Structure
The Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery at the American University of Beirut Medical Center offers a five-year training program in the specialty of otorhinolaryngology head and neck surgery.
Physicians are admitted after successful completion of medical school training.
At the completion of this program, graduates are expected to be proficient in the care of patients of all ages with pathologies relating to the ear, nose, throat and head and neck area.
The program aims to provide a well-rounded training in medical and surgical aspects of otorhinolaryngology head and neck surgery, practice management, as well as a structured research experience, thereby providing its graduates with the tools necessary for a successful and safe practice.
Patient Care
Residents are involved daily in a variety of inpatient and outpatient care, operative cases, pre- and post-operative care, teaching activities to junior residents and medical students, as well as research. Clinical duties will be through a team-based approach to the patient, with multi-disciplinary involvement; communication and proper documentation is therefore a key element to a successful patient outcome and are strictly expected from residents at all times.
Clinical activities will be appropriate to the expected educational level of the resident and to the complexity of the patient’s case. Residents are expected to communicate at all time with the patient’s attending in all matters relating to clinical care.
Resident selection
Resident selection happens yearly, selecting two residents who will join the program the following June. Selection criteria include:
- Successful Completion of medical school training
- Passing a test of English if applying from outside AUBMC.
- Provision of three letters of recommendation from previous mentors
- A satisfactory passing grade on the USMLE step 1 and 2 examinations or equivalent
Applicants are invited for an interview process that consists of individuals meetings with all available faculty members.
After the interview process is completed, the final selection process takes place through a faculty meeting with each faculty member getting an equal voting privilege.
Structure and educational objectives
The duration of the training program is 60 months, divided into 5 academic years during which residents are expected to progress through more complex patient care responsibilities commensurate with their training level.
Educational goals by training year are summarized below and will be discussed in more details in another section of this guide:
Educational goals for interns
- The internship year is organized to give trainees exposure to all the basic principles of surgery and patient care that will be relevant to their training and practice.
- They spend 5 months rotating on various general surgery services, learning to take care of surgical patients.
- Another 4 months are spent in different relevant subspecialties, one each in Neurosurgery, Intensive Care, Anesthesia, and Radiology.
- The remaining 3 months are spent on the otorhinolaryngology service
Educational goals for first year residents
- Basic anatomy of the head and neck area
- Comprehensive otorhinolaryngology physical exam
- Familiarity with interpretation of audiograms
- Skills necessary for flexible fiberoptic naso-pharyngeal endoscopy
- Ability to recognize and provide the immediate care for airway emergency cases
- Care for non-complicated cases of epistaxis
- Skills for wound care for simple wounds of the head and neck
- Acquire the surgical skills necessary for the following procedures:
- Tonsillectomy
- Adenoidectomy
- Myringotomy and tube placement
- Frenuloplasty
- Incision and drainage of abscesses
- Understanding the basics of research development
Educational goals for second year residents
- Mastering the detailed anatomy of the ear, nose and head and neck area
- Ability to read and interpret imaging studies of the head and neck and recognize normal structures and gross abnormal pathology
- Ability to identify and direct care for patients with airway emergencies
- Acquire the surgical skills necessary for the following procedures:
- Turbinate reduction surgery
- Correction of septal deviation
- Myringoplasty
- Tracheostomy
- Closed reduction of nasal fractures
- Suspension microlaryngosocopy
- Esophagoscopy
- Diagnostic bronchoscopy
- Development of an comprehensive research protocol and completion of application to the IRB
Educational goals for third year residents
- Ability to establish a provisional diagnosis and a plan of care for the majority of patients seen in clinic
- Efficient time-management in clinic
- Proficiency in reading and interpreting imaging studies of the head and neck with a good understanding of the differential diagnosis of the common pathologies seen on such tests.
- Acquire the surgical skills necessary for the following procedures:
- Repair of complex wounds of the head and neck area
- Tracheotomy
- Bronchoscopy with removal of foreign bodies
- Esophagoscopy with removal of foreign bodies
- Rhinoplasty
- Facial rejuvenation procedures
- Neck dissection
- Parotidectomy
- Data collection necessary for the research project
Educational goals for fourth year residents
- Ability to independently assess and formulate a plan of care for outpatients
- Ability to provide comprehensive and timely post-operative care for inpatients
- Leadership and communication skills to guide junior residents and the overall daily running of the program
- Acquire the surgical skills necessary for the following procedures:
- Airway reconstruction procedures
- Laryngectomy
- Glossectomy
- Tympanoplasty
- Mastoidectomy
- Endoscopic sinus surgery
Graduation requirements
Residents are considered as having successfully graduated from the program if they satisfy all of the following:
- Successful completion of the four years of training
- Surgical proficiency in the required areas as documented in the individual log books. (See appendix)
- No pending disciplinary action
- Submission of at least one original research project for publication
Otorhinolaryngology Residency Program Committees
Clinical Competency Committee
This committee is responsible for the evaluation of the residents’ performance. It conducts regular meetings to review the progress of every resident in the program. This committee has an advisory role for the program director, it considers all written rotational and other evaluations, and discusses any non-congruence between written evaluations and their experiences with each resident
Program Evaluation Committee
This committee is responsible for Planning, developing, implementing, and evaluating the educational activities of the program. It is responsible for the evaluation of the curriculum, including clinical experiences, didactics and conferences, and other opportunities to achieve expected competence. It reviews the program annually using confidential evaluations by faculty and residents.