Internal Medicine Los Angeles Medical Center - Training

Curriculum Overview

We don’t believe in just checking boxes.

Our curriculum is built for residents who want to understand—not just do. We emphasize clinical reasoning, pattern recognition, and thoughtful decision-making—skills that require time, exposure, and structure to develop. At KP LAMC, we provide that structure.

You’ll learn in a system that values your time, challenges your thinking, and gives you the tools to grow.
From the start of intern year, you’ll rotate through core subspecialties like Infectious Disease, Neurology, Endocrinology, and Palliative Care. These early exposures help anchor your clinical framework and provide the context needed to make sound decisions as your responsibilities expand.

Our faculty are full-time practicing clinicians who also love to teach. They don’t just tell you what to do—they help you understand why. They’ll coach you to refine your reasoning, adjust your approach, and calibrate your thinking through real-time feedback and discussion. Their goal isn’t just to get you through a rotation—it’s to make sure you leave it with sharper clinical judgment.

We support your learning with:
• A balanced schedule that respects your cognitive bandwidth and clinical responsibilities
• Structured feedback and mentorship to support continuous growth
• Time and space to reflect, study, and build deep, durable knowledge

We believe learning must be self-directed. Our job is to create the conditions where that learning can thrive—so that by the time you finish training, your confidence is earned, your skillset is deep, and your thinking reflects the physician you’ve become.

Clinical Schedule & Block Structure

We structure our residency into two-week blocks, giving us the flexibility to balance immersion, recovery, and reflection. While the pattern often resembles a 4+2 rhythm—four weeks of inpatient care followed by two weeks of ambulatory or elective time—it’s not formulaic. We prioritize educational balance, not rigid templates.

This flexible structure allows us to:
• Create protected time for ambulatory clinic, electives, and focused study
• Avoid the burnout that comes from unbroken stretches of high-acuity inpatient care
• Customize learning paths while maintaining continuity and accountability

Across the year, residents rotate through general medicine wards, all internal medicine subspecialties, intensive care units, and ambulatory experiences. Early in PGY-1, you’ll be exposed to key subspecialties—such as Infectious Disease, Neurology, and Endocrinology—so that your foundational knowledge builds in step with your clinical responsibilities.

We’ve designed the schedule to balance intensity with recovery—so you can be fully present, engaged, and learning, not just getting through the day. The two-week block structure allows for thoughtful pacing and flexibility, while also enabling residents to revisit key subspecialties at multiple stages of training. This kind of progressive re-engagement deepens clinical understanding by layering new insights onto earlier experiences, reinforcing learning through reflection and real-world context.

Sample Schedule

*Continuity Clinic Weekly on Thursdays for CAT PGY1 Interns

Call Structure
We use a short call model supported by a dedicated float system. This approach emphasizes resident ownership of care while also preserving time for reflection, continuity, and learning.
• Call occurs roughly every five days, concentrating admissions into manageable, focused intervals
• A “drip” system allows patients to be admitted gradually across teams, maintaining team balance and promoting end-to-end patient care
• Dedicated night float and backup systems ensure 24/7 in-house support while avoiding prolonged shifts or overextension

The goal of our call structure is to optimize continuity, accountability, and sustainability—so you’re not just admitting patients, but following them through their course of care and truly learning from the process.

Graduated Autonomy & Capstone Experiences

We believe that autonomy is not granted—it’s earned. And it’s most meaningful when paired with thoughtful support.

Our training model is built around graduated responsibility—giving you increasing clinical and decision-making ownership as your skills grow. But you are never alone. Throughout residency, in-house support is always available, whether from hospitalists, intensivists, or subspecialty teams. Our goal is to challenge you, not overwhelm you.

Intern Year (PGY-1)
• Focus on building clinical reasoning, efficiency, and diagnostic frameworks
• Early exposure to key subspecialties to build a strong foundation
• Close supervision with structured feedback to guide growth

Junior to Senior Transition (PGY-2)
• Increased expectations for case management, triage, and leading the primary team
• Exposure to consult services and more advanced clinical decision-making
• Ongoing mentorship through ILPs and developmental coaching

Senior Year (PGY-3): Capstone and Clinic Autonomy
• During the Capstone rotation, PGY-3 residents function as near-independent hospitalists under attending supervision. You’ll manage patient care end-to-end, coordinate with interdisciplinary teams, and take primary responsibility for clinical decisions—while still having real-time support from experienced faculty.

