Residency at Canyon Vista Medical Center: A Pathway to Clinical Excellence
March 12, 2025
Canyon Vista Medical Center believes that the best way to achieve their mission statement of Making Communities Healthier is to build a strong foundation of providers. Toward that end, the hospital leadership has invested in an extensive teaching and mentoring program that reaches all levels of the healthcare organization.
When a student graduates from medical school, they earn the title of Doctor, but they must complete a residency program before they can be certified to treat patients independently and take the board-level licensing exams that make them full-fledged physicians. At the same time, acting in the role of mentor/teacher keeps our attending physicians sharper and more current with the newest research and technology.
The Graduate Medical Education (GME) program began at CVMC in 2007 with the first class of five Internal Medicine residents under the direction of Dr. William Elliott and the sponsorship of Midwestern University. That has grown to 16 current residents with a goal of capping the program at 18 in the future. Several of the 60+ residents from this program have chosen to stay on at Canyon Vista as Hospitalists. Our Internal Medicine residents recently competed in and won the American College of Physicians (ACP) Doctors’ Dilemma competition in both the preliminary and final rounds, earning the chance to represent the Arizona Chapter of ACP, Midwestern University, and CVMC in the national competition in April. The program is directed by Dr. Emad Hammode.
In 2010, the GME program expanded to include a 3-year Family Medicine residency, under the direction of Dr. Marc Kaplan. The first class of two residents has grown over the years, with 27 graduates to date, four of whom have continued to practice in Cochise County. This year the Family Medicine program has 10 residents and hopefully will expand to 12 for the next class. In 2023/2024, CVMC started an Emergency Medicine Fellowship, a one-year extension after graduation from residency. As of July 2025, there will have been two Fellows graduating per year, each with an intensive Emergency Medicine focus.
Noting the nationwide shortage of Pharmacists, and the need for additional accredited pharmacy residency programs, CVMC launched a one-year residency program for Pharmacy in 2023, affiliated with the University of Arizona Ken Coit College of Pharmacy. Ours is the first rural pharmacy residency program for the university. Pharmacist Lyndsey Oltmans was proud to announce that the Pharmacy residency program now accepts two residents into the program annually, enabling the Pharmacy to consistently extend services throughout the hospital. Dr. Nanhee Lee is the Program Director.
CVMC also offers new nursing graduates a transition-to-practice Nurse Residency program. Nurse Residents receive training, mentorship, feedback, and support in a collaborative environment, to ensure that they have the essential knowledge and hands-on experience necessary to treat their patients with the utmost safety and compassion. More on this in the next article!
Our community should be proud of the efforts Canyon Vista Medical Center is making towards building a healthier community, workforce, and healthcare industry.
ACP National Team (left to right): Sami Aqqad, MD, PGY1; Ayah Al Mufleh, MD, PGY1; Rusudan Tchigvaria, MD, PGY2; Baha Faiyoumi, MD, PGY2; Emad Hammode, MD, IM Program Director