Residency Program

Program Description

Letter from Program Director

Dear Applicant:

Thank you for your interest in the Neurosurgical Residency Training Program at UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School . I believe that we provide neurosurgical training at the highest levels of clinical expertise and technological proficiency. Our program follows guidelines established by the American Board of Neurological Surgery. Our training program is a rigorous seven year experience which is in full compliance with the guidelines for residency as dictated by the ACGME. We are fully approved by the RRC of Neurological Surgery for five years (the maximum allowable time). The PGY-1 year has been infolded into our training program, and as such, there is no longer a need to do a separate intern year.

Clinical neurosurgical training is carried out at two sites. These include the University Hospital in Newark and the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack . These two sites provide exposure to a wide variety of elective cranial, spinal, and peripheral nerve operations. Residents operate with both full time and part-time faculty. Each site has a full time Director of Neurosurgical Education.

In addition to the standard neurosurgical procedures, residents participate in comprehensive programs in reconstructive spine surgery, epilepsy surgery, pediatric neurosurgery, operative vascular and endovascular neurosurgery, endoscopic neurosurgery, and both framed and frameless stereotactic neurosurgery. University Hospital in Newark was the first hospital in North America to have intraoperative MR imaging. Exposure to neurotrauma is gained mainly at University Hospital which is a Level I state trauma center. The trauma service is among the most outstanding in the country, and has been featured on 60 Minutes, the Learning Channel, and other special news television broadcasts. The neurosurgical intensive care unit (NICU) is a dedicated unit for neurosurgical patients which is run exclusively by the neurosurgical service. This provides a superb venue for resident education in critical care management. The pediatric neurosurgical intensive care has its own full time team of intensivists who work closely with the neurosurgical team in the care of our pediatric patients. Separate medical, surgical/trauma, and cardiothoracic intensive care units are additional resources. Dedicated step-down beds with full monitoring capabilities and critical care level nursing are present on the neurosurgical floor.

Each of the training sites has dedicated neurosurgical operating rooms. State-of-the-art imaging is available at both University Hospital and Hackensack University Medical Center . The service has six on-going clinical research studies which are funded.

The neurosurgical department also has a full-time neurosurgical laboratory. The laboratory is headed by an internationally known researcher. It is well known for its investigation of the role of neurotransmitters in the autonomic nervous system and in central regulatory mechanisms. Residents may participate in this laboratory research during their assigned research period or they may seek other experience under suitable supervision. Plans are actively underway for the establishment of additional research laboratories for both spine and cerebrovascular disorders.

Throughout the residency, a variety of weekly conferences are conducted. An unique feature of our program is dedicated educational protected time each Wednesday. During this time, we have didactic sessions throughout the morning and clinics in the afternoon. If operative cases or other problems crop up during this protected time, neurosurgical physicians assistants handle the service. This affords the neurosurgical resident the opportunity to have formal didactic teaching without interruption. Please refer to the conference schedule which details our academic program. The highlight of our academic program has been monthly Visiting Professor lectureships with many of the giants of Neurosurgery. In addition to lectures, the residents routinely have extensive opportunities to present cases and interact with some of the most renowned neurosurgeons in the world. In accordance with the ACGME guidelines, our residents are required to take and pass the written examination of the American Board of Neurological Surgery before graduating from the program. Our residents are also encouraged to do basic and clinical research and to present and publish their findings.

The Department of Neurological Surgery, in conjunction with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, is dedicated to providing quality leadership in education and patient care. With this website we invite medical students and physicians to become personally involved with our Neurological Surgery Residency Training Program.

Thanks again for you interest in this dynamic program!

Yours truly,

Robert F. Heary, M.D.

Associate Professor and Neurosurgical Residency Program Director

Department of Neurological Surgery

UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School

Chairman-Elect

AANS/CNS Joint Section on Disorders of the Spine & Peripheral Nerves