Mission
The Oral and Maxillofacial surgery residency program at VCU Medical Center is designed to train superior oral and maxillofacial surgeons who are capable of practicing the wide scope of oral and maxillofacial surgery in a comprehensive, ethical, compassionate, and knowledgeable manner. The educational experience is progressive, offering increasing responsibilities as residents proceed through the program and offers an environment of collegial and lifelong learning.
The program is designed to provide the residents with sufficient didactic and clinical education to meet the requirements of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. All residents should be extremely well prepared for careers in clinical practice, both in academic and private practice settings.
Didactic curriculum
The education and training of the Virginia Commonwealth University Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery postgraduate program is built on the basis of a strong didactic curriculum and several structured clinical activities that enhance the resident's experience and training.
- Monday afternoon weekly topic conference
- Wednesday morning biweekly combined orthognathic conference
- Wednesday morning biweekly implant conference
- Wednesday afternoon surgical grand rounds
- Thursday weekly afternoon preoperative and postoperative case review
- Friday morning biweekly pathology seminar
- Planning conference
- Monthly afternoon journal club
- Monthly interdepartmental conference (PERIO, ENDO, AEGD, and ENT)
- Monthly interdepartmental Trauma Conference (Plastic Surgery and ENT)
Clinic experience
It is the goal of the program to ensure that our residents receive training across the entire spectrum of the specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery. Having a diverse patient population, being a Level-1 trauma center, and having a large faculty with varying clinical interests allows the program to provide training consistent with that goal. In addition, all of our clinical facilities are equipped for full-scale general anesthesia including a clinic-based ambulatory operating room.
Major inpatient surgical procedures during a recent typical year:
- Major trauma surgery: 201
- Pathology surgery: 109
- Preprosthetic, TMJ and reconstructive surgery: 42
- Orthognathic surgery: 113
- Outpatient general anesthesia, sedations: 930
- Cosmetic surgery: 13
- Outpatient visits: 14,200
At least one-half day per week is designated for the chief resident and third-year residents to see pre-op implant patients and perform implant placement, sinus lift procedures, and soft and hard tissue preprosthetic operations. This dedicated time ensures that each resident can follow their implant patients all the way from consultation to surgery to restoration. A faculty member with advanced implant experience supervises this clinic and provides expertise in implants.
Major cosmetic surgery is performed in our clinic on a regular basis. The cases are done under local anesthesia, IV sedation or, intubated general anesthesia, depending on the length and complexity of the procedure. The entire spectrum of facial cosmetic surgery, including, facelifts, browlifts, eyelid surgery, otoplasty, Botox injections, cosmetic skin resurfacing, and cosmetic augmentation procedures, are done by chief and third-year residents under the supervision of faculty who are credentialed by the State Board to do such procedures. During this clinic session, pre and postoperative patients are also seen in conjunction with the attending surgeon staffing the clinic.
One-half day per week is designated for orthognathic surgery evaluations and postoperative care patients. All levels of residents are involved with this clinic. A full-time faculty member who is involved in treating these orthognathic surgery patients supervises the residents.
Once a month, an upper level resident and a faculty member see TMJ surgical patients for initial evaluation, re-evaluation and post- operative follow up at the Hospital Clinic. In addition, when an upper level resident is on the intramural Faculty Practice rotation, they gain additional experience in the management of these patients. The residents gain ample skills and learn the techniques to postoperative manage these patients in addition to their operating room surgical experience.
A separate TMJ clinic exists within the department for the nonsurgical management of TMJ patients. The residents have an optional rotation in these clinics early in their training.
On a biweekly basis, all patients treated for facial soft tissue and bone trauma are seen by the residents and a faculty member with an interest and expertise in the management of such cases. Assessment of postoperative complications and the need for additional reconstructive or cosmetic procedures is done during these clinic sessions.
One upper level resident (a third year or a chief resident) is assigned to be involved in the care of private practice patients at both the faculty intramural and off-campus private practices. During this rotation, the resident gains a “real world” perspective on ambulatory and hospitalized minor and major oral and maxillofacial surgery procedures and develops the skills of pre- and post-operative patient care and office management skills on a one-on-one basis with private practitioners.
All of our residents perform a variety of anesthetic procedures in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) clinic including IV anesthesia, inhalational anesthesia, LMA (Laryngeal Mask Anesthetic) and endotracheal intubations. The residents are encouraged to use advanced airway techniques in the resident clinics.