Who to contact above your residency program director

A concern raised with the wrong person may count as never raised at all.

Many residents raise a concern verbally with their program director, hear nothing back, and later find there is no record that they raised it at all. Others try to go higher, send the message to the wrong person, and get no reply or referral. Learn who your offices are before you need them.

Tell us what you need to raise: start a confidential intake. We will help you find the right office.

The offices above your program

• The designated institutional official (DIO). The person who, with the Graduate Medical Education Committee, oversees all of the sponsoring institution's accredited programs.
• The graduate medical education (GME) office. Usually the practical first stop above the program. It administers policies, grievances, and records.
• The Graduate Medical Education Committee (GMEC). Oversees programs institution-wide and includes resident members.
• Human resources. For employment matters, including leave, pay, benefits, and accommodations.
• Resident or house staff organizations. Some institutions have a resident council or union with its own contacts.

Find the names in your GME handbook or policies. Write them down now.

Put it in writing, to the right office

• Keep it factual: what happened, when, and who was present.
• Say what you are asking for.
• Send it to the named office, not to a general inbox or a colleague.
• Keep a copy outside your institutional account, and note the date.
• If you get no reply, follow up in writing, so the silence is on the record.

Outside bodies: awareness only

The ACGME accepts reports about whether programs meet accreditation requirements, but it does not decide individual employment disputes. Discrimination charges with a government agency have their own strict deadlines. Whether to use either is a decision for counsel. See what each avenue can and cannot do.

If a concern came before an adverse action

Keep the message you sent and any absence of a reply. Write down what happened after. See the patterns we see.

If this is happening to you

Facing a deadline from your program? Tell us what you need to raise and what has happened so far. We will review your situation confidentially and point you to the right next step: start a confidential intake.

Resident Help is not a law firm, and submitting an intake does not create an attorney-client relationship. If your situation needs a lawyer, we will tell you and help you find one.