From the Chairman of Medicine

Today, as never before, internal medicine is a specialty in great demand. National priorities are creating an environment that provides incentives for physicians to train and serve in primary care. Accordingly, the Department of Medicine holds the preparation of the generalist as a top priority, and our program is presently geared to that end.

At the same time, advances in molecular biology and technology are being translated into the everyday care of patients. With increasing frequency, medical specialties and subspecialists now have opportunities to diagnose and treat diseases in a manner not possible in the past. The training opportunities required to meet these challenges are available in our subspecialty programs and are constantly being revised to respond to new scientific advances.

Medical residents are at the center of the Department's educational and clinical activities. The philosophy that underlies the faculty's approach to their duties as attending physicians is that residents learn best when they have meaningful participation in decision making. Retaining the ultimate responsibility in patient care, attending physicians delegate authority to residents in a progressive manner throughout the course of the residency. Special attention is given to providing continuity of care experiences throughout the residency and, in keeping with the national trend toward outpatient medicine, the time that residents spend in outpatient experiences is increasing appropriately.

Training in all of the medical subspecialties is available in our department, and our residents often complete their subspecialty training in these programs. They are also highly competitive for fellowship positions at other excellent programs throughout the country.  Exposure to basic and clinical research is an integral part of these programs, and residents learn to critically evaluate medical literature by participation in research projects under the supervision of our faculty. The environment in which training occurs is an important consideration in the selection of a residency program. The University of Illinois Hospital has been consistently ranked as one of the nation's best hospitals by U.S. News and World Report during the past several years.  This is another indication of the outstanding facilities available to physicians in our patient care environment.

We believe that our residency program offers the motivated physician outstanding training in internal medicine and provides the skills necessary for a professional career in primary care as well as an excellent base on which to initiate subspecialty training. The environment is designed for learning, is supportive of all the needs of resident physicians, and allows the optimal professional and intellectual development of the trainee. We welcome your application and the opportunity to meet with you to discuss the ways in which we can assist you in reaching your career goals.

Sincerely,

Thomas Layden, MD
Professor of Medicine
Head, Department of Medicine
University of Illinois Hospital