Resident Job Description

Original Approval: 7/1/2017

Reviewed Date: 12/10/2025

1. Introduction

   The position of resident or fellow physician entails provision of patient care matching with the individual physician's level of advancement and competence. Residency is the phase of formal medical education beginning at graduation from medical school and ending after the educational requirements for the medical specialty certifying board has been completed. Fellows complete additional training in a medical subspecialty after completing residency training. Both are referred to in this document as resident physician.

   A resident physician's responsibilities include patient care activities within the scope of their clinical privileges commensurate with the level of training, attendance at clinical rounds and seminars, timely completion of medical records, and other responsibilities as assigned or as required of all members of the medical staff. Under the supervision of attending physicians, general responsibilities of the resident physician may include:

   • Initial and ongoing assessment of patient's medical, physical, and psychosocial status.
   • Perform history and physical.
   • Develop assessment and treatment plan.
   • Perform rounds.
   • Record progress notes.
   • Order tests, examinations, medications, and therapies.
   • Arrange for discharge and after care.
   • Write/dictate admission notes, progress notes, procedure notes, and discharge summaries.
   • Provide patient education and counseling covering health status, test results, disease processes, and discharge planning.
   • Perform procedures.
   • Assist in surgery.
2. Purpose and Scope

   The objective of medicine under the watchful eye of attending clinicians includes:

   1. participation in safe, effective and compassionate patient care;
   2. developing an understanding of ethical, socioeconomic and medical-legal issues that affect graduate medical education, and how to apply cost containment measures in the provision of patient care;
   3. participation in the educational activities of the training program, and as appropriate, assumption of responsibility for teaching and supervising other residents and students, and participation in institutional orientation and education programs and other activities involving the clinical staff;
   4. participation in institutional committees and councils to which the house staff physician is appointed or invited; and
   5. performance of these duties in accordance with the established practices, procedures and policies of the institution, and those of its programs, clinical departments and other institutions to which the resident physician is assigned; including, among others, state licensure requirements for physicians in training.