Mission

Our mission is to cultivate competent, independent head and neck surgeons who deliver high-quality patient care. We prepare our residents for full independent practice within the military health system, ready to provide exceptional care both domestically and overseas. Our core tenets are clinical competence, independence, and autonomy. We prioritize rigorous training, ensuring our residents master the clinical skills necessary for a comprehensive otolaryngology practice. From diagnosis to surgical intervention, our graduates emerge as confident practitioners. We foster independence, empowering our residents to manage complex cases and make informed decisions. Quality patient care is central to our mission, with our residents learning to provide compassionate, evidence-based care, always striving for excellence in outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Vision

Our vision is to be the DOD leader in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck surgery. We see our graduates as confident practitioners, equipped with the skills to deliver exceptional care in diverse settings, from military treatment facilities to combat zones. Upholding the privilege of caring for military personnel and their families, they serve with integrity, empathy, and professionalism.

Aims:

1. We produce board certified, comprehensive otolaryngologists to care for the war-fighting force and effectively deploy with the Head & Neck teams.
2. We seek innovation through research and quality improvement related to military otolaryngology.
3. We develop leaders in the military and the otolaryngology community.

Residents are assigned monthly topics that mirror the American Academy of Otolaryngology Core Curriculum (OCC). We have half day academics every Thursday followed by a resident follow up clinic. Once per month we have a full day academics in the laboratory.

The academic schedule follows the following general schedule:

1st Thursday

• 8 - 10 a.m. Preoperative and Postoperative Conference
• 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Staff / Invited Guest Lectures or Case Based Discussions

2nd Thursday

• 8 - 10 a.m. Preoperative and Postoperative Conference
• 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Morbidity & Morality/Quality Improvement/Practice Improvement (M&M/QI/PI)
• 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. Sleep Conference
• 6 - 8 p.m. Journal Club (Restaurant)

3rd Thursday

• 8 - 10 a.m. Invited Guest Lectures
• 12 - 4 p.m. Laboratory studies at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USUHS)

4th Thursday

• 8 - 10 a.m. Preoperative and Postoperative Conference
• 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Staff / Invited Guest Lectures or Case Based Discussions

We also have twice daily laboratory studies at WRNMMC. Formal drilling and laboratory instruction occurs twice per year in two all day sessions.

Simulation sessions include:

• Pediatric airway foreign body
• ENT bootcamp prior to taking call
• Negotiation

Call responsibilities at the Main Site include patient care coverage at WRNMMC and Suburban Hospital. Call teams consist of a junior resident, a senior resident, and a faculty member. Residents can expect to take call every 4-6 days, depending on the rotation. Trauma call is shared, rotating every other month, with the Oral Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) service.

Our facility has a long-standing mission to Honduras which service as a capstone exercise. Chief residents travel to Honduras on an official SOUTHCOM mission to provide care to 200+ Honduran nationals. Typically, over 80 complex ear and head and neck cancer operations are performed utilizing limited resources.

Our program also hosts periodic sessions that reviews topics that are relevant to the unique challenges and requirements of military medicine including: military officership responsibilities, overview of the Military Health System, role of otolaryngologists in combat zones, fitness for duty assessments, military medical research priorities, and humanitarian efforts.

Temporal Bone Course 

This 2-day course includes lectures followed by dedicated lab time for a series of temporal bone dissections.

Microvascular Course 

This week-long course at the USUHS is dedicated to detailed instruction on microvascular surgery. It includes live training and dissection. Graduates leave skilled in microvascular surgery.

Simulation within our program is aimed for residents to gain comfort and familiarity with procedures prior to advanced responsibility. Residents participate in various simulations throughout the year, including airway management with laryngoscopy and bronchoscopy instrument training. Non-clinical skills such as negotiation and difficulty discussions with families and other staff are practiced via simulation.

Our program incorporates lessons from the Leadership Education and Development 2.0 (LEAD 2.0) curriculum into our didactic offerings on a quarterly basis. The curriculum is composed of eight core topics, each with well-defined goals and objectives: leadership fundamentals (leadership styles, definitions, etc.), mentoring and coaching, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, feedback, managing effectively, building an effective team, and implementing change). Teaching methods are interactive and based on the Kolb Learning Cycle and Adult Learning Theory.

Residents have a three to four-month long research blocks administering projects, writing manuscripts, and preparing presentations. Residents on research blocks are expected to provide updates on their projects’ progress during dedicated quarterly sessions.

