The department retains faculty with expertise in stroke, epilepsy, movement disorders, neuromuscular disorders, multiple sclerosis, headache, neuro-ophthalmology, sleep medicine, neuro-critical care, general neurology and neuro-imaging. Faculty oversee clinical and research programs in these subspecialties. Our residency program offers individual mentorship and guidance to foster well-trained and proficient clinicians qualified to practice neurology or to move into clinical or research fellowships.

First Year Neurology Residency (PGY-2)

During the inpatient experience, residents care for patients on the stroke and general neurology services.

Initial resident exposure to inpatient consult neurology occurs during this year. On this rotation, the resident is paired with a senior resident. The resident conducts consults on inpatients and emergency department patients. Within the emergency department, residents assist in managing patients with acute stroke who may be candidates for interventions including intravenous TPA and/or thrombectomy.

A two week rotation in neurocritical care medicine provides residents with exposure to the management of patients with mass occupying lesions, intracerebral hemorrhage, spinal cord disorders, acute neuromuscular emergencies and neuro-trauma.

During the outpatient subspecialty rotation, residents evaluate patients in clinics for stroke, multiple sclerosis, movement disorders and neuromuscular diseases. The two week epilepsy rotation serves as an introduction to management of seizure disorders and refractory epilepsy. Residents attend outpatient epilepsy clinics, round in the inpatient epilepsy monitoring unit and learn the basics of EEG interpretation during this rotation.

Second Year Neurology Residency (PGY-3)

During PGY-3, greater emphasis is placed on subspecialty neurologic care and consultation neurology. The resident becomes familiar with the diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of neurologic disorders and becomes competent to independently assess and devise interventions for these disorders.

While rotating on the consult service, the resident assesses patients on inpatient services and in the emergency room at UF Health Jacksonville.

During the neuro-ophthalmology rotation, residents see a variety of patients with eye motility, optic nerve and pupillary disorders in the outpatient neuro-ophthalmology clinic. Residents also provide consultative services to inpatients with neuro-ophthalmologic issues.

During the psychiatry rotation, the resident is a member of the psychiatry consult team. Residents have opportunities to evaluate patients on inpatient services at UF Health College of Medicine – Jacksonville who are experiencing acute psychiatric issues and emergencies.

The one-week neuropathology rotation is a component of overall neuropathology education, which also includes neuropathology interactive lectures, muscle and nerve biopsy conferences and brain cutting sessions.

The one-week research rotation aims to make the resident competent to write a research study proposal and complete the study over the course of his/her training. In addition, the rotation provides education on the role and responsibilities of a site primary investigator in a multi-center clinical trial. Following completion of this rotation, the resident has opportunities to attend periodic research seminars throughout the remainder of his/her training. Residents also participate, as sub-investigators, in departmental clinical trials.

The neurodegenerative diseases rotation is outpatient oriented. This rotation incorporates exposure to patients with movement disorders and demyelinating diseases. Under the supervision of our movement disorder specialist, residents evaluate and treat patients with Parkinson’s disease, Parkinsonian syndromes, dystonia and hyperkinetic disorders. In addition residents have exposure to Deep Brain Stimulation and botulinum toxin treatment of dystonia. Under the supervision of our multiple sclerosis attendings, residents have opportunities to diagnose and to treat patients with demyelinating disorders of the central nervous system.

The department of neurology in conjunction with pulmonary medicine manages a Sleep Center within the Neuroscience Institute. During the sleep medicine rotation, residents learn fundamental interpretation of polysomnography. In addition, residents assist in care of patients with a variety of sleep disorders in the outpatient Sleep Center.

Residents continue to have an outpatient continuity clinic. During this year residents provide care to patients with general outpatient neurologic issues and also patients with disease specific disorders.

For one month, residents attend a neuro-anatomy/neurophysiology course at the UF College of Medicine in Gainesville, FL. During mornings, residents audit lectures focused on central and peripheral neuro-anatomy and nervous system physiology. In the afternoons, residents serve as teaching assistants for laboratory sessions that are attended by medical students.

Third Year Neurology Residency (PGY-4)

The goal of PGY-4 is to broaden knowledge about common and uncommon neurologic disorders. By the end of this year, residents are expected to be competent to practice neurology independently. Emphasis is placed on critically reviewing neurologic literature in order to optimize care of patients.

The resident also develops supervisory and teaching skills, as they manage the inpatient neurology team and help to organize departmental conferences. Residents also actively engage in team-based quality improvement initiatives.

During the neurosurgery rotation, the resident is exposed to a wide variety of neurosurgical patients through the neurosurgery consult service and the outpatient clinic. Consultations are conducted in the UF Health Jacksonville Level I trauma center. This provides residents the unique exposure to acute brain and spinal cord trauma cases.

During the psychiatry rotation, the resident is a member of the psychiatry consult team. Residents have opportunities to evaluate patients on inpatient and outpatient services at UF Health Jacksonville who are experiencing acute psychiatric issues and emergencies, as well as chronic psychiatric conditions.

During the sleep medicine rotation, residents amplify their ability to interpret polysomnography. In addition, residents gain further experience providing care to patients with a variety of sleep disorders in the outpatient Sleep Center.

The neurorehabilitation rotation is performed at Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital, in Jacksonville. The neurology resident assesses patients with neurologic disorders and works under the supervision of a physiatrist to devise and monitor rehabilitation care plans. The resident attends his/her patients’ team care meetings with other rehabilitation specialists and assesses patients in a driving evaluation clinic and in a pain clinic.

During elective time residents have the opportunity to explore, in more detail, a specific interest. These electives allow the senior resident to develop an educational curriculum that meets his or her future interests and goals. Residents can elect to re-rotate through any of the core rotations noted above. Additional electives offered include:

• Stroke/cerebrovascular disease
• Vascular neurosurgery
• Multiple sclerosis
• Movement disorders
• Pain medicine
• Behavioral neurology
• Neuro-oncology
• Stroke: systems of care
• Office-based neurology
• Medical administration

In conjunction with the program director, residents can create an elective that suits an educational need not outlined above. Opportunities to spend time conducting research are also available.

Conferences

Teaching conferences are incorporated into the curriculum. These conferences complement and enhance the learning experience that is provided by resident clinical service.

• Clinical Neurology - once per week
• Epilepsy/EEG interpretation - once per week
• Neuroanatomy/Neurolocalization - once per month for half the year
• Neuroscience Grand Rounds - once per month
• Quality Improvement - once per quarter
• Neuroradiology Case Conference - once per month
• Neuromuscular Rounds - three times per month
• Nerve Muscle Biopsy Conference - once per quarter
• Movement Disorder Clinical Conference - once per month
• Medical-Legal/Ethics Conference - once per quarter
• Journal Club - twice per month
• Neurology Board Review - twice per month
• Interdisciplinary Stroke Case Conference - once per month

Residents receive training in managing neurological emergencies, breaking bad news and patient safety at the UF Center for Simulation Education and Safety Research (CSESaR)