• In continuity clinic, PGY-3s are expected to make independent assessments and management plans for their own patient panels, with faculty available for guidance as needed. This model reflects the expectations of real-world outpatient practice while ensuring ongoing mentorship and support.

This progressive autonomy isn’t just about clinical competency—it’s about professional identity formation. You leave residency not just knowing more, but thinking more like an internist: confident, reflective, and accountable.

Continuity Clinic & Ambulatory Training

Ambulatory training at KP LAMC is intentional, structured, and grounded in real-world practice. Our goal is to prepare residents to manage complex outpatient care with competence, efficiency, and a clear understanding of how healthcare systems should work.

Continuity Clinic
Each categorical resident is assigned a continuity clinic panel beginning in intern year. PGY-1s attend clinic weekly on most rotations, typically on Thursday afternoons—a structure that brings the entire intern class together and fosters community early in training.
Panels grow over time through new assignments and transitions from inpatient care. By PGY-3, residents manage their panels with near-independent decision-making, supported by preceptors who provide focused calibration and guidance.

Ambulatory Rotations
Beyond continuity clinic, our ambulatory curriculum includes dedicated rotations in both outpatient subspecialties and primary care:
• Subspecialty Rotations: Endocrinology, Rheumatology, Geriatrics, Dermatology, Gynecology, Urgent Care, and Infectious Disease
• Primary Care Rotations (PGY-2 & PGY-3): Focused blocks at DTLA, West Hollywood, and Hollywood Sunset Free Clinic with training in HIV care, LGBTQ+ health, and Gender-Affirming Care

Residents also learn essential outpatient skills, including:
• Panel and population management
• Inbox workflows and asynchronous care strategies
• Use of AI agents to support documentation—introduced only after clinical reasoning skills are well developed

What Sets Our Ambulatory Training Apart
Training at KP LAMC gives residents a firsthand look at how an integrated health system is meant to function. While we face the same challenges as any healthcare system—high patient volume, growing demand for access—we do so within a streamlined, coordinated model that prioritizes patient outcomes and physician decision-making.
• Residents follow patients through every phase of care: hospital, clinic, transitions, referrals, and back again
• Medical decisions are made by physicians—not dictated by insurers or outside entities
• We operate under a model of evidence-based, self-regulating care, grounded in current guidelines and supported by real-time access to clinical information across the continuum

This transparency and system-level visibility give our residents a unique perspective—not only on patient care, but on how health systems can and should work. Whether you pursue primary care, hospital medicine, or fellowship, this training sharpens your ability to deliver efficient, coordinated, and evidence-based care across every phase of the health system.

Preliminary Medicine Training

Our Preliminary Medicine residents are fully integrated into the fabric of our program. They rotate through the same core inpatient and subspecialty experiences as our categorical interns, including intensive care units, general medicine wards, and night float. They attend the same boot camp, didactics, and simulation training, and are valued members of our resident community.

Didactics & Educational Conferences

We don’t believe learning happens just because someone talks at you.

Our didactic curriculum is designed to give you what you need—when you need it—so that you can make sense of what you’re seeing, deepen your reasoning, and grow in confidence over time.
We believe that learning is most effective when it’s self-directed, and that the right structure and community can make that growth sustainable. That’s why our conferences are more than just lectures—they’re opportunities to reflect, connect, and build practical skills that align with your Individualized Learning Plan.

Structure & Format
We offer noon conferences most weekdays, protected from clinical duties. Sessions are interactive, case-based, and taught by expert faculty who are full-time clinicians—teachers who understand the realities of practice and the decisions you face.

