Resident Serves as Primary Care Physician for One Year

Each resident follows a panel of patients and serves as the primary care physician for one year. Clinic is one-half day per week.

Patients range in age from eighteen to geriatric. Local demographics afford exposure to a large Latino population. The spectrum of visits includes health maintenance and promotion, acute episodic illness, chronic medical illness and pre-operative evaluations. Primary care doctor-patient relationship, preventive care and patient education are emphasized. The ability to practice in an HMO setting provides the resident with an opportunity to learn efficiency and economy in the outpatient setting along with the business and economics of medical practice.

The attending staff of board-certified general internists is committed to providing high quality patient care and teaching. There is an excellent attending-to-resident ratio, which promotes timely feedback, discussion and review of cases.

At the beginning of each clinic session, there is a case-based discussion of common ambulatory problems based on the Yale Ambulatory Conference series. Reference articles and case related questions are presented for the residents to review the week prior to the clinic session. Approximately 40 ambulatory conditions are covered including management of common office orthopedic problems, ophthalmology topics and common medical issues likely to be encountered in the general internist's office.

A faculty member from the Wilkes University Nesbitt College of Pharmacy provides guidance and teaching to the residents in clinic on such issues as pharmacokinetics and pharmacotherapeutics. The pharmacy faculty member is also available by consultation to meet with patients to provide education and review medical regimens.

Approximately 20 referral subspecialty clinics are available to assist in patient evaluation and management and to serve as a teaching resource for our residents. The residents interface with certified nurse practitioners, physician assistants and case managers.

The core of the ambulatory training is offered at St. Luke's Union Station, a new facility conveniently located on Bethlehem's historic south side in close proximity to St. Luke's Hospital - Bethlehem Campus. The health center features state-of-the-art examination rooms and a teaching conference room with multiple computer stations to provide easy access to medical records and on-line references such as "Up-to-Date." St. Luke's Union Station also offers dental, pediatric, physical therapy and wound care services.