Family Medicine Residency Program

Mission statement

The Memorial Health University 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

Our Family Medicine Residency Program is a networked program that strives to develop well-rounded family doctors. We consider ourselves networked instead of “opposed,” because of the unique, collaborative relationship that we share with the other residency programs at Memorial Health University Medical Center.

Our goal is for residents to practice broad-spectrum family medicine in any community, especially in underserved or low-resource areas. Our graduates have chosen careers at health departments, as outpatient providers in private practice, and as hospitalists who practice in ICUs. Our residents have also done fellowships in sports medicine, geriatrics, global health, and emergency medicine.

The specialists in our program have developed a broad-spectrum family medicine experience for our residents. We have family medicine attending physicians who practice obstetrics, and one who has a CAQ in sports medicine. As the clinical experiences of our resident physicians expand, our department chair has made it a priority to expand the resources available to them.

These experiences have been supplemented by a redesign of our residency education series, which now includes longitudinal didactic sessions on behavioral health, health disparities, sports medicine, point-of-care ultrasound (including musculoskeletal ultrasound), procedures, and evidence-based medicine/critical appraisal of medical literature.

Our residents and students can experience the full spectrum of care, including morning rounds, busy days in the office, and unpredictable late-night calls to labor and delivery. Our group practice makes all of this possible within the framework of a viable lifestyle that allows you to enjoy living in the city of Savannah.

Living in Savannah

Residents can enjoy living in a variety of atmospheres all close to the hospital – downtown apartments full of night life, beautiful historic homes close to the hospital, coastal living on the islands and homes with plenty of outdoor space all within a thirty minute radius of the hospital and clinic. Savannah combines a relatively low cost of living with ample opportunity for your partner or family to work and learn in the city. As important is the opportunities to relax and have fun – the beach is within forty five minutes, there are multiple parks to enjoy, several farmer’s markets, local sporting events (look up the Savannah Bananas), recreation leagues for adults and children, a healthy art community with the Savannah College of Art and Design downtown and of course many delicious, local dining options.

Memorial Health University Medical Center has an affiliation with Mercer University School of Medicine and has been the home of Mercer’s Savannah campus since 2007. Our entire faculty holds academic appointments in the Mercer University School of Medicine and we have a constant presence of medical students who work with us on both inpatient and outpatient medical care.

Program details

Research and scholarship

We want our residents to graduate with the appreciation, knowledge, and skills needed to critique and generate scholarly activity for family medicine physicians in the United States.

To accomplish this goal, we have integrated time into the residents’ schedules to work on scholarly activity including performance/quality improvement, PDSA cycles, and a GME sponsored projects. Additionally, we have had residents routinely complete at least one publication through various formats. Past publications have included Family Practice Inquiries Network (FPIN) Help Desk Answers and Clinical Inquiries in the AAFP journal, Dynamed, and Five Minute Clinical Consults. Residents have been included as investigators in clinical research projects that have included sickle cell and HIV care.

Residents participate in a yearly “Research Day” where projects and case reports from Mercer University School of Medicine and all other in-house residencies are presented locally. Residents are encouraged to present at other local, regional and national conferences including the Society of Teachers in Family Medicine and Georgia Academy of Family Medicine.

Residents have protected weekly didactics which include critical appraisal of medical literature and board review topics.

Wellness

Our program takes resident wellness very seriously and have continually worked to reduce administrative burden, allow for administrative time while in the clinic, schedule bonding time during weekly didactics and can offer private, individual counseling through our behavioral health specialist.

Community engagement

We have a partnership with a local Federally Qualified Health Center, J.C. Lewis Primary Health Care Center. Here residents are able to see another model of health care and have an opportunity to provide care to the homeless community of Savannah with their mobile health unit. We participate in HIV/Hepatitis C program that offers free or low cost treatment to patients. We often participate in local food and supply drives. Past projects have included Walk With a Doc, the Rocking Chair Project, and a community garden. We welcome new ideas to give back!

Frequently Asked Questions