Residency Program Assessment and Development

The Camden Group provides comprehensive advisory services related to the feasibility of establishing, maintaining, and/or closing residency programs. While often spurred by financial considerations, decisions regarding residency programs are complex, and the significant potential downstream effects throughout the hospital must be considered.

Hospitals may consider having a residency program for a variety of reasons:

• Teaching programs ensure a steady stream of qualified physicians to be included on their medical staffs.
• Teaching programs often provide an additional sense of loyalty and connection for the faculty physicians.
• The reputation of the hospital may be enhanced through affiliation with an established program at a larger teaching facility or university medical center.
• Teaching programs may raise the standards for medical staff performance by keeping "seasoned" physicians current on new developments.
• Residents are a means to provide cost-effective professional physician services to the under-insured population.
• These programs can reduce the need for locums by using the residents to round out coverage for critical services.

Although the benefits of a residency programs are enticing, these programs require ongoing financial and administrative resources. Additionally, implementing residency programs can be disruptive to hospital services and requires changes in reporting relationships and responsibilities of physicians and management.

The Camden Group can assist hospitals and health systems with existing or potential residency programs in various ways. Typical engagements include:

• Feasibility studies for new residency programs or expansion of current programs
• Assessment (i.e., review of costs, benefits, and alternatives) and redesign of existing programs including closure, affiliation, or other strategic directions
• Implementation of new residency programs, redesign of existing programs, or expansion of current programs
• Compliance review of existing programs

For more information on how we can assist you with your residency program, please contact us today.