Graduate Medical Education University of Texas Southwestern--Austin Internal Medicine Program

I want to welcome you to our home page and invite you to consider this program for your residency education in Internal Medicine. Our goal is to provide you with enough information to make an informed choice about your potential residency in Austin. We have experienced many changes over the last 10 years, and we anticipate many more changes as we enjoy the growth and development of the program into a regional academic program as our Central Texas population grows and as we add specialty faculty and research faculty.

The Austin Internal Medicine residency has been in existence since 1972. The residency program was previously a community based program in a city hospital (University Medical Center at Brackenridge) that functioned (and continues in this role) as the hospital safety net provider for the uninsured in Travis county. Prior to 2005, we were sponsored by Seton Healthcare Network, part of Ascension Health. In 2005, we had the privilege of being sponsored by the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston with continued Seton Network support for our fiscal needs. Because of shifting priorities, the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston no longer sponsors this program and is concentrating on the recovery from Hurricane Ike and the transformation of the Galveston campus. Our new sponsoring university is the University of Texas at Southwestern Medical School, effective November 2009. Through this sponsorship we plan to further develop research on this campus and to create the optimal environment for medical education.

The choice of a residency is personal and complex. Many factors go into that choice. Geography, needs and desires of your family or partner, program size, number of hospitals, patient population, resident autonomy, residency and faculty reputation, educational excellence, and potential fellowship and employment opportunities are all important factors in this choice. Some also choose a program by "feel" from the interview, after understanding the basics of the programs chosen for interview. We are hopeful that these web pages provide you with enough information to understand our curriculum, our faculty, a bit about life in Austin, and the best resource of all, our residents.

As Program Director, I cannot express enough positive things about our residents. Their respect for diversity and their cultural openness they express by the way they work and care for patients is immediately apparent. In addition, the residents bring a strong work ethic, a true sense of responsibility for the patients they serve, and a desire to learn and grow into the best they can be. I am continually amazed by the growth and development of our residents during their time here. They grow as clinicians but also as persons in a complex and challenging healthcare environment. I have a deep respect for the people they are and the clinicians they become. They have become hospitalists, primary care physicians, administrators, and educators. Many of our residents have gone on to other disciplines and subspecialties. These successful careers are evidence that the residency here fulfills its purpose. It is truly a privilege to witness and participate in the growth of these individuals.

I am proud of the care we provide. The faculty is carefully assessing the capability of each resident and allowing autonomy as the resident becomes competent. Our excellent faculty model patient centered care. Our clinical outcomes are excellent, but we continually strive to improve our care quality and safety. The faculty are involved in care committees and receive continual feedback about the care he or she delivers. In addition, we strive to practice the compassionate care all humans need when sick and afraid.

I am proud of our administrative staff who support the residency by attending to all the details of accreditation, human resources, and the day to day affairs of a residency program. We are so lucky to have three talented individuals who support the program.

We are all learning and becoming better doctors each day. This challenge brings meaning and honor to every day we work. We invite you to consider joining us in this journey and in this good work.

Lysbeth W. Miller, M.D
Internal Medicine Residency Program Director
Department of Internal Medicine