Primary Care Track

Primary Care Track Residents

Our primary care track provides exceptional outpatient education, leadership, and advocacy training while fostering a strong sense of community among residents.

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Overview

The University of Washington Internal Medicine Primary Care (PC) Track trains the next generation of leaders in primary care internal medicine by providing comprehensive, immersive training in outpatient medicine, as well as clinical teaching, leadership, quality improvement, health systems, policy, and advocacy.  

As a PC resident, you will spend the majority of your training in the outpatient setting honing core primary care skills. With two dedicated PC immersion blocks each academic year, you will also gain the expertise to thrive as a leader and advocate in your clinic and community. Through various social activities held throughout the year and dedicated blocks of time for immersion, you will build community with your PC track colleagues and form lasting relationships. 

Throughout your residency, you will provide comprehensive primary care for your panel of patients at one of our program’s continuity clinics: Harborview’s Adult Medicine and Madison (HIV) Clinics, the University of Washington’s Roosevelt General Internal Medicine and Women’s Healthcare Clinics, the VA Puget Sound’s Primary Care and Women’s Healthcare Clinics, or the UW Belltown Neighborhood Clinic.  

As a primary care track resident, you can also participate in both a clinical and/or non-clinical training pathway. Please see the detailed pathway descriptions here.

R1 year

Your R1 year is focused on becoming an outstanding internist for individual patients. You will acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to independently manage common and complex medical conditions, to develop personal systems of care that allow for efficient and high-quality care, and to hone patient-centered communication skills. 

Core rotations include:  

  • PC Immersion – Care of Patient – Block (summer) - your intern year begins with immersion block! 
  • Mornings include didactic sessions on the management of acute and chronic conditions, physical exam skills, practice management and patient interactions, as well as interactive sessions including “Outpatient Procedures” “Primary Care Report” and “Case-Based Clinic Skills” with your outpatient chief residents. 
  • Afternoons are spent at your continuity clinic site caring for your panel patients in collaboration with your interprofessional clinic team. 
  • PC Immersion – Art of Clinic – Block (winter) 
  • In addition to selected high impact PC didactics, you will reflect on your development as a physician through narrative medicine and more deeply connect with your clinic patients through a “My Life My Story” project 
  • Outpatient rotations - at least 4 additional outpatient rotations, including a mix of primary care and subspecialty medicine, as well as a course called Patients, Physicians, and Community focused on care for vulnerable communities, health equity, advocacy, and population health.  

R2 year

During your R2 year, you will continue to hone your medical knowledge in outpatient subspecialties and develop your leadership and practice management skills in the outpatient care setting through clinic-based QI leadership, peer observation and feedback, and exploration of innovative primary care delivery models. 

 

Core rotations include: 

  • PC Immersion – Care of Practice - Block (fall) 
  • The focus of this experience is on building your skills as a member of an interprofessional care team working to optimize the health of your panel of patients.  
  • Didactics are delivered by specialists/subject matter experts and are tailored to your learning goals 
  • You will work with your clinic partners to design and implement a practice improvement/QI project to improve care outcomes for your patients. 
  • You will be trained as a peer clinical coach for your primary care classmates  
  • Outpatient rotations - Most of the R2 year is spent in the outpatient setting, including on core PC track rotations - geriatrics and musculoskeletal medicine blocks 
  • Electives - We offer a broad variety of outpatient clinical electives including HIV care, women’s health, gender affirming care, healthcare for individuals experiencing homelessness, addiction medicine as well as the opportunity to spend time on a WWAMI rotation, on an international rotation, or doing research or other scholarly work. 

R3 year

During your R3 year, you will explore your role as a physician advocate in the health care system working to increase health equity in our community. You will learn and practice broad advocacy skills, including working together to educate local and statewide elected officials about issues important to your patients! 

  • PC Immersion - Clinician Educator - Block (summer) 
  • You will co-immerse with new interns on their immersion blocks as a clinician educator and near-peer coach, growing your educator toolkit  
  • PC Immersion – Care of Population -  Block (winter)  
  • The focus of this block is to equip you with tools to optimize the health of your community.  
  • In teams, you will perform an equity analysis of one of your primary care patients experiencing a negative health outcome caused by social and structural determinants of health, and identify systems-level interventions    
  • To further develop your leadership skills, you will be trained in legislative advocacy, learn about selected Washington State legislative bills under consideration, and have the opportunity to educate your legislator.  
  • Outpatient rotations - You will spend most of your R3 year in the outpatient setting, including clinical and pathway electives; rural, community-based, or international rotations; or doing research or other scholarly work.

Sample Rotational Schedule for PC track residents:  

Sample schedule

View Sample Schedules