Welcome to Our Residency Program
The top-ranked Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery residency program at Vanderbilt University Medical Center is consistently recognized for producing world-class surgeons. We create exceptional clinicians and nurture curious minds while providing all our residents with the resources to become outstanding community or academic leaders. We value individuality, diversity, and teamwork; and, we take pride in our unique culture—which respects resident autonomy, emphasizes collegiality, and prizes efficiency.
We accept 5-6 residents into our program:
- 4 or 5 in a five-year clinical track
- 1 in a seven-year physician-scientist training program (VTOPS) (which includes two years of protected research time).
Program Leadership:
- Department Chair: Eben Rosenthal, MD
- Residency Program Director: Priyesh Patel, MD
- Associate Program Director: Robert Sinard, MD
- Vice Chair for Research: Alex Gelbard, MD
- VTOPS Director: Justin Turner, MD, PhD
- Director of Resident Didactic Curriculum: Amy Whigham, MD, MS, HPEd
Program Highlights:
- 6 months of otolaryngology during PGY-1 (intern) year
- > 40 surgical faculty in all subspecialties
- > 4 months of dedicated research time for clinical track residents (PGY-3)
- 3 hours of protected resident education/academic time per week
- Single pool night float call system
- Unique Leadership and Innovation Training program
- Proven track record of successful fellowship matches across all specialties
- Multiple dedicated courses including yearly temporal bone and endoscopic sinus dissection courses
- Department sponsored resident social and academic activities to promote a healthy work-life balance
- Numerous basic science and clinical research opportunities with resident support for attendance at national and international meetings.