Information for Incoming MED / PA Students (SURGERY - ATALLAH)
ROTATION SITE: MACON GA; GENERAL SURGERY
STEP ONE: FIND OUT WHO ELSE IS ROTATING WITH YOU ON SURGERY FROM YOUR SCHOOL. DR. ATALLAH HAS STUDENTS FROM SOUTH COLLEGE (ATLANTA), TRINITY MEDICAL SCHOOL, SOUTH UNIVERSITY (SAVANNAH), AND MERCER UNIVERSITY (MACON/ATLANTA)
STEP TWO: CREATE A GROUP CHAT (if you have not already). SEND A GROUP TEXT STATING YOU WILL BE STARTING ROTATION ON [SPECIFIC DATE]. MOST COMMUNICATIONS WILL BE VIA GROUP MESSAGING / TEXTING
STEP THREE: SHARE YOUR CONTACT WITH DR. ATALLAH. (YOU SHOULD HAVE MY CELL NUMBER). ALSO SEND YOUR SCHOOL EMAIL ADDRESS, RESUME (CV), AND A HEADSHOT PHOTO FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES
NOTE: PRIOR TO STARTING THE ROTATION, THERE WILL BE ASSIGNED READING AND PREPARATION — (SEE BELOW)
BUT HOW DO WE KNOW WHERE TO MEET? DR. ATALLAH WILL SEND YOU A TEXT MESSAGE THE DAY BEFORE AND INSTRUCT YOU EXACTLY WHERE TO MEET.
BADGING: YOU WILL NEED BADGES AT PIEDMONT HOSPITAL .
SPECIAL RULES AT PIEDMONT/ PIEDMONT RULES: ONLY 2 STUDENTS CAN BE IN THE OR/SCRUB FOR ANY GIVEN CASE. STUDENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE OR LOUNGE
NOTE: BRING EVERY ID/ BADGE (SCHOOL ID/ HOSPITAL BADGES) WITH YOU EVERY DAY ON ROTATION. DO NOT ASSUME THAT BECAUSE IT IS A ‘CLINIC DAY’ THAT WE WILL NOT BE GOING TO THE HOSPITAL(S). WE ROUND ON OUR PRE AND POST OPERATIVE PATIENTS AT HOSPITALS DAILY. WHEN POSSIBLE, HAVE YOUR BADGE ACCESS SET UP PRIOR TO THE START OF ROTATION. YOU WILL NOT BE REQUIRED TO USE THE HOSPITAL EMR SYSTEM (EPIC), YOU JUST NEED A VALID/ACTIVE BADGE.
COMMUNICATION: **VERY IMPORTANT** PLEASE RESPOND TO EVERY MESSAGE YOU RECEIVE. YOU CAN RESPOND WITH “OK”, “GOT IT”, “I DON’T UNDERSTAND”, A GIF, AN EMOJI, OR ANYTHING — BUT YOU ~MUST RESPOND~. YOU MUST ALSO REPSOND TO ALL EMAILS SENT, EVEN IF IT IS SIMPLY TO SAY ‘RECEIVED’. FAILURE TO REPOND TO TEXTS AND EMAILS WILL AFFECT YOUR FINAL GRADE. PUNCTUAL AND PROMPT COMMUNICATION IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF CLINICAL TEAMS and TEAMWORK.
THE FIRST THING WE DO ON SURGERY DAYS IS ****SEE THE PATIENT WE ARE GOING TO OPERATE ON *** AS A GROUP. WE DO EVERYTHING AS A TEAM.
SURGERY IS AN INTENSE ROTATION, EXPECT TO WORK HARD.
ARRIVAL TIMES: PLAN TO ARRIVE 15 MINUTES BEFORE ANY SCHEDULED ACTIVITY. FOR EXAMPLE, IF THE SURGERY IS AT 730AM, YOU SHOULD PLAN TO ARRIVE AT 715AM.
