Internal Medicine Residency
Our internal medicine residency program provides an excellent clinical education while creating integral members of our medical community.
Welcome to Our Program!
Welcome from the Program Director
Welcome to the website for the Internal Medicine Residency Program at Berkshire Medical Center and thank you for your interest in our training program!
As a residency, we are committed to providing exceptional clinical education to produce highly qualified future primary care, hospitalist, and subspecialist physicians. Our residency leadership is committed to collaborating with our residents to provide a community atmosphere to support growth and independence throughout training.
Our residents work primarily in the active academic environment at Berkshire Medical Center, teaching and supervising medical students from multiple teaching affiliates – including the University of Massachusetts, the University of New England, and Boston University Medical Schools. Residents at BMC are also an integral part of the local medical community beyond the hospital, and work to care for patients throughout Berkshire County at a variety of outlying clinics and health centers. We have outstanding clinical educators amongst our teaching faculty, a strong tradition of clinical research, and innovative ways of creating career-specific training. We are fortunate to be able to live and work in the beauty of Berkshire County and proud that many of the current internists and subspecialists in our community previously trained in our program. Most notably, we are proud of our ability to provide high-quality patient care and our educational strength, as reflected by Berkshire Medical Center’s designation as one of the Top 50 Teaching Hospitals in the US in 2020 & 2021 by the Leapfrog group!
We expanded our program by adding a Primary Care Focus Track in July of 2026, which will continue to add 2 additional positions yearly for incoming trainees who are particularly interested in possible future outpatient-based practice. See the Primary Care Track section of our site below for further details.
**We look forward to an additional enhancement for July 2027 – when we’re planning to change to a Block (X + Y) schedule, with a goal of providing more focused outpatient learning and better overall distinction of inpatient versus outpatient versus subspecialty clinical experience.**
As you review this site, I hope that you will appreciate the unique opportunity our program provides to receive excellent clinical education (including both the art and science of medicine), while becoming an integral part of a medical community.
Warmly,
Steven Lamontagne, MD
Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency
Medical Education Affiliates
Categorical Positions: 13/year Preliminary Positions: 5/year Total Program Residents: 44 currently* Chief Residents: 2/year Founding Date for Residency Program: 1961 *Adding 2 designated Primary Care Track positions/year starting in July 2026 – with ultimate program size increasing to 50 trainees. We are proud of the educational content of our training program, and the scholarly work that our residents produce. Our current yearly schedule is as follows (each block consists of a 4-week rotation): **Beginning July 2027 – we anticipate changing to an X+Y Block Schedule, with similar overall rotation distributions to our current scheme (but a reduction to 2-week rotation length)** Medflex: Basic Life Insurance: Each year, the following allowances are available for educational resources (online learning resources, books, journals, other educational resources). Allowances may not be carried over from one year to the next, and are not able to be used for USMLE Step 3 or Board Examination registration fees. A complete Board Review Course is provided on-site in the PGY-3 year for Internal Medicine residents. The ongoing Wellness of our trainees within our program is a major priority for us! We recognize that as physicians we will only be able to excel in our clinical practice when we are supported and focused/content with our life and work overall. The Berkshire Health System participates in the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). NRMP Program Codes: Visa Sponsorship: We are planning to conduct all interviews virtually (via computer) for the 2026-2027 season. Interviews will be offered & scheduled on a rolling basis – with our interview season beginning in Late October and concluding in January. egarding Program Signaling: Our program will preferentially review applications from those who have signaled our program – BUT we will also review applications for applicants who do not signal us. Our program added a dedicated Primary Care Track in July 2026 – and will continue to enroll two additional residents each year who are particularly interested in future primary care practice. Residents in this track are fully integrated within our tight-knit general internal medicine training program (for inpatient and subspecialty medicine learning) and gain the benefit of comprehensive outpatient-based education (including close faculty mentorship and extensive training in a real-world primary care setting) to allow graduates to seamlessly transition to highly efficient and expert-level practice in ambulatory medicine. Primary Care Track at a Glance: In addition to joining in the standard educational elements of our current Internal Medicine program (Ward Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, Subspecialty Rotations), our Primary Care Track Trainees have unique outpatient-focused learning opportunities, including: Structured Ambulatory Blocks: Residents rotate through their Longitudinal Clinic in dedicated outpatient-focused blocks. Longitudinal Continuity Clinic: Weekly clinic sessions across all three years of training with close faculty mentorship, and the ability to be a Primary Care Physician to a dedicated group of patients. We aim to utilize our institutional-affiliated practices with a longstanding history of teaching excellence for these rotations. Dedicated Outpatient-Based Education: Via a weekly primary-care centered teaching didactic Ambulatory Expertise Rotation: Subspecialty exposure in the fields that most closely overlap with primary care, including Urology, Behavioral Health, ENT, and Dermatology. Schedule Summary: Each block consists of a 4-week rotation: Applying for the Primary Care Track is via ERAS. Designate your application for the Primary Care Track through