Scarborough Health Network

Postgraduate Residency Program Details

Scarborough Health Network - General Hospital & adjacent Central Teaching Unit, Birchmount Hospital & Centenary Hospital, with Community Doctor’s Offices in Scarborough, Pickering  and Bowmanville.

Quick Facts

Number of residents: 24
Curriculum type: block rotations
PGY1 elective/selective months: 1
PGY2 elective/selective months: 4
VIDEO: 2023 Open House—Site Overview

Program + Site Highlights

  • A focus on comprehensive family medicine (FM) in the community, highlighting real life practice.
  • One-on-one teaching on FM and specialty rotations. There are few other learners in the hospital so residents get significant hands-on experience.
  • Award-winning teachers, flexible program, family physician-run ER, excellent FM focused rotations (Care of the Elderly/Geriatrics, Family Medicine Hospitalist, MSK, Pediatrics, Obstetrics, Psychiatry, Surgery, Internal Medicine)
  • Procedure courses, including mock arrest, suturing, casting, benign uterine conditions, breast cyst aspiration and FM obstetrics.
  • Selective time while on FM block to train in FM related field including Scarborough Sexual Health Clinic, Rapid Access to Addictions Medicine (RAAM) Clinic and Diabetes Clinic
  • Intensive CFPC exam preparation courses including CFPC review lectures and Simulated Office Oral Program.
  • Opportunities for rural FM practice in Bowmanville with specialty training at an urban site

Hospital, Community, Teaching Unit and Program

The FM residency program at Scarborough Health Network is a learner-centered program. We have both urban and rural preceptor experiences available. Our program provides community-based experiences with an emphasis on real-world, hands-on clinical training, along with core academic teaching at the Scarborough site.

You will be matched with a community-based FM preceptor to meet your individual learning needs. All preceptors offer opportunities for residents to participate as a member of the primary health care team looking after populations with diverse health care requirements. You will also have a mini-practice under the supervision of your FM preceptors to experience continuity of care in FM.

Scarborough Health Network Rural Option (Bowmanville)

Residents can choose to work in Bowmanville (population: 20,000), a rural community located just east of Scarborough. This is an incredible opportunity for residents who desire a complete rural experience (including inpatient work, ER shifts, nursing home visits, palliative care, home visits) with an academic Scarborough base. This site will prepare you to practice anywhere and resident feedback is uniformly glowing.

Flexibility

In our two-year program, you have five flexible elective months in order for them to follow your individual learning plan. Common enrichment activities include dermatology, plastic surgery, urology, ENT, ophthalmology and geriatrics. Our academic advisor will help and support you when you plan your electives. We pride ourselves in our flexibility to meet resident learning needs.

Curriculum

Specialty Rotations

Specialty rotations take place at Scarborough Health Network. We have outstanding specialty preceptors who work one-on-one with FM residents. There are very few other specialty residents at SHN, so our FM residents get considerable hands-on experience. All residents do core rotations in internal medicine, paediatrics, surgery, MSK, obstetrics, emergency medicine, palliative care and psychiatry, providing a strong background for whatever your future may hold. The specialty preceptor model allows residents to work with their specialist teachers in a variety of settings including community offices, specialty clinics, hospital wards, ER consults and hospital procedures.

  • Our MSK rotation is a FM oriented rotation, with a focus in clinical orthopedics, limited surgery time, limited call responsibility and rheumatology clinic time.
  • Limited call responsibilities: our specialty rotations recognize that your learning will be primarily accomplished in clinics and during the regular business day, and so call will generally end at 11 pm in order to limit post-call days and the impact on your day-to-day learning opportunities.

Core Academics

Scarborough Health Network has a well-established academic seminar program, founded on our competency-based curriculum and the competencies in FM. Our seminars are consistently rated very highly by our residents. Our curriculum includes the following programs: ethics, behavioural medicine, Global Health, Diversity, Health Equity Program (focusing on the social determinants of health) and evidence-based medicine lectures. Our residents participate in lectures by presenting at journal club. We consistently have a FM preceptor on hand during lectures to help add a FM focus and perspective to our academic seminar experience.

  • Our Simulated Office Oral (SOO) Review Program runs longitudinally throughout residency and prepares residents for the CCFP exam while honing interviewing skills.
  • Call accommodations include a resident lounge, common room and six on-call rooms with washrooms at the General Campus, and a resident call room at the Birchmount Centenary Hospital.

Sample Two-Year Rotation Schedule 

1st Year:

Rotation

Number of Blocks

Family Medicine

3

Care of the Elderly

1

Emergency Medicine

1

Family Medicine Inpatient

1

General Surgery

1

Internal Medicine Subspecialty Clinics

1

MSK (Orthopedics)

1

Obstetrics/Gynecology

1

Psychiatry

1

Pediatrics

1

Electives

1

Total:

13

2nd Year:

Rotation

Number of Blocks

Family Medicine

3

Teaching Practice

2

Emergency Medicine

1

Palliative Care

1

Paediatrics Clinics

1

General Internal Medicine

1

Electives

4

Total: 

13

Unique rotations or opportunities students should be aware of:

  • Pediatric Urgent Clinic (PaedsLink)
  • Geriatrics Clinic (GAIN clinic)
  • Shared Care Family Medicine OB Program 
  • Procedure courses (suturing, casting, etc.)
  • Excellent preparation courses for CFPC exam
  • Rapid Access to Addictions Medicine (RAAM) Clinic
  • Diabetes Clinic
  • Scarborough Sexual Health Clinic
  • Rural medicine opportunities

Family Medicine Block Time: Community Physician's Offices (Urban or Rural): 6 months, plus 2 months Teaching Practice

Horizontal electives offered during family medicine block time: arranged on an individual basis

Number of family medicine half-day backs (continuity time) per week: 1 (or 1 full day every second week)

Contacts

Name & Title

E-mail Address

Phone Number

Dr. Jennifer McDonald
Site Director

drjenn.mcdonald@gmail.com

 

Ms. Stacey Milley-McKeown
Program Administrator

smckeown@shn.ca

416-431-8200 ext. 86591

Dr. Han Yan
Dr. Carlyn Figueiredo

Chief Residents

TSHchiefresidents@gmail.com