The IU School of Medicine Indianapolis Psychiatry Residency follows a four-year progression that includes training through both academic and clinical settings. All residents participate in robust clinical rotations and didactic lectures; our fourth-year residents tailor their curriculum through an array of elective offerings spanning the wide variety of clinical, research and other academic opportunities in the department and the larger IU School of Medicine, itself the largest allopathic medical school in the United States. For those interested in a career in academic medicine, residents also can participate in the education and research tracks with project time built into later training years.
Throughout training, all residents receive a protected weekly academic half-day to attend Grand Rounds, business meetings, journal club and didactics. The Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds presenters (psychiatrists, neuroscientists, IU School of Medicine research and clinical faculty as well as other disciplines) are expert scientists and clinicians from all over the world.
The weekly Resident Business Meeting (with lunch provided!) is led by our chief resident and provides an opportunity for residents, as a group, to discuss their progress through our program, ask and address questions or concerns as they relate to rotations, call schedule, and other topics. Monthly guest speakers include the chair of the Department of Psychiatry as well as the program and associate program directors.
Our resident and faculty led journal club covers a variety of topics — for example, forensic psychiatry, research, neuroscience, quality improvement and academic medicine. Didactics follows Journal Club and, depending on the topic, are grouped by training year. Didactics cover the breadth of psychiatry with a curriculum designed and continuously refined — with resident input — to meet the needs of trainees as they move toward board certification and independent practice.
Residents are also strongly encouraged to attend the weekly Addiction Psychiatry Symposium, the Consultation-Liaison Fellowship Didactics, and other opportunities as occur. Research track residents participate in the weekly Institute of Psychiatric Research Seminars while education track residents contribute to medical student and other departmental educational initiatives.