RECOMMENDED READING— PLEASE DOWNLOAD AND REVIEW PRIOR TO ROTATION
Recommended 2 MIN SCOPE DRIVING TUTORIAL #SIDEEYE
Recommended 1 MIN TUTORIAL on SUBCUTICULAR SUTURING
FAQ
1. WHAT DO I NEED TO BRING TO MY ROTATION? MOST IMPORTANTLY A POSITIVE ATTITUDE!! BUT ALSO BRING A STETHOSCOPE, A NOTE BOOK, AND LOTS OF PENS. NOTE: YOU WILL BE EXPECTED TO PERFORM A HEART AND LUNG EXAM ON EVERY. SINGLE. PATIENT. PRE-OP PATIENTS. POST-OP PATIENTS. CLINIC PATIENTS. ANY PATIENT. ALL PATIENTS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS.
WHAT ELSE DO I NEED? GET A CHECKOUT FROM THE PRIOR STUDENTS WHO CAN GIVE YOU THE DETAILS ABOUT THE ROTATION.
2. WHAT IS THE DRESS CODE ON SURGERY? YOU CAN WEAR SCRUBS — WHITE COAT IS OPTIONAL. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT COLOR THE SCRUBS ARE OR WHAT STYLE. THIS IS UP TO YOU. HOWEVER, REMEMBER THAT AT THE HOSPITAL YOU MUST WEAR THEIR SCRUBS FOR SURGERY. THEY ARE PROVIDED FOR FREE AND USUALLY STUDENTS CHANGE IN THE LOCKER ROOMS. YOU MUST ALSO WEAR EYE PROTECTION WHILE SCRUBBED INTO SURGERY. YOU WILL ALSO NEED TO DUE SCRUB TRAINING WITH DONNA ON MONDAY THE DAY YOU START.
THERE MAY BE DAYS THAT WE WILL DRESS UP (BUSINESS CASUAL) FOR CLINIC AND YOU WILL BE TOLD IN ADVANCE OF WHEN THIS WILL BE / IT WILL NOT BE FOR ALL CLINIC DAYS
I DO NOT HAVE A RULE ABOUT NAIL POLISH, EAR RINGS/ OTHER PIERCINGS/ OR TATTOOS. YOU CAN WEAR THESE AND DO NOT NEED TO COVER THEM UP.
3. WHAT IS MY SURGERY ROTATION GOING TO BE LIKE?
THIS ROTATION IS A BLEND OF DIDACTICS (LECTURES AND ASSIGNED READING), MAJOR SURGERY, MINOR SURGERY, AND CLINICS. WE WILL LEARN A TON AND YET STILL HAVE FUN! YOU WILL LEARN THE BASICS OF SURGERY, AND WE WILL DO LABS ON SUTURING AND STUDY ANATOMY BY REVIEWING ANATOMIC PLATES AND IMAGES, BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT GOAL IS TO UNDERSTAND THE MEDICAL MANAGMENT OF THE SURGICAL PATIENT.
4. SHOULD I PACK A LUNCH? WHILE IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO ALWAYS HAVE SNACKS, ETC, WE WILL OFTEN EAT LUNCH AT THE HOSPITALS WHICH IS FREE.
5. WHAT TYPES OF THINGS ARE WE GOING TO BE DOING WHILE ON SURGERY?
A. DIDACTIC LESSONS (STUDENTS WILL GIVE SOME LESSONS AS WELL) THESE WILL COVER A LARGE VARIETY OF SUBJECTS RELEVANT TO GENERAL SURGERY (NOT JUST COLORECTAL SURGERY). Here’s a LIST OF LECTURE TOPICS we will cover (time permiting) on Rotation
B. LESSONS ON SUTURING AND KNOT TYING
C. ACTUAL PRACTICE SUTURING, CUTTING, AND PERFORMIG OTHER ‘BASICS' IN SURGERY
D. CLINICAL EXPERIENCE TAKING HISTORIES, / DOING SOME EMR CHARTING
E. EXPOSURE TO ROBOTIC/ LAPAROSCOPIC / AND OTHER COMPLEX OPERATIONS OF THE LARGE INTESTINE
F. ANATOMY LESSONS AND REVIEW. WE WILL USE ANATOMY BOOKS TO UNDERSTAND THE PRINCIPLES OF SURGERY AND LEARN ABOUT ‘SURGICAL ANATOMY’
