GME Compensation and Benefits

Important Application Information

Houston Methodist Hospital Sample Agreement of Appointment

No Smoking Hiring Policy

Houston Methodist is committed to improving the health of our patients, employees, and communities around us. As a healthcare provider, it’s our responsibility to promote a healthier environment for those employed in our facilities. Job seekers will be tested for tobacco/nicotine product usage, including nicotine gum and patches, during the post-offer physical.

Effective Jan. 1, 2013, Houston Methodist Hospital will no longer enroll/hire residents and fellows who use products containing nicotine; a positive nicotine test at the pre-employment health screen is a failure to meet the conditions of employment considered a violation of the employment contract by the applicant and will result in the inability to start the program. The matched applicant's inability to start the training program will be reported to the NRMP.

If a potential resident/fellow tests positive for tobacco use, the offer will be rescinded and individuals will be given the opportunity to participate in a free Houston Methodist-provided tobacco cessation program. Residents wishing to reapply after testing positive for tobacco may do so 90 days after the date the initial offer was rescinded.

Applicants will not be allowed to start; maybe re-tested in 90 days, but programs will not be obligated to hold the position for the applicant. The applicant has, therefore, violated the match agreement.

ACLS Provider Certification

Residents and Fellows are required to have a current accredited ACLS Certificate throughout their training at Houston Methodist.

ACLS certification must be from an American Heart Association (AHA) accredited course provider. An AHA accredited course will display the AHA logo on your certification card. If your certification card does not display the AHA logo, it is NOT an accredited AHA course. Some companies and websites offer ACLS Certification however they are not AHA accredited and while they use the official textbook, they do not include a face-to-face skills test.

Prospective Residents – Benefits

Houston Methodist Hospital is proud to offer a comprehensive employee benefits program for our residents. This program will represent a sizable portion of the total compensation and is designed to provide protection and a measure of security for residents and their families. This information highlights the many benefit plans available to eligible resident employees. It is not intended to be a complete description of all benefits. Additional details are available and will be discussed upon acceptance in Houston Methodist Residency Program.

Eligibility in the many benefits programs offered by Houston Methodist Hospital is based upon full-time employment status.

Paycheck: Residents are paid every 2 weeks, in accordance with the biweekly pay schedule of Houston Methodist Hospital.

Houston Methodist Hospital Resident Salaries for Academic Year
Program Level	Salaries 2025- 2026
1	$69,981
2	$72,570
3	$75,055
4	$77,643
5	$81,299
6	$84,244
7	$87,049
8	$90,278

Insurance & Benefits

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, and Disability Insurance

Houston Methodist Hospital provides insurance programs to all resident employees of the hospital. The medical plans offered through Cigna are provided cost-free to residents. Insurance coverage for residents and their families, if enrolled, will start on the first official day of their programs.

The medical plan offers three options — Premier, Premier Plus and High Deductible. Premier and Premier Plus options are similar in coverage, except that the Premier Plus plan offers out-of-network opportunities.Vision insurance is provided through EyeMed Vision Care.

The dental coverage plans include either the Delta Dental DHMO or PPO. The DHMO plan requires a referral to a dental specialist from the primary dentist, while the traditional method (PPO) does not.

Life and Disability Benefits

Supplemental Life, Short, and Long-Term Disability, and Accidental Death and Dismemberment insurance plans are also available to residents. A baseline level of short and long-term disability and life insurance is provided free of charge to residents.

Coverage for dependents is available at group rates for medical, dental, vision, AD&D, and life insurance. The premiums for dependent coverage are deducted from the resident's payroll every two weeks.

Houston Methodist provides GME trainees with a one-time benefit of 240 hours of paid leave to be used for any time off from work that falls under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), such as, but not limited to, the birth of a child or a serious health condition affecting you or an applicable family member. The paid leave hours are provided at the beginning of the residency or fellowship and are available for the length of the training period.

Physical & Mental Wellness

Wellness Programs

Various wellness programs are available to residents such as smoking cessation, weight reduction, stress management, tai chi, etc.

Resources Flyer

Employee Assistance Plan (EAP)

The EAP, administered by United Behavioral Health, provides easy, no-cost access to a professional who can offer residents and family support and direction with personal or job-related stress. The EAP can assist with issues surrounding relationships, parenting concerns, drug and alcohol use, anxiety, depression, financial concerns, etc.

Financial Benefits

Flexible Spending Accounts

The resident may participate in a flexible spending account for health care and dependent care expenses through deductions from their pay on a pre-tax basis. The Health Care Spending Account allows residents to be reimbursed for eligible services not covered by the medical, dental, vision, or prescription plans up to the elected amount determined by the resident. The Dependent Care Spending Account allows residents to be reimbursed for childcare expenses.

