Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Permian Basin Program

Program Identity & Fit

TTUHSC Permian Basin's General Surgery Residency is a community-based, safety-net program in Odessa/Midland, Texas, built around two teaching hospitals (a Level II and a Level III trauma center) serving a rapidly growing, medically underserved regional population of over 1.2 million with no Level I trauma center within 120 miles. Training is delivered by community faculty across a broad breadth of subspecialty exposure (trauma/acute care, HPB, pediatric, vascular, colorectal, minimally invasive), emphasizing hands-on operative volume and independent-practice readiness over structured research output. The program's stated mission centers on producing ABS-certification-eligible general surgeons prepared for either independent community practice or fellowship, explicitly framed around expanding surgical workforce capacity in an underserved oil-producing region. Small size (13 residents, two categorical spots/year) and a mix of MD/DO and military-affiliated trainees suggest a program that values adaptability, service orientation, and comfort practicing with high autonomy in a resource-stretched setting.