Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
165 Ashley Ave, Suite 309
Charleston, SC 29425
http://academicdepartments.musc.edu/pathology/about/index.html
Anatomic and Clinical Pathology Residency[]
General Information
The Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine of the Medical University of South Carolina offers a fully accredited training program in anatomic and clinical pathology (AP/CP). Our training program is approved for 22 trainees and our AP/CP program consists of a 40 month core curriculum with 8 months of electives. Anatomic Pathology core rotations include autopsy pathology/forensic pathology, surgical pathology, cytopathology, and VA pathology. Clinical Pathology core rotations include hematopathology, immunopathology, clinical chemistry, microbiology, transfusion medicine, molecular pathology, cytogenetics, laboratory management, clinical immunology, and informatics. Eight months elective time is available for more in-depth studies in areas of special interest and/or research.
Thorough and well-coordinated resident teaching conferences are held each morning with a rotating slate of topics across all anatomic and clinical pathology disciplines that repeats in a 2-year cycle, so that each resident is exposed to the material twice. These conferences are generally held from 8-9 a.m. each morning and that time is protected from clinical duties.
Fellowship programs within the department include forensic pathology, dermatopathology, cytopathology, surgical pathology, gastrointestinal pathology, hematopathology, molecular genetic pathology, neuropathology, and clinical chemistry.
Teaching Institutions
The Medical University of South Carolina is a comprehensive academic health science center which includes more than 700-beds spread across two teaching hospitals, an NCI-designated cancer center, and six colleges including: Dental Medicine, Graduate Studies, Health Professions, Medicine, and Pharmacy. The vast majority of the rotations in our residency curriculum are completed within the Main Hospital, with the others taking place at our Ashley River Tower hospital and the Charleston VA Medical center, both of which are a short walk from the Main Hospital. Construction of a dedicated women and children's hospital is ongoing with an anticipated opening in October 2019. The close proximity and intimate relationship with the medical school provide abundant opportunities for residents to hone their teaching skills in one-on-one, small group, and large format settings.
The caseload across our services is vast and diverse. More than 30,000 surgical pathology cases are received each year, representing more than 60,000 unique specimens and including general surgical pathology, dermatopathology, neuropathology, transplant pathology, and medical renal pathology cases. Nearly 20,000 cytopathology specimens are examined each year, including more than 6,000 non-GYN cases. The hematopathology service examines nearly 2,000 specimens each year, including both in-house biopsies and consult cases. Our unique autopsy service incorporates both medical autopsies (~125/year) and forensic autopsies that are referred to our facility from around the state (>1,000/year). Our busy clinical pathology laboratory performs more than 3,000,000 tests across a variety of services including chemistry, transfusion medicine, HLA, urinalysis, hematology, coagulation, immunology, cytogenetics, microbiology, flow cytometry, and our growing molecular genetics laboratory).
Salaries and Benefits
For the 2017-2018 academic year our PGY-1 salary was $51,086 with subsequent increases for each PGY year. Resident salaries are evaluated each year and there have been substantial increases over the past several years. In addition, the university provides discounted insurance and disability benefits. Three weeks of sick leave and three weeks of annual leave are allotted. In addition, additional administrative leave is granted for the purposes of attending conferences, serving on committees, and taking required examinations. Also provided are complementary on-campus parking, deeply discounted membership to our state of the art fitness center, and an iPhone that doubles as the resident's pager.
At the department level, a generous book fund is provided to offset the costs of educational supplies, required examinations, and other related expenses. Additionally, the department will fund up to 2 conferences a year per resident when an oral or poster presentation is accepted at a relevant meeting. Residents are provided with generous workspace, a computer, and a microscope for the duration of their training.
Contact Information
For inquiries regarding our program please visit our website or contact our Residency Program Director, Dr. Nicholas Batalis, or our Residency Program Coordinator, Ms. Trudie Shingledecker.
Dr. Nicholas Batalis, Residency Program Director
Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
171 Ashley Avenue, MSC 908
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-9981
batalini@musc.edu
Ms. Trudie Shingledecker, Residency Program Coordinator
Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
171 Ashley Avenue, MSC 908
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-1086
shinglet@musc.edu
Clinical Chemistry Fellowship[]
Cytopathology Fellowship[]
Dermatopathology Fellowship[]
Forensic Pathology Fellowship[]
General Information
The Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine of the Medical University of South Carolina offers a fully accredited training program in forensic pathology. Our unique, academic forensic training program is approved for 1 trainee each year and is housed within the main hospital on our sprawling medical campus that includes two hospitals, six academic colleges, and our NCI-designated cancer center. This environment allows for easy consultation and collaboration with experts within our department and university; abundant teaching opportunities for educating medical students, pathology residents, and other learners; and the ability to take advantage of our abundant in-house anatomic and clinical pathology test catalog to thoroughly work up each case.
Trainees are responsible under supervision for scene investigations, post-mortem external examinations, autopsies (approximately 250), microscopic evaluation of tissues, interpretation of toxicology, completion of anatomic protocols, appearances in court upon occasion, and conferences with attorneys and/or police officials. Approximately 1000 forensic autopsies, including a large percentage of homicides, are performed yearly in a modern autopsy facility. The cases are varied as they come both from urban and rural counties both on the coast and inland. Experienced autopsy technicians and forensic pathology assistants help with the performance of the autopsies to optimize workflow. Throughout the course of the year, it is expected the fellow will take on graduated responsibilities and essentially help direct the service by the end of the training period. Additionally, a well-coordinated weekly conference series includes didactics about various core topics in forensic pathology, review of interesting cases, and experience discussing administrative and quality assurance/control issues.
Salaries and Benefits
For the 2017-2018 academic year the PGY-5 salary set by our institution was $60,141. Trainee salaries are evaluated each year and there have been substantial increases over the past several years. In addition, the university provides discounted insurance and disability benefits. Three weeks of sick leave and three weeks of annual leave are allotted. In addition, additional administrative leave is granted for the purposes of attending conferences, serving on committees, and taking required examinations. Also provided are complementary on-campus parking, deeply discounted membership to our state of the art fitness center, and an iPhone that doubles as the resident's pager.
Additional benefits provided by the department include a generous expense fund to offset costs for educational materials and conferences, additional funds available to cover travel to a conference at which the trainee is presenting, along with ample office space, a microscope, and a computer for use during the duration of training.
Contact Information
For inquiries regarding our program please visit our website or contact our Forensic Pathology Fellowship Program Director, Dr. Nicholas Batalis, or our Fellowship Program Coordinator, Ms. Lori Roten.
Dr. Nicholas Batalis, Forensic Pathology Fellowship Program Director
Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
171 Ashley Avenue, MSC 908
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-9981
batalini@musc.edu
Ms. Lori Roten, Pathology Fellowship Program Coordinator
Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
171 Ashley Avenue, MSC 908
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-3121
roten@musc.edu