Welcome to the Combined Internal Medicine-Emergency Medicine
Residency Training Program

Richmond VAMC

Mission Statement

• Establish and nurture an EM-IM training program of distinction
• Goal of producing exceptional physician leaders of clinical, administrative, and academic medicine.
• Equal emphasis on emergency, inpatient and ambulatory patient care so that a graduating resident will be highly-skilled and adept at practicing in any combination of settings.
• Unique strength is affiliation with the Veterans Affairs, the largest health-care network in the country with its extensive educational and research programs, including quality and patient safety initiatives.

About the Program

The combined EM-IM residency program at VCU and Richmond VAMC (RICVAMC) began training in July, 2011. We are the 12th IM-EM program in the country, and accept two residents/year.

The program is essentially an expansion of the existing IM and EM residencies at VCU, with additional emphasis of the role of Richmond VA Medical Center. IM Residents currently spend part of their training at RICVAMC, and the EM-IM program will result in EM-rotations at RICVAMC, both in the ED, as well in other clinical settings, such as Anesthesia and Mental Health.

Our program grew out of the realization that there is going to be an ever increasing need for dual trained physicians in the changing landscape of modern healthcare. Graduates of EM-IM programs have traditionally accepted academic positions and a growing number are now able to utilize both aspects of their training. An example would be management of ED Observation Units that are seen as a way to mitigate long wait times and ED overcrowding. Other career options available include research, subspecialty training in Internal Medicine or Emergency Medicine, residency directors and departmental chairs

Our program’s clinical training is at both VCU Medical Center and McGuire VA Medical Center. Both sites benefit from excellent full time teaching faculty and offer unique patient care settings. The Department of Emergency Medicine has several EM/IM and EM/IM/Critical care faculty who will provide outstanding mentorship to the program residents.

Early in the first year of training, residents pick a specific “track” they may be interested in (Pediatric EM, Toxicology, Hospital Medicine, etc.) and are assigned a mentor for that track who will help pick subsequent electives and shape resident's career.