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Teaching Sections

Detailed lists of goals and objectives are provided for each rotation. Below are highlights from each section’s teaching coordinator responding to What do you want future residents to know about your teaching section?

Geraldine Liao
  • “At Virginia Mason, residents are part of a collaborative multidisciplinary Breast Care team, working closely alongside our breast surgery, medical oncology, and radiation oncology colleagues. Residents benefit from one-on-one teaching with fellowship-trained attendings and have the opportunity to participate in every step of a woman’s breast imaging journey from screening mammogram to multimodality diagnostic workup to image-guided procedures, as well as thrice-weekly multidisciplinary breast cancer conferences. Our goal in Breast Imaging, as is elsewhere at Virginia Mason, is to provide patient-centered care utilizing cutting edge technology, such as 3D digital breast tomosynthesis and tomosynthesis-guided procedures, in order to deliver the best possible care for our patients.”

Geraldine Liao
  • “Cardiac imaging is a fascinating, complex and rapidly evolving area of radiology. We work collaboratively with cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgical colleagues in order to provide optimal care for our patients. Residents on this service are expected not only to learn about, supervise and interpret cardiac CT and MR exams, but also to attend cardiac cath and valve conferences, and spend some time in Echocardiography and Electrophysiology labs in order to learn about the interplay between a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic techniques.”

Wendy Hsu
  • “Our radiology department as part of the internationally recognized Digestive Disease Institute at Virginia Mason Medical Center provides exceptional care to patients with gastrointestinal diseases. Our practice includes patients from afar who seek tertiary care as well as patients from local communities. As a radiology resident, your multimodality experience in gastrointestinal imaging is concentrated in CT, MRI, fluoroscopy, ultrasound, and X-ray, but you will also encounter cases in nuclear medicine and interventional radiology. You will work directly with our faculty to learn the nuances of complex imaging techniques, including state-of-the-art rectal and perineal MRI; MR and CT enterography; CT colonography; MR and US elastography; MRCP with secretin; and multiphase liver CT and MRI using conventional and hepatobiliary contrast agents. Case-based learning is emphasized, and you will participate in multidisciplinary conferences with gastroenterologists and surgeons. Our residents achieve a high level of proficiency in gastrointestinal imaging and excel in top-tier Abdominal Imaging fellowship programs.”

David Coy
  • “Virginia Mason is an unique clinical environment in which we practice team medicine with a singular focus - the patient. In genitourinary radiology the radiologists and radiology residents work closely with clinical colleagues in Urology, Nephrology, Transplant, Gynecology, Interventional Radiology, and Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery who are recognized for their outstanding patient care and outcomes. Our collaborative approach is fostered through regular multidisciplinary conferences and tumor boards as well as spontaneous consultations throughout the day. We see a wide variety of patients from across the Pacific Northwest region, many facing daunting medical and surgical issues that require a true multidisciplinary team approach to successfully treat. Imaging studies range from conventional fluoroscopic exams such as voiding cystourethrograms and hysterosalpinograms to CT and MR pyelograms to cutting-edge multiparametric prostate MR and translabial ultrasound for urethral slings and pelvic mesh.”

Blackmore, Craig C.
  • “Residents at Virginia Mason are encouraged to fully engage in the opportunities afforded through the Virginia Mason Production System, a lean approach to quality improvement and health care management. Through the Center for Health Care Improvement Science, residents can complete quality improvement projects and scholarly research targeting radiology quality, safety, and efficiency. The Center supports a broad portfolio of research focusing on patient safety, quality of care, patient-centeredness, and health care policy. Prior resident projects have led to important quality gains, and award winning papers and national presentations.”

Patrick Marcin
  • “The mission of Virginia Mason along with the section of Vascular and Interventional Radiology is to improve the health and wellbeing of the patients we serve. We embrace this mission in a collaborative approach with TEAM MEDICINE. We have a full time Interventional Radiology Clinic staffed by our providers, nurses and medical assistants providing 24/7 care to our patients. We work closely with our colleagues in all aspects of medicine providing longitudinal care to our patients. The Virginia Mason Digestive Disease Institute is internationally renowned attracting patients from throughout the Pacific Northwest for treatment of complex digestive, pancreatic and liver diseases, with us performing TIPS, biliary drains and dual modality drainage of walled off pancreatic necrosis among others. We participate in a weekly multidisciplinary liver tumor board in conjunction with our hepatobiliary surgeons, medical oncologists, hepatologists, and pathologists, leading to a robust interventional oncology practice including transarterial radioembolization, chemoembolization and percutaneous ablation. We also work closely with our urologists, transplant surgeons, nephrologists and gynecologists performing stone access for complex ultrasonic lithotripsy, renal cryoablation, uterine fibroid embolization and more. Besides the full gamut of basic procedures such as biopsy, drains, and lines, we also provide care for our comprehensive stroke center, utilizing cutting edge technology performing thrombectomies, carotid stenting and aneurysm coiling.”

