Frequently Asked Questions

What are the program’s strengths?
Our residents, who come from a wide variety of backgrounds and interests, are multi-talented and high quality physicians. There is a strong “work-hard, play-hard” ethic in the program.

The program faculty members are strong leaders. The teaching faculty are strong academically, with no office practice commitments off campus. The subspecialist faculty members are known leaders in their field of expertise.

Finally, the hospital is a tertiary care center which is nationally recognized with significant depth to the care and treatment of patients. Henry Ford Hospital is a well funded and established center for medical research.

Why should I do my Internal Medicine training at Henry Ford Hospital?
Our program prides itself on a diverse resident population, obtaining the best and brightest resident physicians to provide high-quality medical care to our patient population. Our goal is to produce the best trained, highly qualified and well-rounded internists in the country.

What is the call schedule like?
Most of the inpatient floors have night float coverage, with short call until 10 p.m every 4th night. If on a floor without night float coverage, overnight call is every 4th night.

How many patients will I carry as an intern?
Most interns will carry 6-8 patients, as Henry Ford Hospital strictly adheres to the ACGME/RRC cap for intern-to-patient load (max of 10 patients). You will have no more than 5 new admissions per call.

How many hours will I work?
Henry Ford Hospital is proud to announce that even prior to the ACGME resident work hour restrictions, the Internal Medicine program complied with all policies of this 80-hour Work week mandate. Dr. Scher was on the national ACGME Task Force for this project and was the only Internal Medicine program director on the committee.

What is night float?
A Night Float (NF) system to cover patients admitted at night allows the inpatient teams to have much less overnight call. Call is 9p.m. to 7a.m. Monday through Thursday, with one 24 hour call per week (7a.m.-7a.m. Sunday to Monday) with 48 consecutive hours off duty each week (Friday to Sunday morning).

How many days off are typical per month?
While on “elective” rotations, you will typically have weekends off (unless called in to cover for residents in the instance of emergencies, such as illness). While on an inpatient service, you will have 4 days off per month, usually including one full weekend. We have had a night float system in place for almost 20 years.

What resources does the hospital library offer?
The hospital library offers: Ovid Online Databases (Medline, CINAHL, and Others), Up-To-Date, Sladen Electronic & Print Journals, Sladen Electronic Books, Sladen Card Catalog, Sladen Library Recommended Links, Sladen Consumer Health Links, FirstSearch, InfoTrac, PubMed, and more. The Internal Medicine Resident Toolkit set up through the Hospital Library with the following: National Guideline Clearinghouse, Users' Guides to Evidence-Based Practice, HIV Drugs, JAMA/Rational Clinical Examination Article Series, JAMA / User's Guides to the Medical Literature Article Series, JAMA Patient Page, Lancet Evidence-Based Medicine Article Series, TRIP Database, and numerous electronic books including: Scientific American Medicine Online, Harrison's Online, HFH Internal Medicine Rotation Curricula, Intern-in-the-Middle-of-the-Night Series. All of the above are available on-line.

What Medicine fellowships are offered at Henry Ford Hospital?
Allergy, Bone and Mineral Metabolism, Cardiology, Electrophysiology, Interventional Cardiology, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Gastroenterology, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Infectious Diseases and Hospital Epidemiology, Nephrology, Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care, Sleep Disorders, Transplant Nephrology.

How does the department assist with obtaining a fellowship?
Assistance with interview days is provided for HO-2 residents applying for fellowship positions. These days are not taken from your vacation time (subject to policy set in the Department of Medicine). Also, there are third-year and CMR “mentors” for fellowships who help guide you through the application process. A series of “Fellowship/Career Preparation lectures” during noon conferences is also given.

Now, that I have made the decision that I want to come to Henry Ford Hospital, what can I expect while living here?
Typically, most physicians and employees live in the metropolitan area, which includes Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties. Oakland County is the most affluent county per capita in the USA and five local communities have made the top 25 of a list of the safest places in the USA to live.

Sports: Stanley Cup Winning Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Pistons, Detroit Lions, Detroit Tigers, Detroit Grand Prix, Detroit Rugby Football Club

Entertainment: GTE Energy Theater, Many Clubs (Jazz, Techno, Salsa, Rock), IMAX Theater (Dearborn and Detroit)

Theater: Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Second City Comedy Club, Michigan Opera Theater, Detroit Film Theater, Fisher Theater, Gem Theater and Century Club, Detroit Repertory Theater, Bonstelle Theater, Hillberry Theater, Masonic Temple

Museums & Art: Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Historical Museum, Children’s Museum, Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, Detroit Artist Market, Gallery Crawl, Casa de Unidad Cultural Arts and Media Center, Pewabic Pottery, Detroit Science Center.

Annual Events: North American International Auto Show, Detroit Boat Show, Autorama, St. Patrick’s Day Parade, Cinco de Mayo Celebration, Greektown Art Fair, Detroit Electronic Music Festival, International Freedom Festival, Michigan Taste Fest, Mexican town Mercado, Detroit International Jazz Festival, Detroit International Marathon, Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot and Parade, Festival of Trees and many, many more!