Contact Us
For more information about our program, please contact our Program Administrator.
Welcome Letter from our Program Director
We are delighted that you are interested in the Grand Strand Family Medicine Residency, located in one of the South’s great travel destinations. The sandy beaches, mild climate and endless area attractions, as well as state-of-the-art medical facilities and welcoming medical community, make Myrtle Beach an attractive place to learn as well as play.
Read the full letterMission Statement
The Grand Stand Medical Center Family Medicine Residency Program’s mission is to develop the next generation of physicians and physician leaders. As a part of HCA Healthcare, we are driven by a single mission: Above all else, we are committed to the care and improvement of human life.
This program is designed to offer residents a rewarding, educational environment where residents are provided individualized learning opportunities by faculty and staff who support and sustain one another throughout quality care delivery. Our faculty are committed to ensuring the residents' clinical experience and educational needs are fulfilled while expanding residents’ perspectives to be inclusive of cultures, values, and ideals.
Program Overview
The Grand Strand Family Medicine Residency Program, affiliated with Grand Strand Medical Center in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, opened in 2017 and is fully accredited by the ACGME. Our mission is to train compassionate, clinically skilled family physicians who can deliver comprehensive, patient-centered care while maintaining personal well-being.
Family Medicine offers unique continuity of care by treating patients across the lifespan, from birth through adulthood, while managing acute and chronic conditions and emphasizing preventive care. Our curriculum provides a strong foundation in the full scope of Family Medicine while allowing residents flexibility to pursue individual clinical interests. Training emphasizes broad clinical competence, procedural proficiency, and attention to the psychosocial aspects of patient care.
Residents train at Grand Strand Medical Center, a 403-bed regional hospital that includes a Level I Trauma Center, specialized critical care units, obstetric services, and a Level II newborn nursery. Continuity clinic experiences take place in a modern outpatient facility opened in 2020 and are supervised by experienced Family Medicine faculty and board-certified OB-GYN physicians.
Residents also benefit from a state-of-the-art simulation center where they develop skills in emergency management and procedures such as central line placement, airway management, lumbar punctures, joint injections, and obstetric and gynecologic procedures.
The program is committed to innovation and community engagement. Residents gain experience evaluating and caring for children affected by physical or sexual abuse through collaboration with the Children's Recovery Center. In addition, medical humanities are integrated throughout training to promote empathy, strengthen physician-patient relationships, support physician wellness, and encourage lifelong self-reflection.
Together, these experiences prepare graduates to provide high-quality, compassionate care and become leaders in Family Medicine. For more information, contact Program Administrator Sherry Allison, via email.
Get to Know the Team
Curriculum and Rotation Schedule
Our expertly crafted programs are designed to provide resident physicians with all the experiences and training necessary for professional success.
South Carolina Rural Incentive Program
Residents can apply for the South Carolina Rural Provider Incentive Program during their PGY-3 year, with the application cycle typically opening in mid- to late October and closing in March. This program provides a financial incentive to eligible providers which begins after residency is completed.
Fellowship Tracks
At the Grand Strand Family Medicine Residency Program, we strive to help you become the physician you have always envisioned. Our tailored fellowship track system empowers residents to dive deeper into specialized fields of interest, including:
- Emergency Medicine
- Hospice and Palliative Care
- Sports Medicine
- Obstetrics and Women's Health
- Hospitalist Medicine
- Geriatrics
Track-Specific Experiences and Opportunities
- Targeted Clinical Practice: Dedicated office hours focused on your chosen specialty.
- Advanced Procedural Training: Enhanced, hands-on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) experience.
- Field and Clinical Exposure: Sideline coverage for athletic events and tailored elective rotations.
- Academic Growth: Track-focused journal clubs and dedicated scholarly activity support.
Scholarly Activity Opportunities
At the Grand Strand Health Family Medicine Residency Program we foster active participation in scholarly activity. We have two required projects including a case report and a quality improvement project. During your residency training you will have many other opportunities to engage in other forms of scholarship. These can include an evidence-based M&M, additional Quality Improvement projects, an article submitted for publication, or either a research-based or case-based presentation at a local, regional or national medical conference. Grand Strand Health has built a culture of producing high quality research, case report publications, local and national conference presentations and quality improvement projects.
Some highlights for each type of scholarly activity include:
- Quality improvement:
- Longitudinal research curriculum during your PGYI year which will culminate in starting your own QI project (This project will also count towards your ABFM Performance Improvement requirement)
- Support to present at local and national conferences
- Case Report:
- Month-long research rotation in your PGY2 year which will culminate in a case report to present during HCA Research Day
- Research:
- Faculty assistance with scholarly projects
- Research lectures from South Atlantic Division research leadership
- Access to HCA Enterprise Data Warehouse
- Open access peer reviewed journal - HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine
- Support to present at local and national conferences
Salary
| Year | Salary | On-Call Meals | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| PGY1 | $62,878 | $950 | $63,828 |
| PGY2 | $65,083 | $950 | $66,033 |
| PGY3 | $67,371 | $950 | $68,321 |
| PGY4 | $70,741 | $950 | $71,691 |
| PGY5 | $73,923 | $950 | $74,873 |
| PGY6 | $77,251 | $950 | $78,201 |
| PGY7 | $81,120 | $950 | $82,070 |
Conference Schedule
Family Medicine residents enhance their educational experience through weekly half-day didactic sessions.
