Surgery About Us Message from the Chair Life in Orange County Contact Us Education & Training Clerkships Surgery Residency Program Fellowship Programs Continuing Medical Education Research Faculty & Labs Scholarly Activity Clinical Expertise Divisions Cardiothoracic Surgery Colon and Rectal Surgery Emergency General Surgery Gastrointestinal and Bariatric Surgery Hepatobiliary and Pancreas Surgery Pediatric General and Thoracic Surgery Surgical Oncology Transplantation Surgery Trauma, Burns, Surgical Critical Care and Acute Care Surgery Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Faculty Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellowship The UCI Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellowship is a one-year, ACGME-accredited program designed to prepare the trainee for advanced practice in colon and rectal surgery. Home About Campus & Community Resources Surgery: Education & Training > Fellowship Programs > Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellowship Training the Next Generation of Colon & Rectal Surgeons Our nationally recognized faculty members are committed to training our fellows and the next generation of colon and rectal surgeons. Access to faculty and the program director is emphasized in the program. Throughout the year, assessment frequently occurs to evaluate how we can tailor the educational experience to the trainee’s ongoing needs. Significant educational resources are in place to assist in training, including office space, textbooks, computers and electronic journal access through the University of California system. We have a structured series of lectures, conferences and Journal Clubs throughout the year. We emphasize maintaining a good balance between educational experience and clinical service. Duty hours are strictly monitored. After training in our program, fellows have gone on to busy academic and private practice environments. Our goal is for trainees to leave the program ready to launch into a highly successful career. Clinical Curriculum Our practice emphasizes advanced surgical techniques in all aspects of colon and rectal surgery. Our faculty are very active in evaluating and adopting new surgical approaches and technology, and we participate in (and often lead) clinical trials. In the area of colon and rectal cancer, the trainee will become proficient in robotic surgery, laparoscopic surgery and the approach to recurrent colon and rectal cancer. The trainee will learn advanced techniques such as laparoscopic intracorporeal anastomosis and transanal specimen extraction. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery is used, and “reverse” (transanal) total mesorectal excision is performed. Minimally invasive approaches to recurrent cancer are also applied when appropriate, and intraoperative radiation therapy is used in specific cases. Our faculty also performs hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy with peritoneal cytoreduction in select cases. The trainee will learn the multidisciplinary approach to colon and rectal cancer through participation in tumor boards and lectures from nationally recognized experts at our NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center. We also have a busy practice in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and benefit from being associated with an active gastroenterology practice in IBD at our institution. We emphasize minimally invasive approaches to IBD treatment and a collaborative approach with our colleagues in gastroenterology. Our fellows routinely exceed the required case numbers for ileal pouch surgery and leave the program comfortable performing totally laparoscopic restorative proctocolectomy. Our pelvic floor surgery services include endoanal ultrasound, anal manometry, pelvic floor physical therapy and excellent collaboration with our colleagues in urogynecology. Fellows will become capable at sacral nerve stimulation therapy, clinic-based peripheral nerve evaluations, injection of bulking agents and overlapping sphincter repair. Fellows finish the program able to perform standard and advanced techniques in rectal prolapse surgery such as robotic ventral mesh rectopexy. Research During the year, the trainee is expected to participate in a research project. For that project, we have resources including a statistician, SAS/SPSS programs, clinical databases — Nationwide Inpatient Sample, National Surgical Quality Improvement Project, California Cancer Registry and University HealthSystem Consortium — and collaborative research fellows. We also provide financial support for travel to academic meetings to present research. Faculty will assist throughout the year in research design and publication. This can serve as an excellent springboard to an academic surgical practice if the trainee desires. How to Apply Incoming candidates will have completed an approved general surgery residency and be board-eligible or board-certified by the American Board of Surgery. Fellow applications are accepted entirely through ERAS, and matches are determined via the NRMP process. No phone calls please. Applicants from international medical schools must be ECFMG-certified at the time of application. DO applicants must have completed USMLE Steps 1 and 2. Application Requirements ERAS application CV Personal Statement Three letters of recommendation USMLE transcript ABSITE transcript Applications for the interview season will be reviewed in July with interview invitations sent in August. Matching applicants will begin their fellowship the following August. All interviews will be held virtually. Program Director Steven Mills, MD Program Director, Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellowship Professor — Colon and Rectal Surgery, Surgery Contact Us Prospective applicants may contact our fellowship coordinator with any questions. Staci Reicheneckerreichens@hs.uci.edu