Summa Health System-NEOMED Program

Program Identity & Fit

Summa Health/NEOMED is a university-affiliated, community-based plastic surgery program situated within one of Ohio's largest integrated health systems, anchored at a Level 1 trauma Akron campus with a five-county regional catchment across Summit, Medina, Portage, Stark, and Wayne counties. The program draws on Summa's broader institutional infrastructure—including a Clinical Research Center, DISCOVER Center for investigator-initiated protocols, and Translational Research Center—giving residents access to structured research support alongside clinical training in a general-surgery-rich environment (Summa's General Surgery program, established 1930, is the oldest accredited surgical program in Ohio). The identity blends academic rigor with hands-on, community-integrated practice rather than a purely quaternary referral model, and the system's recent transition into the HATCo/General Catalyst partnership signals an institutional emphasis on innovation and proactive, tech-enabled care delivery. The program appears to value residents comfortable operating within a community hospital culture that nonetheless maintains academic and research scaffolding.