Frequently asked questions
Where are we located?
The Kistler Family Medicine Residency at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center (GWV) is in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. We are approximately 60 miles from Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pa., two hours from Philadelphia and New York City and three hours from Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
How many residents do we accept? How many MDs/DOs do we take annually?
We take six residents per year. Ranking is based on our applicant pool, which changes on a year-to-year basis. Our goal is to recruit top residents, so we don’t set a standard ratio of DO residents to MD residents.
Is the program opposed?
We consider our program to be virtually unopposed. Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center (GWV) hosts a general surgery residency program, an orthopaedic residency program and an internal medicine residency program. As a family medicine resident, you’ll rotate with the surgery residents during your general surgery rotation and with orthopedic residents when on your orthopedics/podiatry rotation and your sports medicine rotations. You’ll have your own inpatient service at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre that does not conflict with the internal medicine resident service at GWV. You may also come into contact with, but not in opposition to, additional graduate-level learners such as podiatry residents, sports medicine fellows and addiction medicine fellows.
How are continuity clinics structured?
You are assigned and will build up your own panel of continuity patients over the course of your residency. You’ll see your patients at the Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre clinic site adjacent to the hospital. PGY1 residents have one to two half-days per week in clinic; PGY2/3 residents have three to four half-days in clinic per week.
Are there opportunities for teaching?
As a resident, you’ll interact with and teach students from Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, as well as VSAS applicants on multiple inpatient and outpatient rotations throughout residency.
Are there research opportunities?
We require our residents to complete team-based quality improvement projects on an annual basis — you’ll present the resulting posters at Geisinger’s Annual Resident and Fellow Scholarship Days. We require you to complete one research project of your choosing over your entire residency.
Are there any special educational tracks?
We offer a Spanish Language Track and an Addiction Medicine Track. And we pride ourselves on helping you tailor your education to meet your future career goals —particularly if you’re interested in obstetrics, urgent care or academic medicine.
Is couples matching available?
Yes, we have historically taken residents within a couples match and would certainly consider doing so again.
How are we accredited?
The program is accredited through the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). We welcome and accept allopathic and osteopathic applicants.
Do we use an electronic health record?
Yes. Geisinger uses Epic as a fully integrated record across the entire system.
Are we part of a patient-centered medical home (PCMH)?
Yes. Geisinger is nationally known as one of the leaders in the PCMH model. As a resident, you’ll participate in our medical home through weekly and monthly huddles and meetings, as well as through collaborative work with embedded nurse case managers, who will help you with your own patients.
What do graduates do after they complete the program?
The majority move on to realizing their vision of family medicine — including graduates who practice inpatient and outpatient, inpatient only or outpatient only, as well as graduates who provide continuity obstetrical care. About 50% of our graduates stay within the tri-state area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York, with the remainder spread across the country. We have also had graduates go into careers in urgent care, palliative care, sports medicine and geriatrics. Geisinger-based fellowship opportunities for family medicine graduates include sports medicine, palliative care, nutrition and obesity medicine, hospitalist medicine, addiction medicine and sleep medicine.
Do we sponsor visas?
No, the program doesn’t currently sponsor visas.