Joint Internship with Internal Medicine

While many programs are currently developing integrated internships, this is something that our department has been committed to since the early ’90s.

This Joint Internship with Internal Medicine includes 6 month long rotations on the medicine service, 3 month long rotations through a combination of neurology, dermatology/MOHS, plastic surgery and otolaryngology and 3 month long rotations on ophthalmology. There is no interview required for the joint internship but one can be arranged with the medicine department if requested. We hope this makes the process simpler and more economical for applicants.

As an intern on the ophthalmology service, you will learn foundational examination skills, work in the wet lab, assist in surgery, and build the skills you will need to grow quickly as a clinician. While on a non-medicine service you will have no call responsibility except during the month of January when the PGY-1 residents cover PGY-2 rotations so that our PGY-2 residents can attend a month-long BCSC course (see the call section of the website). We have found that having a well developed integrated PGY-1 year puts our residents far ahead by the time they begin their PGY-2 year.

The intern year will be divided into twelve 1-month rotations:

• Three month long ophthalmology rotations at the UMMC Medical Center and VA Medical Center caring for patients in the clinic and participating in the operating room.
• Six month long rotations on the medicine service, covering the wards and ambulatory clinics at University of Mississippi Hospitals & Clinics and Veterans Affairs. The typical Medicine electives that residents rotate through are geriatrics, rheumatology, infectious disease, emergency medicine, and nephrology.   The objective during these rotations will be to hone your basic medical skills.
• Three month long multidisciplinary rotations are available.  Each of these includes rotations in neurology clinic (general neurology, headache clinic, and neuroinflammatory clinic), dermatology (MOHS), and otolaryngology (facial reconstruction).
• Three weeks of vacation over the year, two during medicine blocks and one during ophthalmology blocks

We believe there are many distinct advantages to our integrated internship program:

• Providing far more ophthalmology experience than would be possible at an outside preliminary or transitional year program.
• Becoming an integrated member of our ophthalmology team early in your training.
• Moving only once during residency.
• Gaining familiarity with the hospital, electronic medical record, and members of other services with whom you will be working throughout the remainder of your residency.
• Having access to our structured wet lab and Eyesi surgical simulator.
• Acquiring exposure to a broad range of available research projects that can be carried forward through your ophthalmology residency.