Retirement Plans

Residents may contribute a significant level of allowed compensation to a 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuity, up to the annual IRS contribution limit. Residents will also receive an employer match of 50% up to the individual contribution of 4%. Additional assistance is available for retirement planning through Fidelity Investments as well.

Time Away

Personal Time Off

Resident employees are allocated PTO, for vacation, holidays, personal reasons, severe weather emergencies, family illnesses, and short-term personal illness at a predetermined annual level. The PTO annual award for residents at the PGY1 level is 16 days (128 hours) and the award for residents at the PGY2 level and above is 21 days (168 hours). Unused PTO will automatically carry over to subsequent training years.

Upon termination, residents who worked for Houston Methodist for at least four years from their original date of hire can receive a payout, less applicable taxes, of their remaining PTO balance (not to exceed the amount of PTO that was awarded for the current academic year). Residents may not participate in the PTO sell program. Example: A resident has finished their fourth academic year and has 208 hours remaining in the Bank PTO balance. Employment terminates so 168 PTO hours will be paid out with 40 hours being forfeited.

Educational Leave and Stipend

Residents at the PGY1 level and above are offered five (5) PTO days (40 hours) to present at professional meetings or attend in an official capacity (elevated officer/representative) approved by the respective Program Director. Residents are eligible to receive up to $2,500 per year to defray the costs of presenting at a conference (travel, lodging, airfare, and registration fee), etc.

Peace of Mind

Legal Plan

Hyatt Legal Plans provides a plan to assist residents with legal matters for a very minimal fee per pay period.

Malpractice and Tail Coverage

Houston Methodist Hospital provides residents with professional liability coverage at no cost. Liability coverage also includes legal defense and protection against awards from claims reported or filed after the completion of the program if the events are within the scope of the program ("tail coverage").

Additional Information

Transportation and Parking

Residents are given the opportunity to obtain parking contracts in the Texas Medical Center at discounted rates for various garages within close proximity to the hospital. Other transportation options are also available to residents through Human Resources Transportation Services and are discussed in greater detail during resident onboarding and orientation.

Resident Lounge and Call Rooms

Residents are encouraged to use the Resident's Lounge that is comfortably equipped with sofas, chairs, a refrigerator, a microwave, cable television, and computer workstations. Houston Methodist Hospital also provides call rooms for overnight call. The GME office also assigns sleep rooms to residents who are too fatigued to drive home safely.

Lab Coats

Residents are provided with a limited number of monogrammed lab coats through GME via your program at no cost to the resident.

Email

Each resident will receive a required Houston Methodist email account accessible from any Internet-capable computer.

This information highlights the many benefit plans available to eligible resident employees. It is not intended to be a complete description of all benefits and may change as institutional policies are modified. Additional details are available and will be discussed upon acceptance into a Houston Methodist Residency Program.

Call and Sleep Room System

In order to accommodate residents and fellows who are on call in the hospital overnight, Houston Methodist Hospital has implemented a modified hotel system to assign sleep rooms to residents and fellows. This system helps residents and fellows stay safe by helping them avoid driving while drowsy. This document explains how the call and sleep rooms operate and can be accessed.

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What is a call room?

Programs who always have residents or fellows assigned to overnight call at the hospital after a day of in-house duty are provided call rooms. Each room has a telephone and private (lockable) bathroom with shower, sink, and toilet. Call rooms are limited and not all programs have a call room. GME manages a small number of previously assigned rooms for certain programs. If you are taking call for a program with a call room, the program will notify you of its location and how to access the room(s).

Call rooms must be vacated by 8:00 am to allow housekeeping to clean the rooms. Call rooms are not to be used once housekeeping has cleaned the rooms. Residents found to be using call rooms during the day will receive a warning and may face subsequent adverse academic action.

What is a sleep room?

Sleep rooms are temporary lodging quarters for residents who are on-call from home or who become too tired to drive home. Methodist has a limited number of sleep rooms. Each sleep room has one or two beds, nightstands, and lamps as well as a telephone and private (lockable) bathroom with shower, sink, and toilet. If there are two beds in a sleep room, the sleep room is assigned by gender. Rooms are assigned by the Call Center (Dunn 202).

What happens if the Call Center “runs out” of sleep rooms for assignment?

If all sleep rooms are assigned, the Call Center (Dunn 202) works with the Bed Assignment Administrator to find space for trainees who need a sleep room.

Please DO NOT sleep in patient care areas, the Crain Garden, or the library. Go to the Call Center and ask for a sleep room. If the Call Center assigns you to an open patient room, you must vacate the room by 6:00 am, which is earlier than the 7:30 am check-out time for the “regular” sleep rooms.

Where does a trainee go to be assigned a sleep room?

