Residency Profile: Gallup Indian Medical Center

Residency Programs
Gallup Indian Medical Center

Established: 1997

Positions: Two

Gallup Indian Medical Center, Eye Clinic
P.O. Box 1337
Gallup, NM 87305

Program Faculty

Residency Co-Coordinator: Alicia Thibodeaux, OD, FAAO and Lilian Thoi, OD, FAAO

Attendings:

• William Thibodeaux, OD, FAAO
• Krystal Nelson, OD, FAAO

Mission Statement

The fundamental mission of this training program is to provide qualified postdoctoral optometry practitioners with an outstanding, full scope educational experience that will evolve them into exceptional, caring clinicians with broadened general skills and advanced competencies. With the guidance of GSU Eye Clinic staff optometrists, each resident is trained to fully integrate their skills within a medical center and public health care system. The residency program strives to create for each resident an atmosphere that fosters a compassionate appreciation for the needs of patients from all backgrounds and ages and a sense of caring for the Native American populace the residents serve.

Program Description

Program Goals

1. Strengthen the resident’s primary eye care skills

2. Provide the resident with a practical understanding of the patient care components of a health care system

3. Expand the resident’s health care knowledge base.

4. Instill in the resident an appreciation for the significance of teaching, research and scholarly activity.

5. Improve residents understanding of the Native American culture in the area.

Program Objectives

1. Ensure each resident develops the skills to perform high quality primary eye care evaluations.
2. Ensure that each resident can competently manage a wide variety of ocular disease.
3. Familiarize each resident to the health care team concept
4. Ensure that each resident fully utilizes other hospital clinical and supportive services
5. Encourage each resident to review and discuss health care issues.
6. Expose each resident clinically to other health care disciplines.
7. Educate each resident as to the process of manuscript preparation.
8. Enable each resident to share his or her knowledge through the process of a clinical presentation.
9. Encourage opportunities for each resident to attend educationally rich meetings.

Typical Daily or Weekly Schedule in Clinic

Duration of the program: Starts at the beginning of the pay period closest to August 1 and continues for 52 weeks or 12 months equivalent.

The resident is scheduled in clinic 40 hours per week and takes call for approximately 25% of the residency cycle.

Here is a typical work week schedule:

Typical bi-weekly schedule of the resident’s activities:

Rotation through other Services

The resident will be given the opportunity to shadow other disciplines including Internal Medicine, Diabetes Clinic, Retinal Surgery, Glaucoma Specialty, Cornea Specialty, and more.

Type and Number of Patients

The emphasis of the program is clinical assessment and management of patients of all ages in a multidisciplinary setting. About 85-90% of the resident’s time is spent in direct patient care. It is expected that the resident will complete a minimum of 1200 patient care encounters during the residency cycle. The resident works primarily in the Optometry Department, but occasionally evaluates patients in the Emergency Room and on the in-patient wards. The residents will provide post-operative care for patients after cataract surgery.

Teaching Responsibilities and Lecturing Opportunities

Residents will periodically present educational presentations to eye clinic staff members, will give 3 case presentation lectures during IHS Virtual Grand Rounds, and will present a formal lecture at the Annual IHS Meeting. Opportunities to present presentations to other hospital staff members may also be available. Didactic training is emphasized through case reviews, journal clubs, chart audits, and lectures.

Scholarly Activities

As required by the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education, the resident is required to write a publishable paper suitable for submission to a referred professional journal. The residency program coordinator guides the resident with the topic selection and preparation for the paper.

The resident will use a patient care log to report quarterly on:

• total patient encounters
• the diversity of clinical presentations encountered
• observational, educational and direct patient care activities associated with the health care team
• the number and types of referral/consults

Didactic Activities

- Special Testing and Orbital Trauma Lectures
- Rigid Gas Permeable Contact Lens worksheet
- Formal on-call case review
- In depth discussion and/or shadowing of first 10 patient encounters
- Detailed chart reviews completed on patients seen in the first 6-8 weeks of clinic
- Detailed chart reviews completed on a random selection of 15 patients for the remaining months of clinical care
- Formal, pre-planned clinical case reviews
- Attendance of 8 continuing medical education lectures offered by the hospital
-Weekly grand rounds with other IHS residents, with the exception of weeks including certain holidays