What we teach is deliberately chosen to reinforce clinical reasoning, build durable skills, and support your Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) goals. Topics include:
• Professional Development: Sessions to help you build the kind of professional foundation that lasts long after residency, including on medical errors, difficult conversations, feedback, and career decision-making
• “How-To” Series: Practical, often overlooked skills like placing home health orders, navigating disability documentation, or managing uncertainty in chronic illness
• Narrative Medicine: Space to reflect and process the emotional side of medicine—critical to long-term sustainability
• Board Review: Sessions led by both specialists and residents, focused on clinical context, synthesis, and durable retention (not trivia dumps)
• Journal Club: Led by Research Track residents, with emphasis on real-world applicability and critical appraisal
• Morning Report: Focused on how to present, reason through, and represent complex clinical problems
• M&M (Morbidity & Mortality): Resident-led, interdisciplinary, and grounded in just culture—not blame
• Grand Rounds: Monthly sessions that bring together physicians across the institution to explore relevant medical and systemic topics

Simulation, Procedures & POCUS Training

At KP LAMC, we offer meaningful, hands-on opportunities to build procedural confidence—through repetition, coaching, and practice in real clinical environments. These experiences are designed to reinforce decision-making, communication, and teamwork under pressure.

Simulation
Residents participate in:
• Intern boot camp week, which introduces foundational procedural skills, emergency response, and ultrasound
• Monthly Code Blue simulations, led by faculty and interdisciplinary teams to reinforce crisis leadership and coordination
Simulation is integrated throughout the year as a way to rehearse high-stakes situations in a structured, supportive environment.

Procedural Training
Residents have access to a high volume of procedural opportunities, especially in the ICU, on medicine wards, and during consult rotations. If you seek out procedures, you will be supported—with supervision always available and skills that build over time.
• Residents pursuing Critical Care or Cardiology have been able to perform over 100 central lines by graduation
• Common procedures include thoracentesis, paracentesis, lumbar puncture, and more
Whether your goal is procedural independence or foundational exposure, we ensure you have the opportunity and guidance to grow.

Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS)
Since 2017, our program has offered structured POCUS training throughout all three years of residency. This includes:
• Routine bedside use of GE VScan devices on inpatient teams
• Dedicated practice on live patients during in ICU and urgent care settings
• Access to a Zonare ZS3 for guided procedural support and advanced scanning
• Integration into clinical decision-making in both inpatient and outpatient settings
All residents graduate with strong, practical POCUS skills that enhance both diagnostic and procedural confidence.

Quality Improvement & Systems-Based Practice

Our Quality Improvement (QI) curriculum is designed to move beyond theory into practice. Residents engage in meaningful, system-level work—representing their peers, contributing to real committees, and driving projects that improve patient care—because understanding systems, and being able to improve them, is part of what makes a great physician.

Longitudinal QI Curriculum
The curriculum includes:
• Completion of the IHI Open School modules to build foundational QI knowledge
• Structured didactics and workshops on systems thinking, root cause analysis, and project planning
• Integration into hospital and departmental committees where residents serve as representatives and stakeholders
• Longitudinal project development, with guided mentorship from faculty and committee leadership

Residents are encouraged to develop projects that grow out of what they see in their day-to-day work—whether related to patient safety, transitions of care, or population health. These projects are reviewed and presented throughout the year, with the goal of building both system literacy and change-making confidence.

Coaching, Feedback & Individualized Learning Plans

We believe that growth in residency doesn’t happen automatically—it requires intention, structure, and reflection. That’s why we’ve built a coaching model that supports residents in driving their own development with purpose and perspective.

Individualized Learning Plans (ILPs)
Each resident develops an Individualized Learning Plan early in the year, which evolves over time through mentorship, feedback, and self-reflection. These plans are more than a formality—they’re living tools that help you:
• Set goals tailored to your strengths, needs, and aspirations
• Reflect on feedback and experiences with guidance
• Identify patterns in your clinical thinking, communication, and leadership
• Recalibrate over time as you grow across different domains of training
ILPs are integrated into your semiannual reviews, longitudinal didactic themes, and mentorship meetings—so that your goals don’t just sit on paper. They shape how you learn and how we support you.

Coaching & Mentorship
You’ll be paired with a longitudinal mentor who serves as a coach—not an evaluator. Your mentor helps you:
• Navigate challenges in residency
• Reflect on your ILP and update goals
• Explore career paths, applications, and fellowship planning
• Stay grounded in your values and strengths
Mentorship is meant to be personal and safe—anchoring you during the uncertainty and growth that residency brings.