Residents and fellows should go to the Call Center, located in Dunn 202 (on the same corridor leading to the Telecommunications Center) after 9:00 pm. The Call Center is operated 24 hours, 7 days a week. Residents must present their Methodist ID badge to be eligible for a sleep room assignment. The Call Center cannot verify a resident without his/her badge. For residents who are rotating to Methodist from other institutions, their Methodist ID badge also indicates their primary institution. Rotating residents will not be issued a sleep room without a Methodist ID badge.

How long can a resident use a sleep room?

A resident may not be assigned a sleep room before 9:00 pm. The resident may stay in the sleep room until 8:00 am. The sleep room must be vacated no later than 8:00 am in order for housekeeping to clean the room.

Because housekeeping and other residents/fellows may be accessing these rooms, Protected Health Information (PHI) must not be left unsecured in the call rooms, sleep rooms or the common area.

A locked bin is located in the common area for disposing of any PHI.

The following policies, found on Policy Tech, apply to PHI: BP07, HR12, IM22. Houston Methodist and its employees are subject to criminal penalties for failure to abide by HIPAA policies. There may be civil fines for failure to comply with requirements or standards. Penalties for wrongful or intentional disclosure of PHI include criminal fines and imprisonment. Fines range from $100/violation ($25,000 per year cap) to $50,000/violation ($1,500,000 per year cap). Individuals may be subject to criminal enforcement under HIPAA for wrongfully obtaining or disclosing PHI.

For more information or questions about the Houston Methodist call room system, please contact:

Phillip Stewart, EdD, MBA
Director, Graduate Medical Education

Houston Methodist Hospital

713.441.4967

Ombudsman Program

The ombudsman program for Graduate Medical Education is a resource for residents. If you are a patient and are concerned about your care, please ask your nurse to speak with a patient liaison or call Guest Relations at 713.441.4100.

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Each ombudsman is knowledgeable about hospital processes and graduate medical education training issues, requirements, and procedures. As impartial and confidential resources, the ombudsmen can help residents assess and solve disputes or problems. The ombudsmen do not have the authority to make decisions but can inform and refer residents to the individuals with that authority.

The ombudsman program is an alternative mechanism for residents to voice their concerns and to solve disputes. The program does not take the place of program directors and faculty in listening to resident concerns nor of the designated institutional official in handling due process and grievance procedures. The program supplements can be found through PolicyTech, a valid Houston Methodist ID and password are needed. For more information, please contact the GME Office.

Who are the ombudsmen?
The ombudsmen are faculty, residents or administrators who have been appointed with their consent by the director of graduate medical education at Houston Methodist Hospital and the designated institutional official to ensure confidentiality. Our staff participants are as follows:

Suzanne Powell, MD, Vice Chair of Education, Pathology
Rose Khavari, MD, Program Director, Urology Residency
Angelina Edwards, MD, Program Director, Nephrology
David Baskin, MD Program Director, Neurosurgery

Ombudsmen provide services to residents, and no ombudsman will hear the specific concerns of residents in his or her own program. Only the ombudsman will have knowledge of trainees’ requests for assistance. If you are seeking spiritual care, we have representation who can be of assistance or provide guidance.

What can an ombudsman do for me?

Hear your issues and concerns
Clarify issues of policy and procedures
Identify and evaluate your options for managing and resolving conflicts
Identify and facilitate avenues of communication
Gather information or conduct informal fact-finding
Connect you with the appropriate individuals at your request

How can I be sure that the process is confidential?
The ombudsmen will not keep personally identifiable records of matters discussed with them. They may not reveal your identity or discuss your issues or concerns without your specific permission (except as required by law and they must inform you of this).

Are there other ways for me to raise concerns or issues?
There are several mechanisms to raise concerns:

To your program director and program faculty; many programs designate a mentor for each resident;
To one of the peer-nominated and selected resident representatives to the GMEC (see GME internet website for their names);
To the Designated Institutional Official through an open-door policy or confidentially.

You should read and understand the procedures relating to problem-solving that apply to you as residents.

To contact an ombudsman:

Use the anonymous online form
Use the confidential email: hmhgmeombud@houstonmethodist.org
- In the body of the message, describe how you wish to be contacted (by email, by phone, by pager, etc.). You will receive a response from one of our ombudsmen within 1 business (M-F) day. Please feel free to specify which ombudsman you would prefer to respond to you.
If you do not receive a response or for more information about the Ombudsman Program, please contact :

Phillip Stewart, EdD, MBA
Director, Graduate Medical Education
Houston Methodist Hospital
gmeoffice@houstonmethodist.org

Upcoming Academic Events

Grand rounds, tumor boards, regularly scheduled series and case presentations are offered in multiple clinical disciplines and Houston Methodist locations.

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Individual Development Plan

Michelle Swick, PhD, Research Development Associate, Office of Faculty & Research Development

Jul 22 @ 11AM

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Eighth Annual MAPTA Summer Science Symposium

Houston Methodist Research Institute

Jul 31 @ 9AM