Scripps Family Medicine Residency Program

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Maternal Child Health: With support from a March of Dimes community grant, we have implemented Centering Pregnancy Group Prenatal and Parenting visits at two of our community clinics. Pairs of residents work together with a faculty member to take care of patients during their pregnancy, participate in their delivery, and take care of the infant and mother postpartum. It is a great way to have continuity with the family! Our program has a robust women's health training, and residents graduate proficient in prenatal, obstetric, and gynecologic care. We also offer an additional maternal child health track for residents interested in furthering their training.

Adolescent Medicine: We have established health clinics at three high schools in the South Bay. Under the supervision of faculty physicians, residents provide no-cost health care to high school students. For residents interested in additional training in adolescent medicine, we offer a continuity track in the adolescent area of concentration. Residents also participate in Our Health, an ongoing semester-long mentorship pipeline program aimed to encourage students interested in health careers.

Community-Oriented Primary Care Projects: All residents complete a longitudinal
scholarly project using a community-based participatory model. Existing
community-based research activities within the department include piloting diabetes group medical visits within our primary clinic, creating high school and undergraduate pre-health pipeline programs, understanding and evaluating adverse childhood events (ACEs) within our community, and working with community organizers to promote migrant and refugee health, to name a few.

Geriatrics: Our curriculum includes comprehensive Geriatrics assessment clinics (through the Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly, or PACE), home visits, longitudinal nursing home care and experience at San Diego Hospice, site of the Hospice and Palliative Care Fellowship.

Substance Use Disorder Training: All residents are invited to participate in X Waiver certification to obtain MAT training as provided by the residency program. Second year residents then have the opportunity to work in SUD clinic through San Ysidro Health. We also offer a continuity track for SUD and behavioral medicine for residents interested in advanced training.

Patient Centered Medical Home and Quality Improvement: Our primary clinic, Chula Vista Medical Plaza, part of San Ysidro Health, is designated a PCMH facility by the AHRQ. Our outpatient curriculum includes PCMH-training in a federally-qualified health center along with hands-on experience with QI projects within our primary clinic. Utilizing materials and resources from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, residents learn about organizational management, PDSA cycle-led improvements, and outpatient workflow and efficiency.

Distance Learning: Due to our current state of pandemic, we are continuously adjusting to remote and distance learning. All of our didactics (lunch lectures, Grand Rounds, morning reports) and meetings have transitioned to virtual platforms. Residents have also utilized this opportunity to complete distance learning and trainings in various areas, including ACEs awareness, MAT/X-waiver, integrative medicine, advanced dermatology, and point-of-care ultrasound training, among many others.

Wellness: We also place a great emphasis on our structured wellness curriculum, mirroring the ACGME Aware framework. Through this well-being curriculum, residents and faculty engage in skill development and mindfulness to help promote a healthy and sustainable workforce. We work closely with the Employee Assistance Program psychologists to provide individual and group resident support.

The Scripps Family Medicine Residency program has an experienced group of core faculty that supports comprehensive family medicine education. Collaborating with residents on a daily basis, faculty members not only teach the fundamentals of Family Medicine, but also offer expertise in areas of maternal and child health, geriatrics, behavioral health, ambulatory procedures, and community medicine. Twelve FM faculty members provide patient care and teaching in the hospital setting, and seven also provide maternity and neonatal care on labor and delivery. We are also fortunate to have support and teaching from our specialty colleagues in OB/Gyn, Critical Care, Cardiology, Neurology, Endocrinology, Emergency Medicine and other medical specialties.

Spouses and family, welcome aboard!  We include family in residency activities - dinners, gatherings, and retreats. Children and fur-babies are always welcomed. Unsure if you should bring your baby to events? Don’t worry, our faculty members and residents would love to help carry your baby and even babysit! A couple of our faculty members even have a calendar featuring the children of our residents, faculty, and staff—provided as a holiday gift from our residents!

Our program maintains a casual atmosphere that fosters support and togetherness. All incoming interns are paired with PGY-2 and PGY-3 “big sibs” who serve as mentors and create a sense of family away from home throughout the rest of the year. In addition, mid-way through residency, the second year class celebrates their half-way mark by having a day-retreat to themselves to rekindle and reflect.

Quarterly, we host an event called Residents and Faculty Together (RAFT), which gives us the opportunity to connect with each other and our community. Social activities include Halloween costume contests, beach barbecues, bowling, and visiting a local animal sanctuary. Other community engagement RAFTs have included virtual tours of community art spaces, visiting local museums, and cooking classes at an organic farm.

During the month of November, our residents and faculty support men’s health with an annual “Movember” mustache contest and fundraiser. We also participate in a white elephant gift exchange at our annual Holiday Party hosted by our program director. Every holiday season, our residents sing carols and spread holiday cheer for our nursing home patients.

During our annual retreats, all residents and staff spend a weekend away together where they relax, reflect on the year, and form long-lasting memories. Our residents also enjoy being active whether by hiking in our beautiful San Diego backyard, biking, participating in fitness classes together, or Latin dancing. There is always something fun to do!