New York City-based NYU Langone Orthopedics has expanded its orthopedic surgery residency program from 14 to 16 residents per year, further growing a training pipeline that already produces more orthopedic surgeons than any other institution in the country.
The move comes amid continued national demand for orthopedic specialists and coincides with the 20-year anniversary of the full asset merger that integrated the former Hospital for Joint Diseases into NYU Medical Center on Jan. 1, 2006.
Department leaders say the residency expansion reflects both practical changes in how surgeons are trained today and the long-term effect of a merger that reshaped orthopedic care, education and research in New York and beyond.
A program shaped by feedback and scale
Eric Strauss, MD, director of the orthopedic surgery residency, said the expansion allows the program to address a long-standing concern voiced by residents: the pace of clinical rotations.
For nearly a decade, NYU’s residents rotated through seven to eight clinical blocks per academic year. While the structure offered broad exposure, residents consistently expressed interest in longer rotations, particularly in certain subspecialties.
“The feedback from our residents over the last number of years has noted a desire for longer rotations, particularly in orthopedic trauma and adult reconstruction,” Dr. Strauss said.
By increasing the class size to 16 residents, the program was able to reorganize the year into fewer, longer training blocks, a change Dr. Strauss said strengthens mentorship and continuity.
“With the residents having longer clinical rotations, it gives them the opportunity to get a greater in-depth experience with the faculty that they’re assigned to,” he said.
Dr. Strauss said the revised structure is expected to support stronger graduated autonomy, improved surgical skill development and better clinical and surgical decision making, while also improving opportunities for longitudinal patient care.
The schedule also allows earlier exposure to orthopedic subspecialties while preserving protected time for research and elective experiences.
“This is a really important part of the evolution of the program here at NYU,” he said, “and it’s really to the benefit of our trainees here and those we’re going to have in the future.”
Education and inclusion at the program’s center
Dr. Strauss described resident education as the defining priority of the department, noting that Joseph Zuckerman, MD, chair of the department of orthopedic surgery, consistently emphasizes its importance.
“Dr. Zuckerman often refers to the residency program as the crown jewel of the department of orthopedic surgery at NYU,” Dr. Strauss said.
That emphasis on training is closely tied to the department’s origins. The Hospital for Joint Diseases was founded in 1905 as the Jewish Hospital for Deformities and Joint Diseases, created at a time when Jewish physicians were excluded from practicing at other orthopedic hospitals in New York City.
Over time, that history shaped the department’s values, including a long-standing focus on access, opportunity and inclusion in training. Today, NYU Langone Orthopedics trains more women orthopedic surgeons than any other institution in the United States, according to the institution, and its residency program includes a high proportion of women and trainees from underrepresented backgrounds.
Following the merger between NYU and the Hospital for Joint Diseases, the residency became the largest in the United States and has remained so, according to department leaders. In 2016, under then-program director Kenneth Egol, MD, the program expanded from 12 to 14 residents per year, setting the stage for the current increase.
Dr. Strauss said leadership also considered culture carefully when deciding to grow the program.
“One of the highlights of the residency training program at NYU Langone Orthopedics has always been the culture and camaraderie amongst our residents,” he said, adding that the expansion and team-based structure will “enhance the family feel that we have here and improve overall resident wellness and satisfaction.”
A decision backed by long institutional memory
For Dr. Zuckerman, the residency expansion reflects confidence in both the program’s quality and its leadership.
“He’s one of the best, if not the best, residency program directors in the country,” Dr. Zuckerman said of Dr. Strauss. “He lives and breathes this.”
Dr. Zuckerman served as residency program director for 16 years before becoming chair and said the decision to expand required extensive internal and external approvals.
“That’s why, when we thought about expanding the program, we did everything we could to get the approvals internally and externally,” he said. “We think we train outstanding residents, and we’re happy to add two more every year.”
The merger that made today’s scale possible
The residency expansion comes as NYU Langone marks two decades since the merger that fundamentally altered its orthopedic enterprise.
The Hospital for Joint Diseases grew into one of the nation’s most prominent specialty orthopedic hospitals. By the late 20th century, remaining independent became increasingly difficult as healthcare economics shifted.
“It became increasingly difficult to be a freestanding specialty hospital in the healthcare environment,” Dr. Zuckerman said.
After years of academic affiliation and administrative integration, the institutions completed a full asset merger in 2006, officially dissolving the Hospital for Joint Diseases as a separate legal entity and folding it into NYU Medical Center.
“It was mutually beneficial,” Dr. Zuckerman said. Orthopedics gained the stability and resources of a major academic medical center, while NYU acquired a large, established orthopedic program with deep clinical and educational roots.
Since the merger, NYU Langone Orthopedics has expanded across New York City, Long Island and surrounding regions, operating as a fully integrated musculoskeletal enterprise that includes orthopedics, rehabilitation medicine, rheumatology and related specialties.
“Our goal was not to be a freestanding orthopedic hospital,” Dr. Zuckerman said. “It was to be a major orthopedic department at a major academic medical center.”
Twenty years later, he said, the integration has exceeded expectations, clinically, academically and financially.
“It’s worked out better than I could ever have imagined,” he said.
Training for what comes next
Both leaders framed the residency expansion as part of a broader responsibility to the healthcare system.
“There’s definitely an increased demand for orthopedic surgeons in the country,” Dr. Strauss said. “We have an obligation to put out well-trained, competent, safe surgeons to take care of the American population.”
As NYU Langone Orthopedics enters its next chapter, the residency program remains central to how the institution approaches growth and prepares the next generation of orthopedic surgeons.
