It is my great honor and pleasure to introduce the Emergency Medicine Residency Program at NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital. “Methodist” has trained emergency physicians in New York City since 1997. Over that time, as the scope of emergency medicine and the needs of our community have evolved, we have remained committed to advancing responsible, evidence-driven, and innovative emergency care.
We are proud of our alumni network of more than 300 physicians who practice in diverse settings throughout the world. Our mission is to prepare physicians for every avenue of emergency medicine practice while fostering excellence in education, research, wellness, and service. Our graduates pursue a broad range of careers, including academic medicine, community practice in urban and rural settings, fellowship-trained subspecialty practice, and research.
What sets us apart?
A diverse patient population
Located in the heart of Brooklyn, NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital serves one of the most diverse patient populations in New York City. We are proud to care for individuals from a wide range of ethnic, religious, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Many of our patients face variable access to health care, and we are humbled and privileged to serve them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
As a trauma center, STEMI center, stroke center, and ECMO-capable center, NYP Brooklyn Methodist is equipped to care for some of the most critically ill patients in New York City. Although we benefit from the expansive academic resources of a premier, dual-university health care system, we also embrace the responsibility and autonomy that come with caring for our diverse community.
Fellowship opportunities
NYP Brooklyn Methodist offers fellowships in ultrasound, pediatric emergency medicine, simulation and medical education, and administration. Our ultrasound fellowship is one of the largest in the country, accepting five fellows each year. Our Pediatric Emergency Department is staffed entirely by attending physicians with fellowship training in pediatric emergency medicine. We recently completed renovations to our brand-new simulation center, which leads simulation education across the institution.
A team-based approach to care
Our day-to-day care is grounded in a collaborative, team-based approach. Each shift includes clinical teams with residents at varying levels of experience, allowing for graduated responsibility, peer mentorship, and continuous supervision by attending physicians. This structure provides residents with exposure to a broad range of patient encounters—not just those that happen to be assigned to their individual “board.”
This breadth of experience promotes rapid growth and prepares residents for the responsibilities of life after training.
Faculty and mentorship
Our faculty is diverse in both background and expertise. We have recognized leaders in public health, emergency medical services, ultrasound, operations and administration, international emergency medicine, medical toxicology, and medical education.
Each resident is paired with a faculty mentor who supports the resident’s academic progress, monitors completion of program requirements, and helps promote their personal well-being throughout residency.
I assumed the role of program director from our founding program director, Dr. Theodore Gaeta, in July 2026. Dr. Gaeta continues to work clinical shifts in the Emergency Department and serves as the hospital’s Chief Research Officer and the department’s Vice Chair of Education.
As an immigrant who moved to and grew up in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, serving as your potential program director is my dream job. It is also a responsibility that I take extremely seriously. Residency is one of the most rewarding and transformative journeys you will undertake, and I am proud to accompany you along the way.
I look forward to meeting you.
MESSAGE FROM OUR PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Lukasz Cygan, DO
Program Director
Assistant Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine
Weill Cornell Medicine
Our clinical learning environment provides residents with an outstanding experiential opportunity, with particular emphasis in critical care, pediatric emergency medicine and trauma. Faculty supervision, mentorship and implementation of progressive responsibilities promotes application of knowledge, development of clinical skills and advancement of professional attitudes.
Additional program activities to advance our mission:
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Layered Faculty Mentor Program
Each residency class has an assigned Associate/Assistant Program Director (“coach”) to administer and monitor their program level goals and objectives. Residents are assigned individual faculty mentors who act as liaisons and provide advanced individualized evaluations. There are subspecialty track mentors who are available for mentoring residents with a particular area of interest and career guidance.
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Physician well-being is emphasized by the hospital and program leadership. We have an appointed a Wellness Chief who has protected time to develop and execute a department wellness curriculum, assist the PD in monitoring wellness and burnout, and coordinate extracurricular wellness activities.
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Scholarly activity is supported by guidance and assistance of faculty mentors, research fellows, a dedicated research coordinator and research associates.
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Quality Improvement
Our continuous quality improvement curriculum and required resident involvement in quality improvement, patient safety, high value care is supported by a dedicated faculty CQI leader, ED Administrative fellow, Chief Resident for Quality Improvement and individual faculty project mentors.
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Core Curriculum Conference Series
In recognition of differences in individual learning styles and in order to prepare residents for lifelong learning we are revising our conference curriculum to include self-directed learning modules, more faculty-mentored small group flipped classroom sessions and dedicated simulation assignments.