X blocks – primarily inpatient services
Cardiology
Our cardiology service includes a 2 resident and 1 intern team on the cardiology floor and a 1 resident and 1 intern team in the cardiovascular critical care unit (CVCC). Patients admitted to this service have primary cardiac problems, ranging from unstable angina to valvular dysfunction to acute arrhythmias. Critically ill patients are managed in the CVCC, a state-of-the-art intensive care facility for patients with cardiovascular critical illness, on a team with both an attending cardiologist and a cardiac intensivist.
Hematology/oncology
As the regional, federally-designated comprehensive cancer center, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center maintains a busy inpatient hematology and bone marrow transplant service. Residents gain experience with every stage of cancer treatment, including initiating chemotherapy, using new transplant protocols, biologics and CAR-T cell therapy, and providing end-of-life and palliative care.
Hospital medicine
These rotations, at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and the VA, form the core experience for learning how to recognize and care for truly sick, complex internal medicine patients. At Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, there are both 2 intern and 1 resident teams as well as 1 intern and 1 resident teams, working directly with a hospitalist. Each team admits a steady number of patients every day, with no overnight call. At the VA, 1 intern and 1 resident are paired with a designated teaching attending. Dartmouth medical students and sub-interns round out the teams at both locations.
Medical intensive care unit
The ICU offers medicine residents the opportunity to act as consultants and primary caregivers for medical patients requiring the highest level of care. Interns work day shifts only, transitioning to more independent night shifts as their skills increase in the PGY-2 and PGY-3 years, in a 2 intern and 1 resident team.
Night float
At Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, a night float team consisting of an intern paired with a senior resident manages acute overnight care for the general medicine service. This team evaluates and admits new patients to the hospital and provides cross-coverage for other medicine patients. At the White River Junction VA the night float consists of 1 resident.
Emergency Medicine
As the first health professionals to evaluate patients in Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center's medical-surgical ED, medicine residents quickly gain competence in assessing patients with the full spectrum of presenting complaints. The ED is a Level I trauma center and supports a helicopter urgent transport program. Medical, surgical, anesthesia, and OB/GYN residents are supported at all times by certified Emergency Medicine attendings and they work side by side with the residents in our Emergency Medicine Residency to provide care.