weekend. Augusta University Urology complies with the 80-hour work week regulations.