Message from Executive Program Director

Vijay K. Maker, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.R.C.S(c)
Program Director in Surgery
UIC, Metropolitan Group Hospitals Residency in General Surgery
Professor of Surgery and Family Practice
Chairman, Department of Surgery, Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center

To the General Surgery Residency at University of Illinois, Metropolitan Group Hospitals residency.  A famous saying about a surgeon was that when he was asked to name 2 good surgeons in town, he had hard time naming the second one.   Departing from that classic surgical humility I will be straight forward in relating to you some of the basic fundamentals of our program, especially for the past ten years. 

The Program’s main objective and focus is to teach clinical excellence in-patient care rooted in the principals of cognition and meta-cognition.  We believe strongly that this is indeed the contemporary definition of an academic surgeon.  We challenge every single day, faculty and residents alike, to excel and be the very best we can.

Excellence is taught on the basic six core competencies of patient care, medical knowledge, practice based learning and improvement, interpersonal communication, professionalism and systems based practice with the seventh competency of technical supremacy.  The Program puts tremendous value on constantly developing objective tools to measure every aspect of surgical excellence in all seven competencies as we believe that “one cannot be measured.”  Residents as well as the faculty are measured on the same yardsticks and continue to force each other to excel.  With continuous shortening of the half life of surgical knowledge and information a major emphasis is put on lifelong learning.  This is accomplished equally by self directed learning, faculty as well as resident directed didactics, and compulsory learning objectives. Program uses SCORE guidelines, among others as the minimum requirement for true level adjusted 5 year curriculum. 

Last, but not least, the program is blessed with a city of world class status.  Chicago is a city of unsurpassed beauty sitting like a jewel on Lake Michigan and the home to internationally acclaimed orchestra, architecture, theatre, and art museums.  And yes of course we have some fantastic days in summer and fall.  Running, biking, health clubs,  with world class restaurants are within walking distance from all four institutions so that you may rejuvenate our spirits to work and study at an excelled pace.