Residents receive education on study design, literature review, manuscript writing, and critical evaluation of the literature, with opportunities to receive additional education on writing protocols, handling animals, performing statistics, and developing code.

Our residents have been productive at earning oral presentations at national meetings, participating in multi-institutional research teams. Our residents have access to graduate medical education-targeted grants to support their research. Many of our residents and faculty have recently won locoregional, military, and national awards for their research. In addition, many faculty have been successful garnering grants for bench, animal, and clinical projects, and residents regularly participate in performing these studies. 

Our program utilizes the Common Core Curriculum for Quality & Safety (C3QS), which provides a foundational understanding of quality improvement and patient safety (QIPS) principles. Aside from monthly Morbidity & Mortality conferences, residents participate in quarterly QIPS sessions, where project status updates are provided, and future projects are proposed and explored.

Professional development opportunities are embedded within many of our quarterly conferences that cover military unique studies, research, quality improvement, and leadership topics. Each of our chief residents also gains practical experience as they serve in one of three leadership roles: administrative chief, academic chief, and liaison chief. In addition, there are numerous NCC committees, as well as a House staff Council that have positions available for resident representatives.

• Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, D.C. (CNMC)
• Suburban Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland (SH)
• Kaiser Permanente Medical Center Northern Virginia, McLean, Virginia (KP)
• MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (MDA)
• University of Maryland/Shock Trauma, Baltimore, Maryland (UMD)
• Inova Fairfax, Fairfax, Virginia (INOVA)

Medical students are encouraged to rotate with us! USUHS 3rd year medical students may rotate with us as part of their elective option during their surgery clerkship. Sub-intern and elective rotations are available for 4th year medical students. If you are interviewing, please join us between April and September. Please email us 4-6 months prior to your anticipated rotation to allow for us to coordinate with you,

Interview Guidance: Prior to interviews, we ask for a copy of your CV and personal statement. Interviews are conducted during your rotation with us, but we can coordinate a telephone interview if you cannot visit us. You will interview with the Program Director and Associate Program Director. We look for a variety of characteristics in our applicants, including fund of knowledge, scholarship, and professional citizenship. We also listen closely to our residents’ experience with each applicant, especially their ability to work well within the team. For more information on interviewing, please contact dha.ncr.walter-reed-med-ctr.list.ncc-oto@health.mil.

Program graduates take the American Board of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery board exam. This exam is offered annually, and there is a written and oral portion. To become fully board certified, applicants are eligible to take the certification exam within seven years following graduation. To be eligible to take specialty board exams, you must complete otolaryngology residency by June of your final academic year. To be eligible to take oral boards, you must pass written boards and engage in a case collection process with required minimum. This is a newer transition, and more details will be forthcoming.

WRNMMC is a clerkship site for USUHS, so we frequently have 3rd year medical students rotating with us as an elective option during their surgery clerkship; our residents are their primary teachers. In addition, throughout June – September, we have several 4th year medical students present for audition rotations. Physician Assistant (PA) students and transitional, anesthesia, and general surgery also rotate through our department and provide opportunities for near peer teaching.

In addition to clinical teaching opportunities, our residents are key contributors to our educational efforts and routinely provide content during all the curricular components noted above. They also have opportunities to teach during locoregional and national conferences throughout their training.

Residents are exposed to the full breadth of the specialty and our program includes fellowship trained staff in:

• Comprehensive 
• Head & Neck Oncology
• Laryngology
• Neurotology
• Pediatrics
• Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
• Rhinology

Mentoring is traditionally defined as the process whereby an experienced person (the mentor) guides another individual (the mentee) in the development of their own ideas, learning, and professional development. Our program currently has a formal mentorship program focused on all aspects of otolaryngology training, with particular attention to clinical judgment, professionalism, work-life integration, and well-being.

Residents are paired with an individual faculty based on shared interests. Formal lunches occur on a periodic basis and informal meetings may occur at any time at the discretion of the mentor/mentee. The mentorship director evaluates satisfaction with mentor/mentee pairings on an annual basis and requests for change are considered based on availability.

Our program appreciates the multitude of resources that have been developed by the institution to support a holistic view on wellness, including physical, mental, spiritual, social, intellectual, and occupational. In addition, we have quarterly wellness events termed Fifth Tuesday Fun. In the morning hours, residents have free time to accomplish many of life’s needs that must take place during business hours. In the afternoon, we have a joint event with residents and faculty. Some examples of past activities include rock climbing, annual national zoo run, cruise on the Potomac and hiking. Our department also hosts regular hail and farewell events and holiday parties throughout the year.