Colorectal Fellowship

In 1969, surgeons Eugene Salvati, MD, and Robert Rubin, MD, created the first colon and rectal surgery fellowship training program in the state of New Jersey. Today, there are approximately 55 similar programs throughout the United States. The Colon & Rectal Surgery Fellowship through Associated Colon & Rectal Surgeons has grown as one of the leading training facilities in the nation, training three out of roughly 90 fellows in the US.

In 2005, Bertram Chinn, MD, was appointed program director.

About the Program

The faculty of this program consists of the physicians of the Associated Colon & Rectal Surgeons. Each physician has been board certified
by both the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery.

We are proud to have Overlook Medical Center as the major teaching facility for this fellowship. As an academic practice, affiliated with Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, our mission is to provide high-quality medical education to our residents.

The academic curriculum is comprehensive and is on the forefront of the latest techniques on managing disorders such as colon polyps and cancers, inflammatory bowel diseases (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis), diverticulitis and anorectal conditions including abscesses, fistulas, fissures and hemorrhoids.

The practice specializes in advanced laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgery. The faculty and its fellows have published more than 100 articles in medical journals and textbooks, in addition to presenting at countless regional and national meetings.

Each year, more than 100 general surgeons throughout the country apply for one of three positions in this program. Surgeons selected must have completed the following:

• At least five years of training beyond medical school
• An approved residency in general surgery
• Must be board-certified or board-eligible by the American Board of Surgery
• The application is made through the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS)

Surgeons who apply frequently have also performed research in addition to the mandatory five years of a general surgery residency or have already been in practice.

Upon completing this program, our specialists have established practices throughout the United States, teach at major universities and some have established similar programs in other states.