Critical Care Physician Assistant Residency Program

Faculty 

Overview 

The one-year Critical Care Physician Assistant Residency trains physician assistant (PA) residents to become highly skilled in the multidisciplinary, evidenced-based management of acute and critically ill adult patients. The program attracts new graduates and experienced PAs seeking a structured educational program leading to the accumulation of knowledge and skills.

With the additional asset of running alongside the Fellowship for Physicians, our physician assistant residents become well acquainted with the leading standards of care in our field.  

As one of our physician assistant residents, you will be responsible for assessing, diagnosing, selecting interventions, doing the required procedures, and consistently evaluating our critically ill patients. 

You will be educated and receive hands-on training in all aspects of management in critical care including, but not limited to, fluid resuscitation, antibiotics in sepsis, pressors, and ventilator modes and strategies. 

Training Rotations 

Training is centered in the adult Critical Care Units of Montefiore Einstein's Moses and Weiler divisions. The Einstein Division of Critical Care Medicine and Montefiore Jay B. Langner Critical Care System Department of Critical Care Medicine, a multi-specialty clinical department, include the ICUs used to educate PA residents for more than 3 decades.

Rotations on the Moses Campus include:

• Surgical Intensive Care Unit
• Neurology Intensive Care Unit
• Cardiothoracic Surgical Intensive Care Unit
• Critical Care Consult Service

Rotations on the Weiler Campus include:

• Medical Intensive Care Unit
• Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit 

Residents will also have an elective rotation of their choice in any of the given ICU specialties. This schedule can be flexible to accommodate a resident’s interest in a specific area. In all locations, the ICU team includes critical care medicine fellows, staff PAs, and rotating housestaff under the direction of an attending intensivist physician.

Curriculum and Teaching Methods

All residents follow the guidelines established by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Residents will be supervised during all rotations by attendings, fellows, senior residents, and staff physician assistants When moving from one rotation to another, residents will be expected to demonstrate progress in their abilities before more degrees of automony are provided. 

Didactic Opportunities Include:

• Daily conference with core lectures in critical care topics
• Grand Rounds
• Journal Clubs
• Didactic lectures by medical faculty and staff
• Ultrasound Course
• FCCS/BLS/ALS courses
• There will be one day a week for “Didactic Day.” Residents will be responsible for going through assigned text and reading materials.

Daily Responsibilities 

Residents must log their hours and procedures that will be reviewed by faculty at given intervals.

Residents must read objectives before attending each rotation. At the end of the rotation, evaluations must be completed and handed to the program director before moving onto the next rotation.

Completion of the Program 

Residents will be considered to have successfully completed the program as long as they have received an “average to above average” evaluation on every rotation, which is considered “the minimum performance standard” for completion of the Montefiore Critical Care Residency for Physician Assistants.

Successful evaluation scores can be achieved with the following:

• Consistent attendance to all scheduled shifts, labs, and lectures
• Effort taken and seen by faculty and staff
• Adherence to policies and procedures
• Scores greater than 75% on post rotation examinations
• Professionalism and enthusiasm

Determining graduation status will be at the joint discretion of program and medical directors.

Continuing Medical Education 

At the completion of the program, residents may apply 50 CME Category II credits to their NCCPA Record.

Remediation 

Throughout their time in the program, residents will be meeting periodically with the program director and additional faculty and staff to evaluate progress and needs.

If it becomes evident that a resident is at risk of being unable to successfully complete the residency program, the following will occur:

1. Program faculty and the PA resident will meet to discuss and acknowledge deficiencies. A plan will be made and implemented to tackle said deficiencies.
2. If the resident is unable to meet standards despite the implementation of a plan for improvement, he/she may be terminated from the residency. This decision will be made at the joint discretion of the program and medical directors.

Stipend and Bonus 

There is a stipend of $50,000 paid over the year. Each PA resident is awarded a certificate and a $5,000 retention bonus recognizing successful completion of the program.

Admission Requirements 

Applicants are evaluated and chosen on a competitive basis.

Applicants must have the following credentials:

1. Graduate of an ARC-PA accredited PA program
2. Passed the Physician Assistant National Certification Examination
3. Registered to practice as a PA in New York

Application Materials 

1. Application mailed to Revathi Nair, PA-C, Program Director (Download Application PDF)
2. Curriculum vitae
3. Transcripts from college(s) and PA program
4. 3 Letters of Reference – If you are a new or recent graduate, one letter of reference must come from your PA program Director.
    

Personal Interviews 

Interviews are arranged after application materials are received and reviewed.

Applicants are evaluated and chosen on a competitive basis, according to the following criteria:

1. Interest in acute and critical care medicine
2. Academic ability
3. Strong work ethic
4. Interpersonal skills
5. Demonstrable evidence of motivation and commitment necessary to complete the program

Deadlines
There will be two application cycles per year, with two residents accepted per cycle. First cycle will begin December 1st and the second cycle will begin June 1st.

Further information can be obtained from:

Revathi Nair, PA-C, MSHS
Program Director
Postgraduate Critical Care Residency for Physician Assistants
Montefiore Medical Center
111 East 210th Street
Gold Zone, Room G-159
Bronx, NY 10467

renai@montefiore.org
516–508-8227