Georgetown Medical Culpula

Frequently Asked Questions

The following are answers to questions most often asked by applicants interested in applying to the Internal Medicine Residency Program at Georgetown University Hospital (GUH).

How many residents are in the program?

We have 86 categorical residents, 10 preliminary interns, 16 Med-Peds residents, and Chief Medical residents at Georgetown, Virginia Hospital Center, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Inova Fairfax Hospital.

How do Georgetown residents do in the fellowship match?

Georgetown residents have tremendous success in securing competitive fellowships, (NEW!! 2013 fellowship match here) and are highly desired among Fellowship Directors. While many Georgetown residents match at Georgetown Fellowships, others pursue careers at other highly competitive programs throughout the country.

What is the status of the information technology systems at Georgetown?

Continued hospital financial successes have allowed for dramatic improvements in the computer and systems services at Georgetown. Our home-grown state-of-the-art information system is known as Azyxxi, and has been successful enough that Microsoft has partnered with MedStar to market the system to other hospitals throughout the nation. Our outpatient Electronic Medical Record system (Centricity) is in place in all Department of Medicine outpatient practices, and the inpatient EMR (MedConnect) project launched in 2009. In all, Georgetown's cutting edge technology and IT services have helped us provide excellent care to our patients.

What are the "pros" of the residency program?

This section would be our most extensive, so we'll try to keep it short. The superb faculty - house staff interactions, the diversity of clinical experiences, the outstanding quality of the residents, great location in Washington, DC, the opportunities for varied electives (national, international and local) and the responsiveness of the administration to resident concerns all stand out as highlights. Top ABIM pass rates, fellowship match results and job placement are evidence of the commitment to top notch education, outstanding residents, and Georgetown's reputation for graduating superb residents from the program.

What are the differences between Georgetown, Washington Hospital Center / GUH and MedStar?

Georgetown is in its twelfth year of partnership with MedStar health, the largest health system in the MidAtlantic region. MedStar is a ten-hospital, not-for profit organization. MedStar excels in financial management of hospital systems, and the GUH/MedStar partnership has led to dramatic financial successes and superb management of the Georgetown University Hospital and physician practice. Georgetown University Hospital program is the only University-based residency program in the MedStar system, and our hospital is the main teaching site for the Georgetown University School of Medicine.

Georgetown University Hospital (also known as MedStar Georgetown University Hospital) and Washington Hospital Center (GUH/WHC Program) sponsor Medicine residency programs. These programs are separate and independent programs.

Are the patients at Georgetown "private" patients?

No.  All patients admitted to GUH Medicine have a designated attending of record. The vast majority of these patients (over 95%) are admitted to full-time, on site faculty.  Nearly 100% of the resident-managed patients (teaching service) are admitted to our full-time hospitalist service, and are essentially "service" patients. For every patient on the Medicine teaching service, the residents are the primary caretakers, manage the medical issues, have a high level of autonomy with appropriate supervision, and communicate with the attending physician (Georgetown is considered a "resident-run" hospital).

What are the advantages of rotating through the various hospitals in the Georgetown system?

Our affiliates add tremendous diversity (in terms of demographics, diseases, acuity, hospital size, location) to the program. The NIH offers a unique experience in rare diseases, research opportunities, and scientific leaders. Our Virginia affiliates offer patient diversity, exposure to two different-sized community hospitals, and opportunities at a top line Cardiac facility (Fairfax). WHC offers superb CCU experience within the MedStar system. The faculty members at all of our affiliates are tremendously loyal to Georgetown, and have been educating students and residents for as long as 60 years (VHC - Arlington). The advantage is the breadth of experiences available to the Georgetown Medicine resident, as well as opportunities for residents to become familiar with private practitioners - this may be helpful for future job opportunities. Residents may choose to weight their rotations more toward the University Hospital or toward affiliates in order to better suit their academic needs.

Nonetheless, the majority of rotations (65-70%) are located at Georgetown University Hospital throughout all three years.

What about the cost of living in the DC area?

Although Washington, DC is not considered cheap, most residents choose to live in less expensive areas within a few miles of DC (Arlington, VA / Rosslyn - just over Key Bridge / suburban Maryland) - these areas are easily accessible to Georgetown and all affiliates and significantly reduce housing costs.

Do I need a car?

Almost all of our residents do have a car and it is the easiest way around the DC metro area. Driving distances between our hospitals are no more than 12 miles. Nonetheless, with determination and a good understanding of the public transportation system, and utilizing the numerous hospital shuttles available to you, it is possible to navigate the residency program without a vehicle.

I received a request to interview for the Residency Program and have questions.
Please see our Interview FAQs.