General Surgery Residency Program

We welcome you to the Kern Medical General Surgery Residency Program, located in Bakersfield, California. Kern Medical serves as the primary site for our program, an acute care teaching hospital offering support for six fully accredited residency training programs and four fellowships, including General Surgery. The program is crafted to equip each graduate with the knowledge and experience necessary to adeptly evaluate and manage the diverse challenges within the field of General Surgery.

As a resident in our program, you will benefit from a curriculum designed to cultivate your skills in evaluating, managing, and treating patients with a wide array of surgical needs. Through immersive clinical experiences, structured didactic sessions, and guidance from experienced faculty, you will develop the confidence and proficiency required to navigate the complexities of modern healthcare. Working alongside seasoned surgeons, you will gain hands-on experience across various surgical procedures, ensuring a comprehensive education in the field.

Throughout your residency, you will have the opportunity to rotate through esteemed institutions such as Kern Medical, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Valley Children’s Hospital, City of Hope Treatment Centers, Central California Heart and Lung Surgery, and others. These rotations will expose you to a diverse range of surgical specialties and patient populations, enriching your training experience and preparing you for a successful career in surgery.

Our program features a team of core faculty physicians who are experienced clinician-educators with board certification in Surgery and academic appointments at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. As a resident, you will actively engage in scholarly activities, including clinical or observational research, with the opportunity to present your findings at local, regional, or international meetings. This unique blend of clinical and scholarly activities will allow you to make meaningful contributions to the field while gaining invaluable experience as a member of our surgical team.

Accreditation

The Kern Medical General Surgery Residency Program was awarded initial accreditation by the Surgery Residency Review Committee in 2024. Our program is fully compliant with Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) standards and guidelines.

About the Surgery Department

At Kern Medical, our primary focus is the health and safety of our patients. We pride ourselves on offering state-of-the-art techniques utilizing modern technologies, including the latest Da Vinci surgical robot, lasers, and other minimally invasive modalities. As the premier trauma and tertiary care center in Kern County, our surgeons, anesthesiologists, and surgical services staff are available 24/7 to provide exceptional care.

Our board-certified specialty surgeons cover a wide range of surgical services, including orthopedic surgery, urological surgery, thoracic surgery, spine surgery, breast surgery, neurosurgery, trauma surgery, plastic and reconstructive surgery, podiatric surgery, hand surgery, ophthalmology, and otorhinolaryngology. We offer a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to benign and malignant diseases of the breast, with teams of skilled breast surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, radiologists, pathologists, and plastic surgeons specializing in breast reconstruction.

Our surgery faculty is dedicated to enhancing the expertise, range, and size of the Surgical Department. We recruit surgeons who exemplify our commitment to excellence, many of whom have trained at some of the nation's premier universities. Our faculty members

are nationally and internationally recognized in their areas of expertise, actively participating in surgical societies, serving on specialty boards, and contributing to editorial boards for peer-reviewed journals.