History of the Program
The Department of Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Queens initiated and was approved for a freestanding residency-training program in surgery in 1960. This approval was for 2 categorical residents per year and the first graduating class was in 1965. At that time the hospital had 250 medical/surgical beds, and was performing 2000 surgical cases per year.
The medical center grew in parallel with the population and diversity of the community. The Department of Surgery was affiliated with the Department of Surgery at NYU and PGY-2 and PGY-4 NYU residents worked alongside the BMMC residents. The first Surgical Intensive Care Unit on Long Island, staffed by Surgical Intensivists was opened and this continues to provide a rich teaching environment for our surgical resident staff as well as Critical Care and ED residents rotating to our unit from other departments.
The NewYork-Presbyterian Queens was designated a Level I Trauma Center in 1984. This designation served the dual purpose of improving resident training in the management of the critically ill and injured patient and meeting the needs of the community.
In 1990, the hospital was purchased from the Salvation Army by the NYH. And this changed the academic affiliation from NYU to NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell which stands to this day.