Residency Information

Virginia Mason Hospital

About the rotation

The Virginia Mason Rotation provides an experience at a private medical center, with emphasis on joint reconstruction and arthroscopy.

The Virginia Mason Hospital is located in downtown Seattle. The fourth year rotation at Virginia Mason is under the supervision of Paul Benca M.D. who along with John Buckmiller M.D., Tom Green M.D., Mike Morris M.D., Ray Robinson M.D. and Lyle Sorenson M.D. comprises the teaching section of orthopedics at this institution. The faculty is board certified and fellowship trained. Most importantly, the residents frequently recognize Virginia Mason faculty for their excellent teaching efforts. These faculty help the resident achieve expertise and abilities in preoperative indications, preoperative planning, and the conduct of primary hip and knee arthroplasty. Residents also learn knee and shoulder arthroscopy, ACL and other ligament reconstructions.

Although the primary emphasis of this rotation is sports medicine and adult reconstruction the resident is exposed to a variety of general orthopedic issues, including primary shoulder surgery, orthopedic oncologic procedures, and the general spectrum of orthopedic trauma comprising general orthopedics.

Clinical duties will include coverage of inpatient and outpatient call, including first call to the Emergency Room and the floors in the evenings and on weekends on a prearranged schedule. This is a light call burden with the resident being called into the hospital only one or two times per rotation. There is no specific clinic duty due to the fact that one day a week is spent in the research and the remaining four days are spent doing operations. It is expected that the resident meet every patient he or she operates upon preoperatively and follow that patient post operatively while in the hospital.

Goals & objectives