Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Residency

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Program Leadership:
Sarah Calkins, MD, Program Director
Kristie White, MD, Associate Program Director
Administrative Staff:
Kirsten Dahmen, Program Administrator
Suria Sadat, Program Administrator

Address:
UCSF Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Residency Program
School of Medicine
University of California, San Francisco
505 Parnassus Avenue, M580
San Francisco, CA 94143
Phone:
415.353.7359
Email:
kirsten.dahmen@ucsf.edu  

Program Description

Introduction

The UCSF Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Residency Program is a 4-year ACGME accredited residency program. The Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine collaborate to support world-class training for residents in anatomic pathology (AP), clinical pathology (CP), combined anatomic and clinical pathology (AP/CP), and combined anatomic pathology and neuropathology (AP/NP). Trainees have numerous fellowship and postdoctoral research opportunities and have a track record of success in securing desirable jobs in academia, private practice and industry.

Educational Program (Basic Curriculum)

Multiple training tracks for education are available to trainees, including combined anatomic and clinical pathology (AP/CP), AP-only, CP-only, and AP/Neuropathology.

The Department of Pathology provides the UCSF-affiliated hospitals with diagnostic services in general surgical pathology and autopsy pathology, as well as in a variety of subspecialty areas, including cytopathology, hematopathology, dermatopathology, neuropathology, cardiac pathology, transplant pathology, gastrointestinal and liver pathology, renal pathology, and obstetric-gynecologic pathology. The diverse backgrounds and research interests of the faculty have led to many extramural awards, including funded projects in cancer biology, liver disease, immunology, molecular-cell biology, hematopathology, microbiology, biochemistry, parasitology and tropical medicine. It is this eclectic mix that forms the basis of the expert patient-care and research training offered by the Department of Pathology.

Residents in anatomic pathology rotate through the five university-affiliated hospitals: UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights, UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay, UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion, San Francisco VA Health Care System (SFVA), and Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFG). In the first year, residents typically spend a majority of the year in basic surgical pathology and autopsy pathology rotations. Currently, our AP trainees have one month of elective time per year, which can be used to gain additional focused experience in subspecialties in both the Department of Pathology and the Department of Laboratory Medicine. Second-year AP residents have a variety of surgical pathology, cytology, dermatopathology, and molecular pathology rotations. Additionally, they serve as chief residents at ZSFG and SFVA. A structured didactic lecture series for residents is held three times a week to complement the exposure to clinical material gained from weekly slide conferences and clinical rotations. Residents also have numerous opportunities to engage in clinical research projects during residency and to present their findings at regional and national meetings.

In the Department of Laboratory Medicine, residents also rotate through the clinical laboratories of UCSF, the Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, and the San Francisco VA Health Care System. These hospitals have diverse patient populations and provide a remarkably varied clinical experience for our training program. Rotations are available in microbiology, hematology/hematopathology, transfusion medicine, cellular therapy, clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics/cytogenetics, laboratory management, and immunology. Five months out of the two years is devoted to elective time and includes opportunities for electives at institutions other than UCSF. Residents also receive structured didactic training in clinical epidemiology, transfusion medicine, hematology, informatics, immunology, clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics, microbiology and laboratory management.

Clinical responsibilities of residents include an “on call” system for clinical consultation on test indications, interfering factors and test interpretation, familiarization with analytical methodology and quality control, and teaching of medical students and technologists.

Teaching opportunities are also available to residents during their training. Housestaff assist the instructors in the laboratories in medical-student pathology courses, medical student small groups, and ongoing laboratory technician continuing education courses. Residents also present interesting autopsy and surgical pathology cases at a variety of intra- and interdepartmental conferences. All residents present cases and recent research findings on subjects of their choice once a year at the Department of Pathology Grand Rounds Conference.

Detailed Instructional Schedule

  • Surgical pathology
  • Autopsy pathology
  • Cytopathology
  • Dermatopathology
  • Hematology and Hematopathology
  • Neuropathology
  • Microbiology
  • Transfusion Medicine
  • Chemistry
  • Immunology
  • Molecular pathology
  • Laboratory Management

Instructors/Resources

The UCSF Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Residency Program has a wealth of clinical and research faculty distributed throughout UCSF and its associated hospitals listed below. Education within the program and supervision of trainees are the focus of the majority of the faculty.

Instructional Facilities

The main facilities, which offer a wide depth and breadth of clinical and research experiences and training, where the trainees practice and see patients are:

  • UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights, San Francisco, California
  • Mission Bay (UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, UCSF Betty Irene Moore)
  • Women’s Hospital, UCSF Bakar Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
  • UCSF Mt. Zion Hospital, San Francisco, California
  • China Basin UCSF Campus, San Francisco, California
  • Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, California
  • Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California