The emphasis of the Diagnostic Radiology Residency curriculum is to acquire knowledge and skills outlined by the American Board of Radiology utilizing a system-based approach including all subspecialties (e.g., neuroradiology, musculoskeletal, pediatric radiology, etc).
The Department of Radiology at Cooper University Hospital has developed objectives to guide the residents through each clinical rotation defined per year of residency standing. Clinical rotations enable the resident to accumulate knowledge, develop technical skills and establish decision- making processes by continuously reading cases and performing procedures under one-to-one faculty to resident supervision. Our senior fourth year residents have large blocks of elective time to individualize their training in preparation for their fellowship and future practice.
Four week block rotations allow for 13 rotations each year:
First Year
General Radiology/Plain Films, Fluoroscopy, Nuclear Medicine, Pediatrics, Body CT, Neuroradiology, Musculoskeletal, Ultrasound.
Second Year
Body CT, Body MR, IR, Mammography, Neuroradiology, Musculoskeletal, Nuclear Medicine, Ultrasound, Pediatrics at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), General Radiology/Plain Films and Research.
Third Year
Body CT, Body MR, IR, Neuroradiology, Mammography, Nuclear Medicine, Fluoroscopy, Pediatrics, Ultrasound, General Radiology/Plain Films, AIRP (American Institute for Radiologic Pathology), Obstetrical Ultrasound.
Fourth Year
Nuclear Medicine, Mammography, Electives (9).
Lectures
- Daily lectures are given by our dedicated staff of fellowship trained radiologists and are provided in various formats including formal didactics, case reviews, and interactive sessions. These lectures are continuously evaluated and improved based on resident feedback and new and emerging topics.
- We have a comprehensive online physics curriculum.
- Cooper regularly hosts experts within different fields of radiology to provide guest lectures for radiology residents on various topics.
- Daily, in-person, one-on-one teaching and read outs of resident cases is the norm for our program.
- Cooper hosts a dedicated emergency radiology boot camp for all first year radiology residents within the region to help prepare residents for call.
Residents as Teachers
Residents are encouraged to take advantage of the ample opportunities to teach throughout their training:
- Residents lead reading room teaching for Cooper Medical School students and visiting residents from other subspecialities while on their radiology electives.
- Residents regularly run lectures including the monthly interesting case conferences, radiology M&M conferences, and journal clubs.
- Senior residents conduct a radiology boot camp for medical students prior to entering their 3rd year clerkships and before graduating medical school and starting internship.
- Senior residents help run an introductory lecture series to help onboard new first year radiology residents (PGY2/R1) at the beginning of the academic year.
Multi-Disciplinary Case Conferences and Tumor Boards
Residents attend multidisciplinary conferences across different subspecialties to further enrich their learning opportunities. Cooper’s affiliation with the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, allows residents to learn from world renowned experts during tumor boards and to see a high volume of unique pathologies.
American Institute for Radiologic Pathology (AIRP)
All residents attend this four week course focusing on radiological and pathological presentation of diseases during their third year of training. This course is held in Silver Spring, MD, and residents receive a generous housing stipend for their stay.
Board Review Courses
R3 residents attend a board review course of their choosing, as well as a physics board review course. Physics education is supplemented by our in-house physicist with extra didactic sessions for R3 residents prior to the Core examination.
Mentorship
Formal and informal mentorship remains a strong part of our program. Each resident is paired with an attending of their choosing, regularly meeting throughout the year to discuss resident progress, educational goals, research opportunities, fellowship, and career plans.