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Residency & Fellowship Programs Internal Medicine - Doctors Hospital at Renaissance Program Description

Graduate Medical Education UTRGV School of Medicine

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Internal Medicine Residency at Doctors Hospital at Renaissance - Related Links

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Contact Us

Evelin Garza Pena
Program Coordinator
Internal Medicine Residency Program
University of Texas Rio Grande Valley – Doctors Hospital at Renaissance
5423 S. McColl Road Edinburg Texas 78539
Email: Evelin.Garza01@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 362-3515

Quick Links

Official guide to the RGV City of McAllen City of Edinburg City of South Padre Island Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Graduate Medical Education

Program Description

  • Dr. Chelsea Chang and Dr. Michelle Lopez checking patients heartbeat
  • Dr. Michelle Lopez having a round table discussion with medical students
  • Dr. Brandon Cantazaro conversing with a medical student
  • Dr. Cesar Gutierrez performing ultrasound on patient as medical student looks on
  • Dr. Nevin Varghese (front) and Internal Medicine residents smile after participating in Simulation Center located in Harlingen

Why Our Program?

The UTRGV DHR Internal Medicine Residency Program strives to provide comprehensive medical care and seeks to promote the development of academic medicine within the community we serve. Our mission is to empower our residents to cultivate a foundation of evidence based medical knowledge and become the healthcare scholars, innovators, and leaders of tomorrow.

The internal medicine residents will also benefit from near-peer educator opportunities with medical students at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Our clinical site, DHR, is also committed to serving our community and advancing the education and research of our graduate medical students including fellows. In 2019, our department also welcomed the initiation of 3 fellowships: cardiovascular disease, endocrinology, gastroenterology, and hospice and palliative medicine.

In 2020, South Texas was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and we were proud of our residents who provided invaluable care to our community. They showed true compassion and strength in these times.


Block Schedule

Rotations are based on a 4+1 model, with 4 weeks of a block and 1 week of continuity clinic.

Sample PGY-1 Resident Block Schedule:

Block Schedule
July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.
Wards 1 Endocrinology Wards B Gastroenterology Wards 2 Night Float/Pulm
Jan. Feb. March April May June
ICU 1 Nephrology Wards 3 Cardiology ICU 2 Elective

Rotation Goals

Community Medicine

Our residents are primary care physicians in our continuity clinic at DHR Internal Medicine Center, building their panel over all three years. Additional sites at the outpatient setting includes the Hope Family Health center, a non-profit clinic serving some of the individuals with the highest poverty levels in the state, during the first year of residency. They develop and refine the necessary knowledge base, medical interviewing, examination skills, procedural skills, and clinical acumen to diagnose and manage acute, chronic and preventive health needs.


Inpatient Medicine (Wards Teams A-C)

Residents will develop and refine the necessary knowledge base, medical interviewing skills, and clinical acumen to diagnose and manage patients requiring admission to an inpatient medicine service. Teams are on call every fourth day during which residents practice hospitalists skills in communication with the ER, bedboard and subspecialties.


Critical Care

Residents will develop and refine the necessary knowledge base, medical interviewing skills, and clinical acumen to diagnose and manage patients with conditions that fall within the scope of a board-certified internal medicine physician referred for admission or transfer to a medical intensive care unit.


Quality Improvement/Patient Safety

Quality improvement/patient safety initiatives are a continuous part of residency. Residents will have dedicated time during their continuity clinic week to design and implement a group QI project each academic year with a faculty mentor.


Research

Residents will develop a project for scholarly activity. They will meet with faculty to discuss their research goals for residency. For some, this rotation will be used to form the basis of a longitudinal research endeavor that spans their residency while other residents with a primarily clinical focus may choose a more limited project such as presenting a case report at a conference. Rotations are available each year.


Core Rotations

Residents have core rotation experiences in the following: neurology, infectious disease, endocrinology, gastroenterology, nephrology, rheumatology, hematology/oncology, cardiology, hospital medicine. For electives, experiences include but are not limited to: orthopedic sports medicine, dermatology, radiology, procedures, POCUS, research, and office ophthalmology.

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