Northwestern Radiology

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Residency

Northwestern Radiology offers a four-year residency in diagnostic radiology that combines patient care, study, and research. The program encompasses all aspects of diagnostic and interventional radiology, including computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), neuroradiology, nuclear medicine, pediatric imaging, vascular radiology, women's imaging, and ultrasound.

The Northwestern radiology residency offers a diverse and high volume of cases in both urban and community hospital settings. This is accomplished with access to state-of-the-art technology and approachable attending radiologists with unique expertise within their subspecialties who are committed to teaching. In addition to all the valuable knowledge and experience gained from rotations in various subspecialized areas of radiology, there is also ample opportunity for research. The unbeatable location in downtown Chicago is a bonus too! When I leave Northwestern, I am confident that I will be a well-trained and well-rounded radiologist.” – Carina W. Yang, MD, Northwestern Radiology Resident (PGY-5)

Residents rotate at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Evanston Hospital, and Children’s Memorial Hospital, with the majority of the one-month rotations performed at the state-of-the-art NMH (opened May 1999).

Learning and Research

Daily conferences by attendings, monthly guest lecturers, and the residents themselves, interdisciplinary conferences, clinical teaching at the PACS monitors, and teaching medical students are all part of the comprehensive learning experience offered by the Department of Radiology. In addition to the training in Northwestern’s Chicago campus, residents are also offered the opportunity to attend the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology Radiology-Pathology course in Washington D.C. during the third or fourth year of the program.

Ample opportunities exist to participate in research activities in the department as well.

Technology

Except for mammography and ultrasound, all studies at Northwestern Memorial Hospital are read off of cutting-edge picture archiving and communication system (PACS) monitors. Simplified access to this archive of digital images in conjunction with an advanced radiology information system allow for the development of personal and departmental teaching file databases.

Residents are becoming more “wired” as communication within the department is increasingly facilitated by use of e-mail and a customized Web site where residents may check their e-mail, access curriculum materials and the orientation manual, view department call schedules and events, log procedures, add teaching file cases, and more.

Educational Resources

Residents have access to the Galter Health Sciences Library, conveniently located only two blocks from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. This library, affiliated with the Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine offers the full compliment of paper and electronic resources.

Department resources include a resident room complete with network-enabled computers, a resident library, a collection of the American College of Radiology syllabi, and the ACR teaching file on the department intranet are available for use.

Rotations

Call responsibilities vary among the participating hospitals. At NMH there is a two-week night float rotation, with both a junior and senior resident on call overnight in the emergency room and covering the hospital. Residents are evaluated monthly by the staff on their rotations and the residents evaluate the attending staff as well.

Relationships

Cooperation among the residents and between residents and staff is stressed, and a collegial atmosphere encouraged among all members of the department. A “Teacher of the Year” award is given out by the graduating senior residents at the end of the year dinner. The attendance at the yearly alumni reception held during the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) conference testifies to our success.

Beyond the Program

Residents have had no difficulty obtaining the fellowships of their choice and are well prepared for the American Board of Radiology examination upon completion of the program.

“Becoming a competent radiologist means training your eye and seeing as many cases as you can during your residency. At Northwestern, there’s no shortage of interesting pathology and patient contact. Monthly rotations expose trainees to all areas of radiology. Many areas involve procedures, providing residents with hands-on training. While the learning curve is steep, we are well supported by faculty members who emphasize teamwork. They make every effort to prepare us for the transition from medical school graduate to resident in training, ensuring that we go on call feeling confident in our decision-making abilities. We work hard, no doubt, but the learning experience is comfortable and I have enjoyed working with my Northwestern colleagues. And we are located in the heart of Chicago. You can’t beat that!” – Georgia Giakoumis Spear, MD Northwestern Radiology Resident (PGY-2)

Our 2007 graduates have accepted the following positions:

Neuroradiology Fellowship
Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, Illinois
Musculoskeletal Fellowship
Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, Evanston, Illinois
Body Imaging Fellowship
Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, Illinois
Neuroradiology Fellowship
University of California, Los Angeles,
Musculoskeletal Fellowship
Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, St. Louis, MO
MRI Fellowship
Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, Evanston, Illinois

Application procedure

Residents may enter the program after completing one year of post-graduate training in an accredited transitional program or after one year in a program that requires at least five years of post-graduate training, for example, surgery. Individuals are required to apply for a separate, post-graduate year of clinical training starting July 1, 2008 as well as applying for the four-year diagnostic radiology program starting in June 2009.

Contact Us

Applications are only accepted through the Electronic Residency Application Service.

Department Chair
Eric Russell, MD

Program Director
Robert Ryu, MD

Manager, Office of Education
Julia Clark Burks

Northwestern University
The Feinberg School of Medicine
Department of Radiology
676 North St. Clair Street, Suite 800
Chicago, Illinois 60611

Phone: (312) 926-4068
Fax: (312) 695-5645

Resources

Educational training

Office of Graduate Medical Education
This site covers topics related to educational training at Northwestern, including a comprehensive list of GME services, links to McGaw facilities, academic and professional resources, local information, and Web-based communication tools for residents such as an event calendar and e-mail access.