Internal Medicine Residency Program

A Note from the Program Director

Welcome to the ACGME-accredited Internal Medicine Residency Program at MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center. MercyOne has partnered with Primary Health Care, Inc. to form the MercyOne Des Moines/PHC Consortium to enhance graduate medical opportunities in Iowa. MercyOne Des Moines/PHC Consortium is the Internal Medicine Residency sponsor. MercyOne Medical Center, in coordination with the ambulatory care experiences with Primary Health Care, Inc., conducts inpatient services and program management.

The residency outpatient continuity clinic is also a part of this collaboration. The outpatient continuity clinic is a Primary Health Care, Inc., Federally Qualified Health Center. The clinic comprises a diverse patient population spanning all age groups, socio-economic classes, and ethnic groups.

We offer a Categorical Track (10 residents at each post-graduate level) and a Primary Care Track (3 residents at each post-graduate level) designed to provide comprehensive and tailored experiences to meet your career goals and aspirations. I want to take this opportunity to describe both tracks and highlight what makes our program unique.

Categorical Track:

Our Categorical Track is designed for residents who are passionate about pursuing careers in internal medicine, subspecialties, academic medicine, or hospitalist roles. As a categorical resident, you will:

Engage in a well-rounded and rigorous curriculum covering all internal medicine aspects.
Have the opportunity to work closely with faculty leaders in their respective fields.
Gain exposure to a diverse range of subspecialties and clinical research.
Develop strong clinical skills in inpatient and outpatient settings.
Be well-prepared for clinical practice or fellowship training.

Primary Care Track:

Our Primary Care Track is perfect for those residents who are committed to becoming excellent primary care physicians or pursuing a career in specialized primary care (geriatrics, addiction medicine, women’s health, HIV), global health, ambulatory specialty (endocrinology, rheumatology), or academic medicine. As a primary care resident, you will:

Receive specialized training in outpatient medicine, preventive care, and patient-centered communication.
Benefit from mentorship and guidance from experienced primary care clinicians.
Participate in community outreach and health promotion initiatives.
Develop expertise in chronic disease management and continuity of care.
Be prepared to provide comprehensive, compassionate, and evidence-based care in primary care settings.

The MercyOne Internal Medicine Residency program is a three-year program on both tracks. Inpatient Internal Medicine teams include residents, interns, and students who work with the faculty to provide 24-hour coverage for this service. The residents rotate through a broad spectrum of sub-specialties, including cardiology, pulmonology, critical care, endocrinology, geriatrics, gastroenterology, hematology/oncology, infectious diseases, nephrology, neurology, behavioral health, palliative care, and rheumatology. Elective rotations are also available.

The program faculty instructs and supervises the residents in the inpatient and outpatient settings. Faculty members include general internists as well as fellowship-trained physicians. The residents have the opportunity to participate in procedures related to the practice of internal medicine.

The program has a comprehensive didactic plan to assist residents in their preparation to practice state-of-the-art Internal Medicine. Our curriculum incorporates a traditional lecture format, case-based learning, and team-building exercises. The curriculum also includes morning reports, M&M discussions, lectures, multidisciplinary conferences, Journal Club, financial education, board review, and point-of-care ultrasound. In addition, we provide support for developing scholarly activities and nurturing the future internist’s curious mind.

We invite you to explore this site to better familiarize yourself with the comprehensive offerings of our residency program. You will see that our reputation for excellence in training is well deserved.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information.

Best,

Maria Alejandra Guevara Hernandez, MD FACP FHM

Program Director

A Note from the Chief Residents,

Welcome and thank you for your interest in the MercyOne Medical Center Internal Medicine Residency Program. As chief residents for the 2023 – 2024 year, we are proud to contribute to the development of our program, and we welcome all interested applicants.

MercyOne Medical Center is located in downtown Des Moines and is part of an 875-bed hospital system, including locations in West Des Moines and surrounding areas. Mercy is a large tertiary referral center for Central Iowa and is certified as a Level II trauma center. The hospital also has held certification as a Primary Stroke Center from The Joint Commission since 2007 and is associated with Iowa Heart Center, a major driving force for clinical research and patient care in the United States.

Our three-year residency program has developed a comprehensive and balanced learning environment, including a strong inpatient foundation, multiple subspecialty rotations, and weekly continuity clinic time. We work to create electives based on our residents’ desires, such as a hospital procedure-based month and HIV clinic.

The strengths of our program include faculty dedicated education and cultivating strong physicians. Furthermore, you will work one-on-one with excellent pulmonology/critical care physicians and have ample opportunity to develop your procedural skills. We also work closely with our cardiology fellowship, now in its fifth year with six fellows, including rotations in general cardiology, advanced heart failure, and electrophysiology.

There are thirteen residents per year, including three residents in our primary care track, providing the opportunity for a personalized experience at MercyOne. Our program exemplifies resident wellness by customizing each schedule to help residents meet their individual career goals. The program boasts having no 24 hours calls and having flexible PTO time to maximize mental health. We pride ourselves on our residents' camaraderie and cooperative atmosphere.

The specialized didactic schedule developed by our program director ensures time away from clinical duties to focus on building your knowledge base and complement your bedside learning. Didactics include noon conference lectures led by subspecialists, morning reports, monthly M&M’s, and multidisciplinary neurology grand rounds. In addition to this, there is one half-day every week focused on learning and board preparation.

Through relationships with specialists associated with the hospital, the continuity clinic, and Des Moines University, many residents have published research and case studies in numerous journals, such as NEJM, or have presented them at national conferences. Past residents have gone on to fellowships in hematology/oncology, cardiology, GI, pulmonary/Critical Care, ID, sleep medicine, geriatrics, nephrology, rheumatology, and endocrinology. Other residents have focused their careers on hospitalist medicine or outpatient general internal medicine.

Our focus is on building a welcoming and family-like atmosphere, a strong culture of respect and community, and preparing our residents to practice independently. We invite you to reach out to us and see what MercyOne Des Moines is all about!