Requirements for Residency Completion and Awarding of Certificate

• Each resident is required to keep a detailed log of all required program aspects, which will be reviewed by the MBKU Assistant Dean of Residencies, and Gallup's Residency Coordinator.
• Each resident is required to provide patient care services at a level deemed satisfactory by the Residency Coordinator and Eye Clinic faculty, in line with the clinical practice guidelines of the American Optometric Association.
• Each resident is required to participate in the quarterly IHS Residents Journal Club.
• Each resident is required to submit a paper based upon original research, literature review, and/or clinical case or cases suitable for publication in a peer reviewed optometric journal.
• Each resident is expected to deliver patient care services in a professional manner and to observe those proprieties of conduct and courtesy that are consistent with the rules and regulations governing MBKU and the IHS.
• Upon evidence of satisfactory performance in meeting all requirements of the program, each resident will be awarded a Certificate of Residency Completion by the MBKU.

Additional Employment Opportunities

The resident may engage in outside (moonlighting) activity once supervisory approval (GIMC & MBKU), New Mexico licensure and malpractice insurance are obtained. Outside activity is limited to non-workdays.

Stipend

The annual stipend is $102,477 (GS11 step 1) for the 12-month program paid through the IHS

Benefits

Prerequisites

• OD degree from an accredited school of college of optometry
• Cumulative GPA:  2.50 minimum
• U.S. Citizenship
• Passage of all three NBEO examinations is required prior to the residency start date and ideally before the residency match date
• Eligible for licensure as an optometrist in a state, territory, or commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia

Application Requirements

• A completed application must be submitted to the National Matching Services, Inc (ORMatch) no later than February 15.
• Applicant must provide 3 letters of recommendation, CV, letter of intent, and recent transcripts to residency coordinator.
• An interview, typically in person but occasionally via a virtual platform or phone contact, will be requested of specific candidates based upon the quality of their credentials and application information.
• All residency applicants will be evaluated without regard to sex, race, color, creed, age, national origin, or non-disqualifying physical abilities.

Program Accreditation

The Accreditation Council on Optometric Education granted the program the status of “accredited” in 2021. The next scheduled site visit will take place in May 2029. The review by the residency program will be submitted in the annual report on or before September 1st. For more information on accreditation status, please visit the ACOE website (http://www.theacoe.org) or contact the ACOE via postal mail, email, or phone at:

Accreditation Council on Optometric Education
243 N. Lindbergh Blvd., Suite 301
St. Louis, MO 63141
Phone: 1-800-365-2219
E-mail address: accredit@theacoe.org

Housing

Adequate housing is available at apartments located near the hospital. Houses and rooms for rent are also available with costs ranging from $600 to $1500.

Local Activities & Attractions

• Many outdoor recreational activities
• National monuments
• Tribal parks
• Historic Sites
• Nearby metropolitan areas include Albuquerque, Flagstaff, and Phoenix. Commercial airline services are currently not available to or from Gallup.

Former Residents

• 2023-2024: Tayde Contreras, OD and Charles Wu, OD
• 2022-2023: Ryan Holiday, OD and Kaydee McCray, OD
• 2021-2022: Krystal Nelson, OD and Emma Stewart-Bates, OD
• 2020-2021: Justin Crockett, OD and Lilian Thoi, OD
• 2019-2020: Colleen Fischman, OD and Jacqueline Grimm, OD
• 2018-2019: Kandace Alfred, OD and Hannah Greenfield, OD
• 2017-2018: James Andrew Ho, OD and Jesse Hogan, OD
• 2016-2017: Alicia Thibodeaux, OD and Matthew Diggory, OD
• 2015-2016: Sarah Thomas, OD and Jarred Rasmussen, OD
• 2014-2015: Yen Bui, OD and Natalia Noble, OD
• 2013-2014: Justin Chin, OD and David McIntosh, OD
• 2012-2013: Rachel Stephan, OD and Eric Johansen, OD

Email Dr. Thibodeaux for former resident's contact information.

Alicia Thibodeaux, OD, FAAO
Residency Coordinator
Gallup Indian Medical Center, Eye Clinic
P.O. Box 1337
Gallup, NM 87305
505-722-1324 • Email: Alicia.Thibodeaux@ihs.gov

Judy W.H. Tong, OD, FAAO
Assistant Dean of Residencies
Southern California College of Optometry at
Marshall B. Ketchum University
2575 Yorba Linda Blvd.
Fullerton, CA 92831-1699
714.449.7429 • Fax: 714.992.7811• Email: jtong@ketchum.edu