A Message From Our Director
Welcome to the Dignity Health Family Medicine Residency at Northridge, affiliated with David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA!
Since 1976, the Family Medicine Residency at Northridge has been actively engaged in the dual missions of guiding residents to become family medicine physicians and providing quality healthcare to the residents of the San Fernando Valley. Today we have successfully produced over 250 graduates who are now serving as family medicine physicians throughout our state and nation. We are proud of our ongoing service to the underserved of our valley through providing quality care to our patients in both the outpatient and inpatient settings.
Welcome to the Dignity Health Family Medicine Residency at Northridge, affiliated with David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA!
Since 1976, the Family Medicine Residency at Northridge has been actively engaged in the dual missions of guiding residents to become family medicine physicians and providing quality healthcare to the residents of the San Fernando Valley. Today we have successfully produced over 250 graduates who are now serving as family medicine physicians throughout our state and nation. We are proud of our ongoing service to the underserved of our valley through providing quality care to our patients in both the outpatient and inpatient settings.
Our name reflects our formal affiliation with the Dignity Health Medical Foundation. We were the first residency program in the Foundation and we are proud to be part of this organization. The Foundation is supporting our Family Medicine clinic as well as allowing us an opportunity to expand the reach of our Family Medicine program here at Northridge.
Our Family Medicine Residency Program
Family physicians have always played a significant role in our nation’s healthcare by providing broad spectrum, quality healthcare in an equitable way. Evidence shows that patients who have a family physician are healthier. Our program is committed to creating an environment to empower you to become the family medicine physician your patients need. Northridge offers excellent training in maternity care, sports medicine, hospital care and ambulatory family medicine. We are dedicated to challenge and inspire you to learn across various medical settings. Whether in the hospital, office, skilled nursing facility, or patients’ homes, you will learn side by side with our outstanding educators comprising our residency faculty, hospital medical staff, nurses and, of course, your fellow residents. At Northridge, you will learn the essential skills to be a great family medicine doctor, whether you ultimately work as a community primary care physician, a hospitalist, a geriatrician, a sports medicine doctor or a family medicine educator.
What Makes Northridge Unique?
Our Location - We are located in the middle of the San Fernando Valley, a vibrant cosmopolitan setting in Southern California. Patients who live in the local area come from many different cultures, backgrounds, and socio-economic statuses. In our residency program, your education is enriched by the opportunity to serve such a wide-ranging group of patients. Most importantly, you will have the opportunity to serve the most vulnerable of our valley, specifically those who lack resources and need healthcare the most.
Our Outpatient Clinic and Patient Population - We are a very busy outpatient primary care office. Our Dignity Health Northridge Family Medicine building is a modernized medical clinic that is designed to maximize patient experience, improve patient throughput, and streamline the workflow for our doctors. Residents have a dedicated workroom with their own desks. We have a diverse patient population and Residents see a broad range of both acute illnesses and chronic disease. Because of their outpatient experience, Residents are well trained to work in a variety of outpatient settings.
Sports Medicine - Our residents benefit from the fact that we also have a Sports Medicine fellowship at Northridge. Residents receive didactics on sports medicine topics from our Sports Medicine physician. They work side by side with our Fellow in our sports medicine clinics and in covering local high school sports teams. Residents get hands-on experience with point of care ultrasound for sports medicine, joint injections, and casting and splinting.
Our Hospital - We have the benefit of being the only residency in a large tertiary community hospital. Our hospital is very busy and sees a broad range of illnesses with a wide degree of complexity. Our residents routinely manage challenging patients. You will develop the skills and confidence necessary to succeed in virtually any demanding healthcare environment.
Inpatient Medicine – Is inpatient training important to a family doctor? At Northridge we believe the answer is YES! Our residency has a strong inpatient teaching practice. Our graduates have gone on to opportunities in hospital medicine and missionary outreach because they are skilled and knowledgeable in hospital medicine. Even if you do not go on to practice hospital medicine, your inpatient experience here will make you a better family physician who feels comfortable taking care of complex illnesses.
Pediatrics – Although a community hospital, Northridge has a strong pediatrics program. Our residents’ education is enhanced by the fact that Northridge Hospital has both a PICU and NICU and is a designated pediatric trauma hospital. The pediatric hospitalists who staff these programs work directly with our residents and love to teach. In the clinic, you will see will see a broad range of pediatric complaints including both acute illnesses and preventive medicine well child checks. Your pediatric experience will be enhanced because of the many types of pediatric patients that you will take care of.
Our Faculty and Staff - We are a close family of passionate educators, devoted staff and bright and idealistic residents who care for patients together in a supportive and challenging environment.
Our Program Makes Us Proud. Our Legacy is Our Graduates.
We are proud of the physicians who have completed our program and the amazing work they do in communities throughout California, the United States and abroad. Our graduates include a past President of the California Academy Family Physicians; two California Family Physicians of the Year; educators at residency programs across the state and the country; leaders in large multispecialty groups like Kaiser Permanente; doctors working in small models based on private practice or Federally Qualified clinics caring for the poor; and those who do outreach trips to countries all over the world.
Being a family medicine physician is not a job; it is a calling.
Our residency supports a dynamic and ever-changing learning environment for young physicians. We balance the need for intense and fulfilling educational experiences with emphasis on personal growth and support for life outside of the program. If you are a motivated, caring and idealistic student, we want to give you the experience, knowledge and skills to become the family medicine physician you want to be. Come find out what we offer at Northridge Family Medicine.
Chris Kuhlman, M.D.
Program Director, Northridge Family Medicine Residency Program
Program Contact Information:
Analisa Castaneda
Program Director
Dignity Health Family Medicine Residency &
Primary Care Sports Fellowship at Northridge
18406 Roscoe Blvd
Northridge, CA 91325
[email protected]
(818) 717-8259
Follow the Dignity Health Family Medicine Residency Program at Northridge Hospital
