The Division of Plastic Surgery has launched an integrated residency program. Professor Timothy King, M.D., Ph.D., will lead the program as its inaugural director and Assistant Professor René Myers, M.D., will serve as the inaugural associate program director.
The division already offers a plastic surgery residency for trainees who have completed a surgical residency– most commonly in general surgery but may also be in ENT, neurosurgery, orthopaedic surgery, or oral surgery. The well-established program has trained outstanding clinical plastic surgeons as well as academic thought leaders in the field since its inception in 1985.
The new, integrated six-year program will accept medical students, through the traditional Match process. These integrated residents are a group of highly sought after, extremely qualified individuals, and these residency spots are amongst the most coveted and competitive spots that are available for immediate post-graduate training.
Integrated plastic surgery residents will have the opportunity to rotate at UAB Hospital, UAB Hospital-Highlands, Birmingham VA Medical Center, Callahan and Children’s of Alabama. Training will include general reconstructive surgery, craniofacial surgery, aesthetic surgery, hand surgery and microvascular surgery. At Children’s of Alabama plastic surgery performs reconstructive surgery of traumatic and congenital defects, including craniofacial deformities, cleft lip and palate, and burn reconstruction.
The division is pleased to now offer both pathways and find that the two different training programs will complement one another as they continue to expand services in order to better serve the population of Alabama and surrounding states in the core areas of plastic surgery.
“Our integrated residents will have an opportunity to train and operate in a wide breadth of surgical cases across multiple disciplines,” said King. “We have been able to use our experience with our current program to build and refine the integrated residency into a program that will provide residents with the skills and knowledge needed to have a highly successful plastic surgery career.”
Interested fourth-year medical students who are participating in 2021 Match Day are encouraged to apply for the UAB Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency program through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) platform.