• Overview & Rotation Description
  • Rotation Year One
  • Rotation Year Two
• Educational Activities
• Evaluations
• Mentorship
• Research
• On-Call
• Electives
• Hematology
  Training
  Handbook

Division of Hematology & Thromboembolism

Overview & Rotation Description

The adult Hematology program fulfills the specialty training requirements in Hematology as defined by the Royal College of Physician and Surgeons of Canada and is designed to provide residents with training that ensures flexibility in their future career choices in Hematology.

Over forty hematologists and allied health care professionals participate in the two-year residency training program. Trainees move through eleven core rotations structured to provide exposure to both clinical hematology and laboratory medicine. Rotations are based at Hamilton sites with a major interest and expertise in the content area to be covered. Participating sites include Hamilton Health Sciences (McMaster University Medical Centre, Henderson General Hospital, and Hamilton General Hospital sites), St. Joseph’s Healthcare, and the Juravinski Cancer Centre.

The first year of training is primarily laboratory based and contains seven blocks. Four of these blocks are two months in duration and provide comprehensive laboratory training in Transfusion Medicine, Hemostasis/Coagulation, Red Cell Disorders, and Cellular Diagnostics. The remaining three blocks are predominantly clinical in nature and include a two month Thromboembolism rotation, a one month Pediatric Hematology Rotation and a one month Junior Hematology Attending at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Concurrent with these rotations, residents also participate in a Longitudinal Clinic experience. In the second year of the program, there are two blocks that provide comprehensive clinical training including exposure to allogeneic and autologous peripheral stem cell and marrow transplantation, a four month Elective block that allows for focused research or clinical elective experiences, as well as a one month Medical Oncology experience designed to fulfill training requirements of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

At the discretion of the Program Director, and with the specific consent of the residents involved, the Program Director may ask residents to undertake clinical rotations in the PGY-4 year. This will only occur when resident numbers are unbalanced between the PGY-4 and PGY-5 years, resulting in open clinical blocks in one year. In addition, International Medical Graduates who are not planning on undertaking Royal College examinations in Canada may modify the rotation structure, with the consent of the Program Director and Residency Program Committee, to suit their specific training needs.

During the two year training program, residents work closely with hematologists whose interests span diverse areas of clinical hematology, clinical research, and basic research. Basic science teaching is incorporated into all aspects of laboratory and clinical training, as well as during formal (Academic Half-Day) and informal teaching sessions. Biostatistics and critical appraisal are emphasized throughout the teaching program, including in Academic Half-Day sessions and Journal Clubs. All rotations, as well as Multidisciplinary Academic Half-Days, address ethical issues. Quality control and quality assurance are covered in both laboratory and clinical rotations.