GME Family Medicine Residency
Program overview.
The Health First Family Medicine Residency Program, in partnership with Brevard Health Alliance (BHA), is dedicated to fostering the growth of skilled, compassionate, and well-rounded family medicine physicians. Together, we are committed to preparing residents to deliver exceptional, patient-centered care across diverse healthcare settings, while deeply rooted in the realities and rewards of community-based medicine.
This collaboration unites Health First’s mission to improve the health and wellness of the communities we serve with BHA’s role as Brevard County’s federally qualified health center, dedicated to providing accessible comprehensive care to all. Residents will train in environments where they not only develop clinical excellence, but also gain firsthand insight into the social, cultural, and economic factors that shape outcomes.
The Family Medicine Residency Program will be a three-year, ACGME-accredited program, and is fully committed to preparing the next generation of quality, patient-centered family care physicians. Throughout their training, our Family Medicine residents will gain comprehensive experience in both inpatient and outpatient environments, with meaningful exposure to the unique health challenges of our Brevard County Communities. Working closely with BHA’s dedicated care teams, residents will serve a broad patient base gaining the skills to address complex, real-world health needs.
Through this partnership, residents learn that medicine is not just about diagnosing and treating, it is about building trust, understanding the whole patient, and committing to a lifetime of learning and advocacy.
This program will accept 6 family medicine residents per year.
Program details.
Our program curriculum incorporates 13, 4-week block rotations which gives our Residents exposure to a wide variety of longitudinal learning experiences throughout the duration of the program.
PGY-1
Adult Inpatient Medicine: 3 blocks
Newborn: 1block
Dermatology: 1 block
General Surgery: 1 block
Emergency Medicine: 1 block
Obstetric Medicine: 1 block
Podiatry: 1 block
Pediatric outpatient medicine: 1 block
Community Medicine & Population Health: 1 block
Elective: 2 blocks
PGY-2
Adult Inpatient Medicine: 2 blocks
Pediatric Internal Medicine: 1 block
Pediatric Outpatient Medicine: 1 block
Endocrinology: 1 block
Emergency Medicine: 1 block
Obstetric Medicine: 1 block
Medical Intensive Care Unit (ICU): 1 block
Behavioral Health: 1 block
Geriatric Medicine: 1 block
Ears, Nose and Throat: 1 block
Elective: 2 blocks
PGY-3
Adult Inpatient Medicine: 3 blocks
Sports Medicine: 1 block
Orthopedics: 1 block
Health Systems Management: 1 block
Hospice & Palliative Medicine: 1 block
Addiction/Pain Management Medicine: 1 block
Gynecologic Medicine: 1 block
Night Float: 1 block
Elective: 3 blocks
Elective Opportunities: Allergy/Immunology, Gastroenterology, Cardiology, ENT, Gynecology, Infectious Disease, Hematology/Oncology, Nephrology, Neurology, Radiology, Research, Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine, Rheumatology, Urology, Weight Management, Community Medicine, Dermatology, Sports Medicine, General Surgery
Continuity Clinic:
- Residents will rotate in the Family Medicine Practice (FMP) for one half-day per week in PGY-1 and two half-days per week in PGY-2 and PGY-3.
- The Family Medicine continuity clinic experience is provided in partnership with Brevard County’s only Federally Qualified Health Center, Brevard Health Alliance
Each resident will be assigned a patient panel within the Family Medicine Practice (FMP), tracked through the electronic health record.
Residents will follow their patients across multiple care settings, including outpatient, inpatient, and transitional care encounters, with documentation integrated across systems.
This approach reinforces the mission of family medicine and ensures care that is accessible, compassionate, and continuous.
Specialty Specific Didactics:
Address sub-specialty topics across inpatient and outpatient settings, diagnosis and management of related patient conditions.
Board Review:
Covers a variety of key board review topics on a rotating basis
Morbidity and Mortality:
Focus on reviewing cases with unanticipated complications or adverse events, analyzing root causes, and proposing strategies to prevent future errors. Residents will engage in collegial and evidence-based discussions to address system-wide issues, such as outdated policies or limited resources, while collaborating with faculty and peers to develop effective solutions.
Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (QIPS):
Rotating topics addressing Root Cause Analysis (RCA), Risk Management, and Patient Safety events
Journal Club:
Residents and faculty discuss published research articles from peer-reviewed journals to improve critical appraisal skills, stay updated on evidence-based practices, and foster a culture of continuous learning. This conference is dedicated fostering discussion that bridges the gap between research findings and their practical application in clinical patient care.
Radiology Rounds:
Structured educational sessions focused on various aspects of diagnostic and interventional radiology, as it applies to the practice of caring for Family Medicine patients.
Simulation:
The simulation experiences for the Family Medicine residency program will include assessments of baseline clinical and communication skills, task trainers, progressive clinical skills training across a variety of inpatient and outpatient procedures, OB and abdominal ultrasound techniques, and a continuous glucose monitoring lab.
Health First firmly believes that training the next generation of physicians in evidence-based medicine is critical to caring for our communities. As a result, research and scholarly activity are embedded throughout our Family Medicineresidency program, ensuring Health First residents become pioneers in the advancement of practices, technologies and outcomes within Family Medicine. Residents are provided with time throughout every rotation to participate in scholarly activity and are always supported by the Health First Family Medicine faculty.
The Family Medicine program requires each resident to complete at least two scholarly activities throughout their time training at Health First. One of those projects must be focused on healthcare quality improvement and the other can be selected from a broader range of scholarly practices that enrich their understanding of medical science, evidence-based practice, and patient safety. The Health First Family Medicine Residency Program is committed to inspiring a new generation of family medicine physicians who are dedicated to advancing healthcare, improving health outcomes, and promoting wellness for individuals and families across Brevard County and the greater Central Florida area for years to come.