January 3 ,2023
Dear Applicant,
Happy New Year from New Orleans. We are excited to announce that final approval from the state has been given to the partnership between LCMC Health and the Tulane School of Medicine. We spoke to many of you about the potential of this partnership at the time of your interview. Now that the agreement is complete, we want to share with you our excitement and be transparent about the growth of the Department of Surgery and how all of this will affect the residency.
Let us start by saying clearly, the surgical residency program will not be closing and training will not be interrupted. If anything, we may have to expand as clinical volume grows over the next few years.
LCMC Health is a nonprofit, locally owned and operated, regional healthcare system that formed in 2009 when the Children’s Hospital of New Orleans merged with the Touro Infirmary in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Since then, LCMC Health has grown to be one of the region’s largest healthcare systems. LCMC Health currently operates six hospitals including East Jefferson General Hospital (EJ) which was acquired in 2020. As part of the new partnership, LCMC health has purchased Tulane Medical Center, Tulane Lakeside Hospital, and Tulane-Lakeview Regional Medical Center. Tulane surgery residents already rotate at 8 of these 9 hospitals.
Moving forward, the current Tulane Medical Center hospital (downtown) will transition away from inpatient healthcare. The location at 1415 Tulane Avenue will be transitioned to EJ, which is just over 9 miles away and where Tulane will continue to have a flagship academic hospital to support its faculty, fellows, residents, and students. As part of the original purchase agreement in 2020, LCMC Heath agreed to invest $100 million over five years into renovations and infrastructure at EJ. As part of the new agreement, they have committed an additional $220 million to be divided between EJ, Lakeview Regional and Tulane Lakeside. We expect surgical services to be transitioned over the course of the next 12-18 months.
Not lost is the underlying mission of the Tulane School of Medicine to care for the unique, at-need patient population in Orleans Parish. As part of the transition away from the current Tulane Medical Center, Tulane School of Medicine will also increase its presence at the University Medical Center, a new LCMC Health operated downtown hospital. This increased presence will allow our faculty, residents and students to continue to deliver care to patients of New Orleans.
Over the coming months, we expect considerable growth for the Department of Surgery which we anticipate will lead to increased surgical volume and a better resident training experience. We know during this transition, there will be unforeseen challenges and problems that require solutions. We are excited as a department to meet these challenges and promise to be transparent and inclusive of the residents in this process. We would be happy to discuss this in person with you at our candidate reception on February 3rd.
Click here to read more about this exciting partnership.
Good luck with the rest of your interview season and on Match Day.
Mary Killackey, MD and David Yu, MD
A Message from the Program DirectorThank you for your interest in the Tulane General Surgery Residency. Dating back to 1834 at Charity Hospital in New Orleans, we are one of the oldest surgical residencies in the country. Currently, we match 5 categorical residents annually into a 5-year ACGME-accredited program.
Our program is centered in New Orleans and includes rotations at the Tulane Medical Center, University Medical Center, New Orleans Veterans Affairs Hospital, the Children’s Hospital of New Orleans, and several private hospitals in the metro area. We have one chief rotation in Alexandria, LA to ensure all graduates get exposure to community general surgery.
We believe in a graduated responsibility model to produce competent, confident surgeons. In addition to clinical training, we pride ourselves on producing residents that demonstrate excellence in education, research, innovation, and leadership. The majority of our graduates go on to fellowships in a wide range of subspecialties. Since 2010, 25% of our residents have gone directly into general surgery practice.
Under the leadership of our Chair, Dr. Killackey, we strive to embody the five pillars of esprit de corp of the department of surgery.
We are committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion and value nontraditional aspects of applicants. As a department, we believe in equity in the clinical learning environment. We strive towards cultural competency through education for faculty, residents, hospital staff and patients. We understand that a commitment to diversity includes individualized, whole-person development and mentorship.
We know surgery residency is challenging and successful completion requires dedication and hard work. To balance this, we have a deliberate focus on resident wellness. In addition to our commitment to a nurturing learning environment, the wellness program includes monthly, department-wide social activities, tools to recognize burnout, and resources to support mental and physical health.
I am excited for your interest in our General Surgery Residency and hope you will consider Tulane for your training.
David Yu
