Independent Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Program

Page Updated: May 6, 2026

NuHealth’s Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) is the sponsoring institution for an ACGME-accredited independent residency program in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The program provides broad clinical training with exposure to faculty from multiple institutions, including New York Plastic Surgical Group, Stony Brook University, and Northwell.

The Independent Program

Established 1954

This is a three-year residency program designed to provide a complete education in all aspects of plastic surgery. The independent program prides itself on a solid foundation of plastic surgical principles and strict attention to detail. The resident’s experience encompasses the full range of reconstructive and cosmetic surgery, within a model designed to provide progressive responsibility and independence.

Resident selection emphasizes creativity, maturity, diversity of prerequisite training, and accomplished scholarly activity. Our training programs provide a high volume and variety of plastic surgery, hand surgery, and reconstructive procedures, working closely with 30 different attending surgeons in a combination of public, private, and University settings. Residents are held accountable for a high standard of academic and clinical productivity. Resident and faculty interaction is encouraged in an atmosphere of collegiality, professionalism, and respect. The NuHealth program has successfully educated residents in plastic surgery for over 60 years. Graduates have confidently entered private practice and academic practice throughout the US and abroad.

We welcome your interest in our program, and we look forward to seeing you soon.

Brian A. Pinsky, MD, FACS
Director, Residency Program
Plastic, Reconstructive, and Hand Surgery, New York Plastic Surgical Group
Diplomate of the American Board of Plastic Surgery
Chief of Plastic Surgery, Nassau University Medical Center

Program Description

Residents rotate through our affiliated hospitals for a complete spectrum of plastic surgery education.

The rotations are in four-month blocks where the residents will rotate in between all the different major institutions throughout their first year. The second year is primarily on the ambulatory surgery service with exposure to the private practice faculty and at multiple community hospitals around Long Island and a four-month rotation with the plastic surgery service at Northwell where they’ll get exposure to a significant amount of head and neck microsurgery general, plastic surgery as well as aesthetics.

The third year is primarily running the services as a chief resident at all the institutions.

The Hand and Breast Surgical Rotations

For the junior residents, rotations are focused on hand surgery and breast surgery, in addition to exposure to other comprehensive areas of plastic surgery. During the ambulatory surgery experience, the residents will have focused rotations in. hand surgery and breast surgery to further develop these areas.

These rotations provide a concentrated experience to the resident’s education. Experience in both acute and reconstructive adult and pediatric hand surgery and all aspects of breast surgery will be provided. The resident will be assigned to selected cases. A busy outpatient department at NuHealth will provide access to a large variety of acute and reconstructive hand pathology. Outpatient experience with plastic surgeons and orthopedists complements the experience. A close cooperation with ablative breast and oncological surgeons allows for efficient design and reconstruction benefiting the patient.

FACILITIES

NUHEALTH (Nassau University Medical Center)

The residents are responsible for the selection and management of their patients in this rotation. This is considered a high point of their rotations. Patients with birth defects of the head and neck, trunk and limbs are managed by the Plastic Surgical service. This includes cleft lip and palate, and other congenital defects requiring complex reconstruction. Soft-tissue reconstruction encompasses a large portion of the residents’ work. Skin tumors of the head and neck are also admitted to the Plastic Surgical division. An excellent and professional working relationship in all areas of reconstruction exists with the orthopedic, general surgical, oral surgery, and neurosurgical divisions.

Acute burn patients are admitted to the Burn Center under the care of the Burn Fellow. Residents will work with attending physicians in burn-wound management, early excision and grafting, and post-burn care. Plastic Surgical residents and the Burn Fellow formulate plans and work together during late-burn-scar reconstruction procedures. The burn experience provides confidence for future wound management under all conditions.

Cosmetic surgical cases are evaluated by the residents with faculty oversight in a resident clinic. The number of patients receiving cosmetic surgery permits the residents to meet and exceed their requirements. Selection of patients and choice of procedure complement the training experience. Cosmetic cases for surgery are discussed at the weekly Grand Rounds. Cases are formally presented with photos and clinical data and discussed with the attending surgeons before the surgery is scheduled.

Resident teaching responsibilities include General Surgical residents rotating through the Plastic Surgical service. Medical students from the State University of New York, as well as those from the New York College of Osteopathy, spend part of their rotations on the Plastic Surgical service. Progressive responsibility and teaching are the key elements to this rotation. Formal attending rounds each week encourage original thinking and decision-making. A higher level of confidence is seen within each resident upon completion of the rotation.

NEW YORK PLASTIC SURGICAL GROUP

Founded in 1948, New York Plastic Surgical Group (formerly, Long Island Plastic Surgical Group) is the largest and longest‑standing private academic plastic surgery practice in the United States. Headquartered in Garden City, NY, it comprises 24 surgeons across 13 locations and has treated more than half a million patients. The practice is recognized for its expertise, commitment to patient safety, dedication to education, and consistent delivery of natural‑looking results.

The resident is assigned to attendings according to a weekly schedule distributed 10 days in advance. Time permits preoperative discussion on all cases. The resident participates in the surgery in the ambulatory center or the affiliated hospitals. He/she will follow the post-operative care of the patients in the hospital and in the office.

NORTH SHORE UNIVERSITY / LONG ISLAND JEWISH HOSPITAL

North Shore University Hospital and Long Island Jewish Hospital, pillars of the Northwell Health System, are nonprofit tertiary teaching institutions with a large volume of reconstructive and congenital pediatric Plastic Surgery. A clinic in Plastic Surgery, staffed by faculty allows the residents to see patients from the surrounding community with attending supervision. Northwell offers exposure to head and neck reconstruction, as well as pediatric plastic surgery, including the cleft lip palate center.

STONY BROOK MEDICINE

The Stony Brook Medicine Health System is made up of four hospitals that include the Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, and Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital. Residents will rotate through the University with increasing responsibilities including a Chief Resident experience. Additional exposure to cleft lip and palate and craniofacial surgery is part of the curriculum.

Contact Us

Nishat Nur
Independent Residency Program Coordinator
Telephone: (516) 535-6712
E-mail: nnur@nyplasticsurgical.com

The support and participation of three institutions will guarantee a diverse experience in all aspects of plastic surgery. The faculty is committed to teaching our residents everything from basic principles to the most innovative surgical techniques.

Roger L. Simpson, MD, MBA, FACS, Past-President of NYPS Group and Former Director of the Residency Training Programs

Other Important Information

The Independent Plastic Surgery Residency Program participates in the San Francisco Plastic Surgery Match. Applications for most residency programs can be submitted beginning September 1; however, you can begin the process of preparing your application early by visiting the San Francisco Match website at www.sfmatch.org.

San Francisco Match
655 Beach Street, San Francisco, CA 94109
Telephone: (415) 447-0350
Facsimile: (415) 561-8535

The content on this page was co-authored and medically reviewed by the expert team of plastic surgeons at New York Plastic Surgical Group, one of the nation’s longest-standing practices, established more than 75 years ago. As recognized leaders in their field, our experienced plastic surgeons hold chief, director, and faculty roles across major New York hospitals and medical schools, and lead specialized centers in craniofacial, hand, microsurgery, wound, and burn care. By leveraging decades of collective expertise in education, innovation, and patient care, our surgeons ensure all content reflects the most accurate, current, and authoritative information in plastic, cosmetic, and reconstructive surgery.