These sessions help fulfill the GME requirements for specialty training in family medicine and residents are expected to participate unless their clinical duties prevent them from doing so.
The curriculum includes a mixture of lectures, simulation, board review sessions, conferences and practice management sessions. All didactics are focused on core family medicine topics and are taught by faculty familiar with those topics.
- Medical Grand Rounds are generally held one afternoon monthly, in conjunction with the Internal Medicine program. Faculty and guest speakers discuss a broad range of topics relevant to clinical practice and graduate medical education.
- Case Presentations are held periodically as part of the didactic schedule. Residents present evidence-based reviews and case-based discussions of cases from the inpatient or outpatient experience. Emphasis is placed on resident-driven quality improvement.
- Journal Club Conferences take place once monthly. These conferences are presented by an assigned resident who chooses the article, distributes it prior to the conference and leads the discussion.
- Board Review Conferences occur monthly and cover the expansive range of medical topics expected for competency to be a family physician. Online board review questions may be utilized to generate discussion and learning.
- General Lecture Series occur weekly. These lectures cover topics pertinent to the practice of family medicine ranging from obstetrics to geriatrics, consistent with the training requirements mandated by the ACGME.
- Business of Medicine/Practice Management Series focuses on practical and relevant management skills such as understanding insurance, coding and billing, financial planning, contract negotiation and healthcare policy. Residents also attend practice business meetings, in which financial details of the family medicine center are discussed and physician productivity is reviewed.
- Simulation is held at least one afternoon monthly and covers topics in more detail utilizing a variety of formats. In addition to traditional clinical scenarios such as ACLS and BLS protocols and the unstable patient, simulation sessions also focus on issues such as physician wellness, patient communication skills, and procedural skills.
Frequently Asked Questions about our Family Medicine Program
Applications are accepted beginning mid-September for the following year’s class. Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Our program only accepts electronic applications through ERAS (the Electronic Residency Application Service). The required documents for an application are the same as ERAS (at least three letters of recommendation, the Dean’s letter/MSPE, formal transcripts, USMLE/COMLEX transcripts and a personal statement). At least one letter of recommendation must be from a Family Physician who is familiar with you and your academic performance.
All residency spots are filled through the NRMP (the “Match”). If you are an international applicant, ECGMG Certification is required prior to the start of residency.
Applicants must have passed USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Examination) Step 1 and Step 2 or the COMLEX (Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination) Level 1 and Level 2 exams, with preference given to applicants with no failed attempts. Candidates with higher scores will be considered more competitive in that category.
Applicants must have graduated from medical school within the last 2 years, unless they have been involved in military service or other public service and have remained active in the medical field.
We accept J-1 Visas on a case-by-case basis. We do not accept H-1 Visas.
The Family Medicine Residency program has 6 residents per year, for a total of 18 residents.
Grand Strand Medical Center is a 403-bed acute care hospital, providing medical services for Horry and Georgetown counties. The hospital features one of the busiest Level I trauma centers in the state of South Carolina; Critical Care Units for medical, cardiac, neurology, surgical and pediatric patients; as well as a large obstetrics unit and a level II newborn nursery. Our patient demographics are broad and include all age groups, a diversity of ethnicities, races and socioeconomic status. The spectrum of patients and pathology offers an excellent learning environment.
The Grand Strand Family Medicine Residency is committed to providing excellent specialty training for physicians in the field of Family Medicine. Training occurs in state-of-the-art medical facilities, located in one of the most popular tourist destinations in the South. We strive to provide a well-balanced curriculum that meets or exceeds the ACGME requirements for Family Medicine training, as well as giving residents unique experiences, such as the forensic evaluation of abused children, or perfecting their clinical skills in the simulation lab.
In addition, emphasis is placed on achieving skills that enhance physician empathy, which can lead to better patient satisfaction and compliance, as well as improved physician satisfaction. While we pride ourselves on the quality of training and the close-knit group of faculty and residents who work together in a supportive environment, we also provide the opportunity to live, work and play in a coveted vacation destination, with sandy beaches, winding waterways, fresh seafood, hundreds of unique restaurants, gorgeous sunrises, mild climate, and low cost of living.
Yes. Including our first graduating class in 2019 we have a 100% Board Pass Rate!
Please contact Sherry Allison, Family Medicine Program Coordinator, by email or by phone at (843) 692-3497.