Psychiatry Residency at Metropolitan
Since its founding in 1875, Metropolitan Hospital has been affiliated with New York Medical College, representing the oldest partnership between a hospital and a private medical school in the United States. Located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan between 97th and 99th Streets, Metropolitan’s Department of Psychiatry includes three adult inpatient units, a separate psychiatric emergency room, an adult outpatient clinic, a child and adolescent outpatient clinic, a methadone/buprenorphine clinic, consultation liaison services, substance abuse treatment, and community treatment teams.
We have 26 total permanent positions in our residency, so around 6-7 new residents are selected to begin PGY1 each year. Our residents benefit from a supportive learning environment and a curriculum & schedule that emphasizes practical experience.
Our program is fully accredited by the ACGME, and we currently meet all of their standards and requirements, with no citations. The program has a long, established history, with many well-known leaders in psychiatry counted among our faculty and graduates. The program provides a learning environment based on clinical example and practice, in which residents are an integral part of our department’s staff of providers, under direct supervision of seasoned attendings at all times. The department serves a culturally diverse urban community, with individuals suffering the full spectrum of psychiatric disorders, including co-occurring complications, in the context of varied socioeconomic backgrounds. Our residents work with patients of all ages, in a variety of inpatient and ambulatory programs. All services and training are located at a single location, within Metropolitan Hospital. Our ACT program elective includes going with the team into the community.
We have an active inpatient service, comprised of three adult units. Through court mandated treatment, and our on-site courtroom, residents have an active forensic experience. Our busy ambulatory service includes a large on-site adult clinic, with a novel urgent care walk-in service, and a separate child and adolescent clinic. The clinics provide residents with training and experience in supervised psychotherapy as well as medication management. Residents may also elect to rotate through our methadone/suboxone program, our mobile community outreach program, as well as related services in other departments at Metropolitan Hospital.
Our department trains several students from two medical schools, engaged in their MS 3 core rotation, throughout the year. Residents are expected to participate in teaching and demonstrating to medical students on their service rotations and may deliver classroom lectures to medical students.
Our program strives to balance practical experience with scholarly activities, including a daily academic experience. Residents play a crucial role in our department, both clinically, as part of multi-disciplinary treatment teams on the various services, as well as maintaining the training program itself. Residents participate in program development and planning. We are continually striving to improve our program, and input from our residents is a significant aspect of that process. Our residents have fostered a culture of mutual support and encouragement.
Ashraf El-Shafei, M.D.
Chief of Service
Program Director (Interim)
Contact Us
Metropolitan Hospital
Department of Psychiatry, Residency Training
1901 First Ave
New York, NY 10029
Phone: 646-672-3143
