The Neurosurgery Residency Program at Albany Medical Center is diverse and recognizes that each resident has different career goals. This program maintains high standards in excellence to produce the finest surgeons and graduates them in positions that aid them in achieving their career goals. The residents in this program have been self- driven individuals who strive to be successful surgeons while attaining the highest standard of quality in care delivery, education, and research initiatives.
We are currently accepting two residents per year; the residency program is a 7-year duration. The program consists of a comprehensive curriculum to provide our residents with educational knowledge and experience to be successful.
PGY 1 - The first year consists of 3 months of Neurosurgery, 1 month of Endovascular Neurosurgery, and 8 months of structured rotations to include Surgical and Neurological Critical Care, Trauma, Neuroradiology, Neuro-oncology, ENT, Plastic Surgery and Emergency Medicine. Rotation schedules are re-evaluated annually as determined by the program director.
PGY 2 & 3 - These years are structured around clinical neurosurgery, with rotations in the operating rooms, angiography suite, outpatient clinic, as well as caring for patients on the wards and ICUs.
PGY 4 – During this elective year, residents can pursue either clinical or research tracts. With the clinical tract, they are encouraged to participate in rotations in a subspecialty of neurosurgery or pursue an enfolded fellowship. We have accredited fellowships in Neuro-endovascular and Neuro-Critical Care open to 4th year residents. For those residents interested in pursuing clinical or translational research, there are options for collaborating with multiple regional partners within the Neurosciences Institute (Brain-Computer Interface initiative), the New York Neural Stem Cell Institute, the Nanotechnology Consortium, the biomechanical lab at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the epidemiology department at the University at Albany.
PGY 5 & 6 – These years are dedicated to operative micro-neurosurgery, with cases covering the entire range of cranial and spinal pathology in both adult and pediatric patients.
PGY 6 - is the Chief Resident year, where in addition to operative responsibilities the residents are expected to run the inpatient service, and to function as leaders for the resident team. They are responsible for supervising the call schedule and for monitoring content presented in didactic conferences.
PGY 7 – The last year is dedicated to either obtaining subspecialized training in a branch of neurosurgery or gaining greater responsibility in managing the general neurosurgical service. PGY-7 residents may pursue the CAST-accredited Spine Fellowship, Endovascular Fellowship or Neuro-critical care fellowship.
Alternatively, the resident may rotate with various faculty members to obtain a focus on subspecialty fields, such as pediatrics, skull base and functional neurosurgery.
We currently have CAST-accredited fellowships in Neuro-endovascular, Spine Surgery, and Stereotactic Functional Neurosurgery. Additionally, we have an ACGME-accredited Neuro-Critical Care Fellowship. There are also rotations available in pediatric neurosurgery, and neuro-oncology/skull base surgery, with additional advanced skull base lab dissections. All aspects of neurosurgical practice, including pre-hospital evaluation, in-hospital assessment and treatment, and post-discharge follow-up, are included in the training program. Historically, over 2000 operative procedures are performed each year, exposing the resident to the entire spectrum of neurosurgical disorders. All residents take the written examination of the American Board of Neurological Surgery yearly for self-assessment and are required to pass the exam for credit prior to their chief residency year. We have had a 100% pass rate on first time examinations for credit for at least the past 20 years.
In addition, the residents will be exposed to state-of-the-art equipment including high-definition operative microscopes, as well as an array of neuronavigational platforms, such as the BrainLab and Stealth systems. For spinal navigation, residents will also utilize the intraoperative CT scanner as well as the mobile O-Arm. The ROSA ONE Brain is a robotic platform used for minimally invasive epilepsy and functional operations, including laser ablation of both epileptogenic foci and tumors. Residents will also gain experience using the most sophisticated neuro-endoscopic equipment for expanded endonasal approaches, ventricular endoscopy, and treatment of craniosynostosis. The angiography suite is equipped with the latest biplane angiographic technology, as well as many specialized catheters and devices for treating aneurysms and ischemic strokes.
The neurosurgery faculty has established robust clinical programs that bring highly specialized care to all aspects of neurosurgery. Noteworthy program enhancements have been facilitated by the interdisciplinary approach to diseases fostered by the Neurosciences Institute at Albany Med and include the following:
- Cerebrovascular/Endovascular Surgery
- Functional or Restorative Neurosurgery
- Neuro-Oncology
- Pediatric Neurosurgery
- Skull-Base Surgery
- Stereotactic Radiosurgery
- Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
- Complex Spine Surgery
- Epilepsy Monitoring Unit and Epilepsy Surgery
- Traumatic Brain and Spinal Cord Injury
- Brachial Plexus and Peripheral Nerve Surgery