Rotations and Clinics

Residents will be required to complete multiple rotations and participate in direct patient care throughout their residency. Many rotations are through UMMC, however, to assure a well-rounded experience for our residents, the residency has also partnered with external agencies for certain rotations. Specific required rotations will include the following.

Required clinical experiences

Federally Qualified Health Center  (Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center) - The over-arching goal of this rotation is for residents to gain skills that will enable them to function effectively as members of a multidisciplinary health care team providing preventive and primary care services to an underserved population.

• Supervisor, Debra Rice, MD (Director, Preventive Medicine)

Occupational Health - The overall goal of this rotation is to provide opportunities for direct patient care, and to be able to recognize, prevent and treat common occupational medical conditions.

UMMC Primary Care - The overall goals are to gain broad skills in the diagnosis and management of medical conditions in the outpatient primary care setting, and in providing recommended clinical preventive services and counseling to primary care patients.

• Supervisor, Shannon Pittman, MD (Professor, Department of Family Medicine, Family Medicine program director)

VAMC Comprehensive Experience  (G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery VA Medical Center) - This is a comprehensive rotation with an overall goal of gaining broad skills in preventive medicine including preventive and primary care, behavioral health modification including tobacco cessation and obesity and occupational medicine.

• Supervisors, Andree Burnett, MD (Director, Primary Care); Randy Burke, PHD (Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior); and Charles E. Morris, MD, MPH (Director, Occupational Medicine)

Required non-clinical experiences

Community Health - The overall goal of this rotation is to gain skills in the assessment of health needs in a community and in planning and implementation of efforts to address identified needs.

Comprehensive Public Health (Mississippi State Health Department) - The overall goal of this rotation is for the resident to acquire the ability to function effectively as a public health physician and to gain a thorough understanding of the role and activities of both the state, regional (district), and local (county) health departments.

• Supervisors, Paul Byers, MD (State Epidemiologist), and Victor Sutton, PhD, MPPA (Director, Office of Preventive Health)

Emergency Preparedness - The overall goal of this experience is to gain skills in planning for and responding to disasters.

• Supervisors, John McCarter, MD (Associate Professor, UMMC Department of Emergency Medicine) and Jonathan Wilson, RN, MSN (Chief Administrative Officer, UMMC)

Employee Wellness - The overall goal of this rotation is to understand how employee wellness programs can be implemented to improve the health of a population of workers.

• Supervisor, Joshua Mann, MD, MPH (Professor and Chair, Department of Preventive Medicine)

Health Policy (Mississippi State Medical Association) – The overall goal is to gain skills in the assessment and creation of health policy and related advocacy work.

• Supervisor, Conner Reeves, JD (General Counsel, Mississippi State Medical Association)

Health Systems Management and Administration – The overall goal of this rotation will be to understand the fundamental approaches to health systems management and administration focusing on organizational structure, management, communications and human resources as practiced at a large medical center and at a State Public Health agency.

• Supervisors, Desiree B. Pendergrass, MD, MPH (Associate Professor in Preventive Medicine and Pediatrics), and Joshua Mann, MD, MPH (Professor and Chair, Department of Preventive Medicine)

School Health - The overall goal of this rotation is to understand the potential for school-based health services to improve the health of a population of students.

• Supervisors, Desiree B. Pendergrass, MD, MPH (Associate Professor in Preventive Medicine and Pediatrics), and Anne A. Norwood, PhD RN, FNP-BC (Professor, School of Nursing; Director, School-Based Health Centers)

Tobacco Cessation (UMMC ACT Center) - The overall goal of this rotation is to recognize the key components of an effective tobacco cessation program.

• Supervisor, Thomas Payne, PhD (Professor, Department of Otolaryngology and Communicative Services)

Elective rotations

In addition, in the PGY-3 year, residents will have three months available for elective rotations that enhance their professional career goals. With approval from the program director, residents can expand on any rotation noted above, develop one or more rotations to meet professional need or take established elective rotations listed below.

Health Policy (Mississippi Public Health Association) - The overall goal is to gain skills in the assessment and creation of health policy and related advocacy work from a public health perspective.

• Supervisor, Buddy Daughdrill (Executive Director, Mississippi Public Health Association)

Open Arms LGBT Health (Open Arms Healthcare Center) - The overall goal of this rotation is to gain the ability to provide comprehensive care to patients with an understanding of how social factors and stigma impact the health of the LGTB community.

• Supervisor, Leandro Mena, MD, MPH (Professor, Department of Medicine and Chair, Department of Population Health Sciences in the School of Population Health)

Travel Medicine/Outpatient Infectious Disease - The overall goal of this rotation is to understand key concepts of travel medicine, common and unusual infectious diseases, and key concepts of HIV/STD medicine.

• Supervisor, James B. Brock, MD (Assistant Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine)

External Rotations – The overall goal is to give residents the opportunity to apply for and participate in rotations (if selected and available funding) that focus on new topics (e.g. pharmacovigilance or health communications) or national policy such as the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. 

• Supervisor will be determined by the rotation site, and participation is dependent on approval from the program director and acceptance by the external site.