Massachusetts General Hospital/HMS MD Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Residency Training Program

The Massachusetts General Hospital offers an advanced education program in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS). This integrated clinical and didactic program is designed to meet the certification requirements of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. The Program is fully accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association and is affiliated with the Harvard School of Dental Medicine.

Background and Setting

Mass General residents in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery become part of one of the strongest and longest running legacies in the history of medical and dental education.

Massachusetts General Hospital was chartered in 1811 as a private, voluntary institution. From the outset, the Hospital's primary mission in caring for the sick was defined, and simultaneously, a strong emphasis was placed on its educational mission. The first patient was admitted to the General Hospital in 1821. The training program for surgical "House Pupils" has continued to evolve since 1830 when the first House Physician and House Surgeon were appointed.

On July 17, 1867, the Harvard Corporation established the first dental school in the country affiliated with a university and medical school. A year later, the Trustees of Massachusetts General Hospital in their annual report noted the addition of a Dental Service in association with the Dental School of Harvard College. The Dental School became established in the North Grove Street building of the hospital and was named "The Dental Infirmary of Massachusetts General Hospital." Harvard Dental School remained at this site until 1909.

Massachusetts General Hospital

Massachusetts General Hospital today has more than 900 beds. About 70 percent of them are normally occupied by surgical patients. There are more than 550,000 patient visits yearly to the ambulatory care clinics of the Hospital and more than 75,000 visits to the the Emergency Ward. The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Service admits approximately 700 patients each year and cares for about 10,000 outpatients. Additionally, the Service sees about 2,500 Emergency Ward patients annually. The full scope of the specialty is taught within the context of a combined M.D./General Surgery Program.

Philosophy of the OMFS Residency Program

The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Service is guided philosophically by the traditional aims of the world renowned General Surgical Services of Massachusetts General Hospital. The educational experience is progressive, offering increasing responsibilities as residents proceed through the program. The general philosophy of the Service is defined as follows:

In its internship and residency program, the General Surgical Services of Massachusetts General Hospital provide a broad education in the science and art of surgery. One of the keys to the House Officer's appreciation of the principles and scientific bases of surgery, as well as to his learning the art of surgery, is the properly placed assumption of responsibility. The program is generally designed to increase the responsibilities as rapidly as the House Officer is able to assume them. In this progression, however, the House Officer's primary obligation is to the care of his/her patients, which is also consistent with his/her personal primary goal of a surgical education in depth. Effort is made to maintain a program which is sufficiently flexible to meet the individual aptitude, talents, and needs of the developing surgeon.

Three residents are selected annually for the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Service House Staff. Appointments are offered to highly qualified individuals who are committed to a career of excellence in patient care, teaching, and research. The matched applicants are accepted into the Mass General Hospital/Harvard Medical School OMFS six year residency program. Tuition to the Harvard Medical School for the 2015-2016 academic year is $55,850. Tuition is the responsibility of the resident. Financial aid is available through the Medical School. A one-year preliminary OMS internship year is also offered.

All applicants must be qualified graduates of a dental school accredited by the American Dental Association (ADA). The MGH OMFS Residency Program is six years in duration and leads to qualification for certification by the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Each resident completes the requirements for the M.D. degree at the Harvard Medical School and trains for a total of 16 months as a Mass General resident in General Surgery.

Remembering Walter C. Guralnick, DMD

It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that our good friend and longtime colleague, Walter C. Guralnick, DMD, chief emeritus of the Mass General Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, passed away on September 6, 2017 at the age of 100. He will be remembered for his visionary work in the field of OMFS, his remarkable passion for sharing his expertise with generations of students and for his commitment to helping patients who couldn’t afford dental care. His career spanned 70 years and he was working full-time in the OMFS residency program and supporting the hospital. He will be remembered for the many contributions he made to the department and hospital. Mass General is a better, stronger and kinder place because Dr. Guralnick was a part of our family for many years. He was a personal friend to many, including Maria Troulis, DDS, MS, current chief of OMFS. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family and friends.

Learn more about this career and success in this Boston Globe article.

The curriculum in the Mass General Hospital/Harvard Medical School (HMS) OMFS Residency Program fosters valuable knowledge and skill acquisition for each resident, while gradually increasing in complexity and depth. This allows for a seamless transition from intern to chief resident, and supports the increasing responsibility found in each progressive year of the curriculum.

The curriculum encompasses all six years of the OMFS program, as explained in detail below.

Year One

The first year of the program is spent as an intern at Mass General, an experience modified to enable participation in some of the pre-clerkship Pathways course sessions such as Principle of Medicine and Essentials I. At the beginning of the intern year, you will participate in the Mass General General Surgery Boot Camp, which includes training in:

• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (CLS)
• Advanced Trauma Life Support (TLS)
• Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 
• Quality/Safety

Other learnings that you acquire during your first year include:

• A Mass General-taught course in physical diagnosis, to ensure excellent care of the patients
• A mandatory didactic curriculum that will include lectures on pathophysiology (cardiology, nephrology, pulmonology and neurology)
• Broad surgical and OMFS-related topics which include simulated surgery and a head/neck anatomy course with cadavers

Lectures, pre-clerkship Pathways course sessions, and other components of the OMFS residency curriculum that count toward the MD degree require approval by the HMS Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee. Additionally, a regular didactic program of hospital rounds, seminars and conferences is supplemented by monthly grand rounds, morbidity and mortality conferences, and a monthly pathology conference.