Felicia Cummings
  • “On MRI rotations, residents will encounter a wide variety of neuro and body imaging cases. The basic rotation will concentrate on the fundamentals of MR imaging interpretation and performance and the more common studies. Advanced rotations are tailored to focus on areas where greater exposure is needed and complex cases. Elective advanced rotations may be designed to fit the resident’s specific academic interests.”

Gregor Dunham
  • “Virginia Mason radiology residents receive comprehensive training in musculoskeletal imaging, including sports medicine, trauma, arthritis, and bone and soft tissue tumors. We collaborate frequently with clinical colleagues in orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, podiatry, rheumatology and emergency medicine. The education priority in MSK is on competency progressing to excellence with time initially allocated to a general core curriculum involving video lectures, case files, and 1 on 1 attending read outs. Early exposure to MR is emphasized with volumes and complexity increasing each rotation. Senior electives offer the opportunity to further advance knowledge and technical skills, as well as participate in a range of multidisciplinary conferences including oncology, rheumatology and podiatry.”

Margaret Chapman
  • “The radiology residents at Virginia Mason are an integral part of a multidisciplinary Neurosciences team treating a wide variety of complex diseases of the brain, head and neck, and spine. We are one of a few certified hospitals in the Northwest designated as a comprehensive stroke center. We offer robust neuroimaging services including advanced MR techniques such as functional MRI, MR spectroscopy and perfusion for evaluation and treatment planning of brain tumors and neurovascular diseases, as well as multiphase CTA and CT perfusion in the evaluation of acute stroke. As a resident in our department, you have the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in the interpretation of these studies from early in your career. As you progress through residency, there are ample opportunities to lead various multidisciplinary conferences including our weekly Neurovascular conference, Head and Neck, and Neuro-oncology tumor boards. Our neuroradiology faculty are active participants in many national societies including the RSNA, ARRS, ASNR, and ASER and are excited to serve as mentors to the residents in research, educational, and academic endeavors. ”

Paul Sicuro
  • “The Nuclear Medicine rotation is one of the best ways to tie together all facets of radiology by interpreting functional/metabolic exams in correlation with multiple other imaging modalities in order to answer a specific clinical question. From basic studies such as bone scans, HIDA scans, and V/Q scans, to advanced exams such as PET/CT scans using a multitude of tracers including Ga-68 dotatate (NETSPOT), F-18 Fluciclovine (Axumin), and of course F-18 FDG. We also perform many therapies including for thyroid diseases using I-131 and for neuroendocrine tumors using Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy (PRRT) using Lu-177 (Lutathera). We also oversee Y-90 radioembolizations. The radiology resident has all-day one-on-one attending coverage and teaching in a cordial, fun environment which includes a great group of experienced and talented technologists.”

Richard Hinke
  • “Virginia Mason radiology residents’ training and experience in Thoracic Radiology is fostered by close collaborative relationships with our clinical colleagues in thoracic surgery, pulmonary medicine, medical oncology, radiation oncology, pathology, and critical care, with a broad range of cases coming from an active lung cancer screening program as well as a broad tertiary care referral base. Not only do our residents have the opportunity to learn from a broad range of pathology in their clinical service but they also have the opportunity to learn from and participate in multiple interdisciplinary conferences, including interstitial lung disease conference, pulmonary nodule board, and thoracic oncology conference and our didactic lecture series includes not only lectures from our own radiologists with special interest in thoracic imaging, but also lectures from our clinical colleagues in pulmonary medicine for a clinical perspective on thoracic imaging.”

Jamie Hui
  • “Ultrasound can be intimidating to the radiologist-in-training because it requires active decision making during real-time scanning. Our section strives to foster a supportive yet rigorous training environment for residents to develop fundamental ultrasound knowledge, technical proficiency, and procedural skills. We look forward to being part of your training!”