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Curriculum

Grand Rounds and Didactic Lectures

Each Monday evening and Friday morning, the department hosts resident-led Grand Rounds lectures and faculty-led didactic lectures. The topics presented coincide with the current curriculum block and cover pertinent learning material. Each block also features multiple lectures by faculty from other institutions. Residents are excused from clinical responsibilities to attend these sessions.

Board Review

Board review sessions are directed by the chief residents and designated faculty. These sessions include review of high-yield topics and practice questions in preparation for the annual ABOto in-service examination, and ultimately for the oral and written boards. These sessions are currently held bi-monthly. Additionally, the department provides a subscription to the online question bank Board Vitals for all five years of residency.

Journal Club

A monthly journal club meeting is a forum to review multiple pertinent articles from the current literature; Landmark articles are often reviewed, as well. The topic of the journal club coincides with the current curriculum block.

Head & Neck Anatomy

Each year the PGY-1 residents attend all lectures and laboratory sessions of the Head & Neck section of the Gross Anatomy Course offered by the UTHSC College of Medicine Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology in November and December. This provides a unique opportunity for our interns to dissect a cadaver as a group, as well as teach the medical students. At the conclusion of the Head & Neck unit, the medical students select a resident to win a teaching award, which is announced at graduation in June.

Annual John Shea, Jr. MD Memorial Temporal Bone Course

This annual event is a two-day course for the residents and medical students applying to Otolaryngology that features lectures on various topics in neurotology and multiple drilling sessions in the temporal bone lab. Each resident has the opportunity to completely dissect a temporal bone under the guidance of expert faculty instruction. Additionally, the course hosts a nationally recognized guest speaker and concludes with a social event.

The temporal bone laboratory, with 8 drilling stations, is also open to the residents year-round with an ample supply of cadaveric bones for developing surgical dissection techniques. The lab was updated in 2019 and received a large grant to provide updated drills for each station, as well as middle ear endoscopes. The lab is stocked with practice materials, including grafts, prostheses, and cochlear implants.

Annual Ed Cocke, Jr. MD Research Symposium

This annual event consists of research presentations given by residents and medical students interested in Otolaryngology. Types of research projects conducted include clinical, basic science, and translational. Each year, the department hosts a nationally recognized guest speaker who gives a lecture of their own and who acts as judge for the presentations. At the conclusion of the day, multiple awards are handed out to the residents and a medical student. A social event hosted by the department typically follows in the evening.

Multidisciplinary Tumor Boards

A weekly Head & Neck Treatment Planning Conference is hosted at Methodist University. New head and neck cancer cases from the services at Methodist, Baptist, and Regional One Health are presented, staged and discussed to determine evidence-based treatment options. The PGY-2 resident on the Methodist service is charged with preparing the cases and the chief of each service presents their respective hospital’s cases. Multiple disciplines participate, including Otolaryngology, Radiation Oncology, Hematology Oncology, Surgical Pathology, Radiology, Dental Oncology, and Speech Pathology.

Separately, the VA Medical Center has a weekly multidisciplinary Head & Neck Treatment Planning Conference as well as a weekly multidisciplinary Endocrine Treatment Planning Conference.

Additionally, a bi-weekly Skull Base Treatment Planning Conference is held, with participation from Otolaryngology (both Rhinology and Neurotology), Neurosurgery, Radiology, and Endocrinology.  

Morbidity and Mortality Conference

The second Monday of each month the Morbidity & Mortality Conference replaces the Grand Rounds & Didactic Lecture series.

Courses and Conferences

All residents are encouraged to attend regional and national courses, conferences, and academic meetings. Every year the PGY-1 and PGY-2 residents attend a regional simulation-based ORL boot camp. All residents are also encouraged to attend the numerous an AO North America facial trauma courses, typically before their rotation at Regional One in PGY-3 year. The female residents attend the University of Michigan Women in Surgery Leadership conference.  

Other courses attended in recent years include: St. Louis University Sleep Course, Facial Aesthetics Surgery Course, Stryker Sinus Course, Southern Sinus and Skull Base Course, Vanderbilt University Temporal Bone Course, and the St. Louis University Sinus Course.  

Travel funds are available for all residents.

Nov 16, 2022