Year Two

As an intern, you will join in the second year of Pathways at HMS as a way of making the transition to
the Program for Clinical Effectiveness (PCE) course and the entire PCE year. Core clerkships at HMS include:

• Medicine
• Surgery
• OB/Gyn
• Pediatrics
• Psychiatry
• Neurology
• Radiology

Year Three

United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE) Step I and II will be taken during the second and third years at HMS. You will then fulfill the remaining requirements for the MD degree the following year, with slight modifications as you will have already completed a surgical internship in OMFS (e.g. interns are not required to do a sub-internship).

Interns will also participate in two Objective Structural Clinical Exams (OSCEs) per year.

Additionally, during the final year of medical school at HMS, you will complete:

• A sub-internship in the Department of Medicine or MassGeneral Hospital for Children
• Four months of electives
• A four-month anesthesia course

Year Four

During the year after HMS, you will start a full year on the General Surgery service at Mass General. You will be assigned to PGY-2 level rotations in the following order:

• Surgical intensive care unit (ICU)
• Trauma service
• Emergency department
• General surgery rotations

Year Five

The fifth year in the program is a split year, with time spent in general surgery rotations at a PGY-3 level and OMFS. You will gain familiarity in Ear Nose and Throat (ENT)/head and neck surgery and plastic surgery by these service rotations. On the OMFS service, there will be a focus on:

• Facial trauma
• Dentoalveolar surgery including implantology and outpatient anesthesia
• A one-month rotation on pediatric anesthesia

Year Six

The final, or chief resident, year includes a rotation at the Mass General OMFS Program as well as Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH), which is a major teaching affiliate of HMS and the Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM). Time on the plastic and oral surgery service at BCH allows for a broadened and varied clinical exposure in craniofacial as well as cleft/lip and palate surgery.

As it is the intent of the program to foster and develop both well-trained practicing oral and maxillofacial surgeons and surgeon-scholars who pursue academic careers and research, residents are encouraged to undertake investigative work. However, clinical demands usually require for the use of elective time to carry out significant research projects. Teaching experience is also gained in the context of the program as the resident staff participates in teaching third- and fourth-year students both at HSDM and during student externships at Mass General. All residents maintain appointments as clinical fellows at HSDM.

Residents will also receive a limited dental license during the first year of the program. It is the responsibility of the resident to ensure that this license is renewed on a yearly basis. Residents are encouraged to obtain a full Massachusetts dental license prior to returning to the program from medical school. Once they graduate and before beginning General Surgery rotation, it is required that all residents obtain a limited Massachusetts medical license as well as both current dental and medical licenses.

To be considered for the OMFS residency program, candidates must have graduated or be on track to graduate from a dental school accredited by the American Dental Association (ADA). Additionally, it must have similar rigor and depth as the curriculum at Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM) and the entire pre-clerkship phase of the curriculum must be taken together with the medical students. This is to ensure a baseline of comparability with the Harvard Medical School (HMS) students, who likewise share the pre-clerkship curriculum with dental students enrolled in the DMD program at HSDM. Exceptions are considered in circumstances of academic excellence and other noteworthy personal achievement.

Application Documents

Application to the program is made by completing the appropriate forms provided by the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) Postdoctoral Application Support Service (PASS). Applicants should obtain the necessary forms by contacting PASS directly, using the information below.

ADEA PASS Customer Service Representatives are available:
Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (Eastern time zone)
Email: passinfo@passweb.org
Phone: 617-612-2065

In addition to the PASS application, applicants must submit the following supporting documents, keeping the corresponding criteria in mind. (Note that all documents can be uploaded to the PASS application):

• Official undergraduate (college) transcript with verification of grade point average (GPA)
• Official dental school transcript (must be in high dental class standing, usually top 10%)
• Score for Part 1 of the National Board Dental Examination (NBDE)
• Score for the Comprehensive Basic Science Examination (CBSE)
• Copy of CV/resume
• 2 in. x 2 in. headshot
• 3 letters of recommendation

Verification of successful completion of dental school will be required before commencement of the residency program.

Dates and Timeline

All applications and supporting documents must be received by September 1, 2018 to be considered for an interview. The Selection Committee will only consider applications that are complete with all credentials received by the published deadline. Interviews are granted by invitation of the Selection Committee and will be conducted on November 2, 2018 for acceptance into the program beginning July 1, 2019.

Selection of successful applicants will generally be made by participation in the National Dental Matching Program (NDMP). All applicants are responsible for registering with the NDMP at 416-977-3431 or www.natmatch.com.

Questions About the Process

OMFS Residency Program Coordinator
Massachusetts General Hospital
55 Fruit Street, Warren 1201
Boston, MA 02114
Email: omfsresidency@partners.org
Phone: 617-724-4096
Fax: 617-726-2814

Dr. Richard John Tannyhill, III
OMFS Residency Program Director
Email: RJTannyhill@mgh.harvard.edu

*Transfer or non-categorical resident