Old Dominion University Program

Program Identity & Fit

This is an academic general surgery program (affiliated with Eastern Virginia Medical School's clinical enterprise through Sentara Norfolk General) built around a Level I trauma center, a freestanding children's hospital (CHKD), a VA medical center, and multiple community-based Sentara hospitals, giving residents broad exposure across trauma, acute care surgery, bariatrics, surgical oncology, pediatric surgery, vascular, and endocrine surgery. The program structures graduated autonomy through hospital-specific roles (senior residents running trauma and emergency general surgery services, chief residents managing bariatric and professorial/oncology services) and integrates a dedicated one- to two-year resident research block, indicating research is a structured, expected component rather than optional. Simulation training is heavily institutionalized via the large Sentara Center for Healthcare Simulation and Immersive Learning, including FLS certification, reflecting a deliberate emphasis on procedural skill-building before clinical application. The program frames its mission around producing "surgeon leaders" across a "wide variety of surgical specialties," suggesting it values broad clinical competence and leadership over narrow subspecialization from day one.