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Curriculum, Structure & Benefits

Program Governance

Program Director: Katie Dennis, M.D.
Associate Program Directors: Nelli S. Lakis, M.D., MSc & Jamie Porter, M.D.
Program Administrator: Mikala Moreau, C-TAGME
Contact: E-mail: pathologyresidents@kumc.edu 

Clinical Learning Environments

Our primary teaching hospital is the University of Kansas Hospital, a 900+ bed tertiary care center that is the only academic hospital in the state. KU Hospital is a busy place that has experienced year-over-year growth of more than 10% several years running. Patients from all fifty states were treated at KU Hospital in the past year. The University of Kansas Cancer Center was named a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in 2012. NCI designation is limited to 67 institutions in the country, recognizes excellence in cancer care and research, and creates new opportunities for education, research and clinical trials.

The 125-bed Kansas City VA Medical Center is our primary teaching affiliate. The outstanding teachers and the slower pace at the VA provide an ideal introduction to pathology before immersion into the hustle and bustle of KU Hospital Residents also rotate with the pediatric pathologists at the nearby Children's Mercy Hospital, a nationally recognized pediatric hospital. Residents in the second year train in forensic pathology at the Jackson County Medical Examiner's Office, a busy urban forensic center with more than 1,000 annual post-mortem examinations. Training in transfusion medicine begins at KU Hospital; advanced training takes place at the Community Blood Center, a large regional transfusion medicine center.

Curriculum

KUMC Pathology Residency Pumpkin Carving Contest, AY2017The academic year is divided into 13 four-week blocks. Residents are assigned to either anatomic or clinical rotations, which are interspersed each year.

In addition to the core rotations, our program offers a liberal elective rotation program. On-campus electives are offered in all surgical pathology subspecialties, as well as clinical pathology services and research. While many residents choose on-campus electives, external and international rotations are also allowed. We encourage residents to develop electives that will suit their particular interests and career goals. Our program offers an elective block during the second year of residency, and residents average six elective rotations by graduation.

Below is a sample block schedule including the core program and electives.

PGY1 PGY2 PGY3 PGY4
4 KU Surg Path 4 KU Surg Path 3 KU Surg Path 2 KU Surg Path
5 VA Surg Path 1 Pediatric Pathology 2 VA CP 1 Cytology
1 Hematopathology 1 VA CP 1 Hematopathology 1 Molecular Pathology
1 Cytology 1 Hematopathology 1 Cytology 1 Lab Management
1 Transfusion Medicine 1 Cytology 2 Hematology/Flow Lab 1 Transfusion Medicine
1 Microbiology 1 Community Blood Ctr 1 Microbiology 1 Chemistry
1 Forensic Pathology 1 Cytogenetics 1 Surg Path Trainer/Renal
1 Hematology/Flow Lab 1 Liver 5 Electives
1 Chemistry 1 Elective
1 Elective
Resident Benefits

AY2018 USCAP Presentation, March 2018

Time Away

Residents have 15 vacation days (3 weeks) and 10 sick days of leave per academic year. Professional leave can be granted for educational meetings and professional exams.

Educational Funds

Each resident received an annual $1000 education allowance that can be used for books, educational materials, USMLE Step 3/COMLEX Level III, and educational courses.

A separate $1500 travel allowance can be provided for residents who present scientific work at national meetings.

KU Medical Center Benefits

Malpractice, subsidized health, and disability insurance are provided. Parking permits, white coats, scrubs and pagers are provided.

In addition, residents receive free membership to our on-campus fitness center, and a daily meal allowance is provided. Residents also have free electronic access to a host of scientific journals and textbooks through Dykes Library as well as access to numerous texts and online resources in our continually updated resident library. The program also provides each resident with subscriptions to ImmunoQuery and ExpertPath.

Find out more at the GME office’s Information for Residents and Fellows.

Teaching Conferences

Teaching conferences are rotated on a 2-year schedule and are evenly balanced between anatomic and clinical pathology, and between didactic lectures and slide conferences around the multi-headed microscope. Daily educational conferences occur at 8 am and are protected educational time. In addition, residents attend and participate in a range of interdisciplinary subspecialty tumor boards each week, as well as journal clubs, Grand Rounds, and other specialty conferences.

Pathology Residency Programs Contact

Mikala Moreau, C-TAGME
Pathology Residency/Fellowship Program Administrator
University of Kansas Medical Center
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
3901 Rainbow Blvd., MS 3045 Kansas City, KS 66160
Phone: 913-588-7076
Fax: 913-588-7073
Email: pathologyresidents@kumc.edu

Program Brochure

KU School of Medicine

University of Kansas Medical Center
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Mail Stop 3045
3901 Rainbow Boulevard
Kansas City, KS 66160
Phone: 913-588-7070
Fax: 913-588-7073