G. ASSIGNED ARTICLES AND READING RELATED TO SURGERY
H. MOST IMPORTANTLY: CARING FOR OUR PATIENTS
6. Will there be written tests?
Yes Actually!
7. WHAT IS THE ACTUAL SCHEDULE ON SURGERY GOING TO BE?
MONDAY: THIS DAY IS FOR MAJOR SURGERIES. MOST WEEKS IT WILL BE AT PIEDMONT HOSPITAL MAIN.
TUESDAY: TUMOR BOARD MEETING (7AM - 8AM). THIS DAY IS USUALLY A MIX OF THINGS. YOU WILL BE INFORMED WHAT THE PLAN OF THE DAY IS BEFORE, SO YOU WILL KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT.
WEDNESDAY: [ATALLAH HAS COLORECTAL TUMOR BOARD ONLINE 7-8AM YOU DO NOT ATTEND THIS] CLINIC ALL DAY: 830 AM TO 5 PM
THURSDAY: MINOR OPERATIONS AT PIEDMONT NORTH. COLONOSCOPY AT PIEDMONT NORTH
FRIDAY: CLINIC ALL DAY: 8:30 AM TO 5 PM.
SATURDAY/ SUNDAY: YES, YOU MAY BE ON CALL. I WILL EXPECT YOU TO COME MAKE ROUNDS WITH ME AND / OR ASSIST IN EMERGENCY SURGERY, IF NEEDED. THIS WILL BE DISCUSSED WEEK BY WEEK
HOLIDAYS: DO NOT ASSUME THAT HOLIDAYS MEANS YOU WILL BE OFF. MEMORIAL DAY / LABOR DAY FOR EXAMPLE MAY REQUIRE YOU TO COME IN FOR ROUNDING OR SURGERY.
TIME OFF: TIME OFF HAS TO BE REQUESTED IN ADVANCE AND YOUR SCHOOL HAS TO BE NOTIFIED. MAKE UP DAYS MAY BE REQUIRED
IMPORTANT ADDRESSES:
DR. ATALLAH - OFFICE:
PIEDMONT MACON ‘’MAIN’'
380 HOSPITAL DRIVE
BLDG A SUITE 320
MACON GA 31217
MAIN HOSPITAL AND MAIN OR
PIEDMONT MACON ‘’MAIN’'
380 HOSPITAL DRIVE
MACON GA 31217
TUMOR BOARD LOACTION:
PIEDMONT MACON ‘’MAIN’'
380 HOSPITAL DRIVE
BLDG C FIRST FLOOR
MACON GA 31217
PIEDMONT MACON ‘’NORTH’’
400 CHARTER BLVD
MACON GA 31210
ACCESS CODES — WILL BE SHARED PRIVATELY
PLEASE JOIN THE CLOSED FACEBOOK COLORECTAL SURGERY GROUP SO WE CAN SHARE OUR FUN MOMENTS (ONLY VERIFIED STUDENTS WILL BE ALLOWED TO JOIN)
GREAT Video BY A STUDENT FOR A STUDENT ON SURGERY “DO’S AND DON’TS” !
ANYTHING ELSE? HERE IS A OUT-DATED VIDEO MADE BY PA STUDENTS FOR PA STUDENTS ON SURGERY WITH ATALLAH (2020).
REMEMBER — THIS IS YOUR EDUCATION. YOU’RE PAYING FOR IT. LET’S MAKE THE VERY BEST OF IT :-)
About your preceptor (CV) — last updated Feb 2026
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