Feedback & Evaluation
We emphasize a culture of coaching and continuous improvement, where feedback is not only expected—but useful. Our focus is on delivering concrete, actionable feedback that helps you make real changes in how you approach clinical reasoning, communication, and patient care.

You’ll also receive guidance on how to give feedback to others—an important skill for team leadership and professional growth.

Alongside this coaching model, our Clinical Competency Committee (CCC) provides a structured assessment of your progress across the ACGME competencies. These formal reviews are paired with your ILP, giving you both a clear sense of where you stand and a path forward. It’s not just about checking milestones—it’s about understanding how you’re growing, and what comes next.

Electives & Customization

Residency should not be one-size-fits-all. At KP LAMC, we provide the structure and resources—but encourage residents to shape their own path. Elective time is protected, flexible, and intentionally integrated early in training to support exploration and growth.

Early & Intentional Design

Residents are given generous elective time across all three years of training—with many blocks occurring early, allowing you to explore interests, build relationships with mentors, and test potential career paths while they still influence your development.
We encourage residents to use this time strategically:
• To deepen clinical exposure in key subspecialties
• To pursue QI, research, or health systems projects
• To develop outpatient skills, procedural competence, or teaching experience
• To reconnect with professional values through global health or community medicine

Full Subspecialty Access

All internal medicine subspecialties are available for electives, including:
Cardiology, Endocrinology, Rheumatology, GI, Heme-Onc, Pulmonary, ID, Nephrology, Palliative Care, Addiction Medicine, and more.
Residents may also revisit subspecialties across multiple years, gaining deeper insight and perspective with each return exposure.

We also offer electives in areas like:

• Health policy and advocacy
• Global health (Learn More)
• LGBTQ+ care
• Community Medicine

The system is here to support you—but the direction is yours to define. Whether you’re customizing your experience for fellowship, hospital medicine, or something entirely unique, we want you to leave with a training story that’s fully your own.

Flexibility with Structure
Our two-week block schedule was deliberately designed to provide flexibility—for both career planning and life. It allows for smoother integration of electives, scheduling of conferences, and protected time for personal events like weddings, family needs, or interviews.
We also include a dedicated Backup rotation to ensure that clinical coverage doesn’t come at the cost of your learning. Instead of pulling you away from valuable rotations when unexpected absences arise, our system is structured to preserve your clinical experiences, not interrupt them.

Board Preparation & Academic Support

Board preparation at KP LAMC is built into the way we teach—not layered on top. We believe that preparing for the boards should come naturally as you develop clinical reasoning, apply evidence-based care, and synthesize what you’re learning across settings.

Structure
All residents receive access to a digital MKSAP subscription, which forms the backbone of self-directed board review. This is supported by a mix of:
• Specialist-led board review sessions, focused on high-yield concepts with real-world clinical context
• Resident-led board reviews, designed to reinforce key material while building teaching and presentation skills
• Integration with noon conferences and ILPs, so that board prep aligns with your overall learning plan—not a separate burden

Our goal isn’t just for you to pass—we want you to feel confident that your preparation reflects your clinical knowledge and your ability to apply it under pressure.

Our program is committed to your growth. If it turns out that you need extra help, we will meet you where you are. You’ll have the space, time, tools, and mentorship to identify barriers and overcome them.

What Comes Next

There’s a lot to consider when choosing a residency, and we’ve tried to be transparent about what training at KP LAMC looks like. We’re proud of what we offer—but more importantly, we’re proud of the kind of physicians our residents become.

If our training philosophy resonates with you—if you value structure with flexibility, high expectations with support, and learning that’s rooted in purpose—we invite you to explore further:

– Learn about our Primary Care Track and Research Track
– Meet our Leadership Team and Residents
– Visit our Application FAQ for key dates and interview details

Ultimately, we hope you find a program that challenges you to grow, supports your goals, and prepares you to care for patients the way they deserve.

And if that path leads you here—we’d be honored to guide you.