NRMP Code: 1281140C1 Build your career & your life in a place that supports both. The academic schedule is very similar to that of a Categorical Intern, with: Our recent Preliminary graduates have moved on to outstanding training positions, including: Neurology: Radiology: Anesthesiology: Dermatology: Opthamology: Berkshire Medical Center (BMC) is a major teaching affiliate of the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNECOM) and serves as a primary training site each year for eight 3rd year medical students from UNECOM. Since 2012, BMC has also offered an Osteopathic Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine (ONMM3) post-graduate program, for specialty-level training in ONMM following an Internal Medicine or other primary care residency program. Osteopathic Focus Track within Internal Medicine: Contact: Lisa Blay We sponsor J-1 Visas for Preliminary Year Residents, and H1B Visas for Categorical Residents. Applications are neither accepted nor rejected for interview based on a single factor. Applications are evaluated based on multiple criteria including but not limited to: work experience, letters of reference, prior training, diversity of life experiences, performance in medical school, test scores, etc. We do not have a set cutoff graduation date Three (3) letters are required. No, your recommendation letters do not have to come from locations in the United States. The deadline to apply to our program is December 1. Interviews are scheduled from mid-October through January and are virtual. Program Director: Steven Lamontagne, MD Fellowship Positions: Hospitalist Positions – nationwide, including local centers such as: Primary Care Positions: Residents in our program work & learn in a variety of settings and clinical roles. Essential job functions of a resident physician’s role in our residency program include the ability without an intermediary to:Program Information
Program at a Glance
Schedule Summary
PGY-1 Ward Medicine 5 Critical Care Medicine 2 Subspecialty Electives 4 Ambulatory Medicine 1 Night Medicine 1 PGY-2 Ward Medicine 3 Critical Care Medicine 2 Subspecialty Electives (including Quality Improvement Rotation, & Addiction Medicine experience) 4 Ambulatory Medicine 1 Night Medicine 1 Consult Medicine 1 Evening Float 1 PGY-3 Ward Medicine 3 Critical Care Medicine 2 Subspecialty Electives 6 Ambulatory Medicine 1 Consult Medicine 1 General Benefits
Berkshire Medical Center’s flexible benefit program includes health insurance options, dental insurance options, basic life insurance, supplemental life insurance, long and/or short term disability insurance, health care and dependent care spending accounts on a tax free basis, and spouse and child term life insurance on an after-tax basis. The flexible benefit program provides dollars provided by BMC to be applied toward the purchase of benefits on a pre-tax basis, or a lesser sum to be taken as taxable cash if your spouse provides health insurance for you from another source. The dollars, if utilized for health insurance, include 90% of the cost of individual coverage or 75% of family coverage based on Network Blue New England. Benefit dollars are provided to partially cover dental insurance premiums, and to fully cover the cost of the long-term disability (50% option).
– Health Care Spending Accounts allow you to contribute pre-tax money weekly for health care expenses not covered by health insurance plans. It can add tax savings to the protection you receive from our medical and dental plans.
– Dependent Care Spending Accounts let you pay your dependent care fees on a pre-tax basis, as long as the care makes it possible for you to work.
A term life insurance is provided, paid in full by BMC covering one times your annual salary, effective upon date of hire.
Uniforms:
White coats and scrubs and laundry of these garments will be provided.
Professional Liability:
Liability insurance is provided for house officers free-of-charge during the term of the contract. Coverage pertains to in-hospital activities only. Limits are stated in contract between BMC and the Berkshire Insurance Company. Tail coverage is included in this policy.
Registration Fees:
Registration fees for temporary licenses are covered for house officers who are not permanently licensed in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Vacations:
Each house officer is entitled to four (4) weeks of vacation with pay each year.Education Benefits
Supporting Wellness
We at BMC are proud to have numerous programs & supports in place to support our residents throughout training, including:
Fun Outside of Work
Applying to the Internal Medicine Residency Programs
Applications are accepted through the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS).
Apply Today through ERAS System
Interviewing for our Programs
Primary Care Track
PGY-1
Blocks
Ward Medicine
4
Critical Care Medicine
2
Subspecialty Electives
3.5
Primary Care Expertise Rotation: A combination of outpatient Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Sleep Medicine, Urology, Behavioral Health Medicine
1
Ambulatory Medicine
2
Night Medicine
0.5 (2 weeks)
PGY-2
Blocks
Ward Medicine
2
Critical Care Medicine
2
Subspecialty Electives
4
Addiction Medicine
1
Ambulatory Medicine
**planning for the addition of a Rural Medicine Clinic for PGY2/3 year2
Night Medicine
0.5 (2 weeks)
Evening Float Medicine
0.5 (2 weeks)
PGY-3
Blocks
Ward Medicine
2
Critical Care Medicine
1
Medical Consultation/Perioperative Medicine
1
Rural Inpatient Medicine
1
Subspecialty Electives
4
Urgent Care
1
Ambulatory Medicine
3
Applying to the Primary Care Track:
Our Berkshire County Primary Care Residency Alumni
Lenox Family Health
Hillcrest Family Health
Lenox Family HealthPreliminary Medicine Internship
The Internal Medicine Residency accepts 5 trainees per year for a one-year Preliminary Medicine program.
Osteopathic Focus Track
Background & Community of Osteopathic Learning:
With the AOA-ACGME merger in 2020, Osteopathic residents in our program can now opt-in (fully optional) to participate in continued osteopathic training (our “Osteopathic Track”) during their Preliminary or Categorical Internal Medicine Training. This Osteopathic Track is a fully-accredited Osteopathic Recognition program by the ACGME and allows graduates to move forward with “Distinction of Advanced Osteopathic Training” as conferred by the AOA. This Osteopathic Track is in-addition to all typical educational elements for Internal Medicine, and consists of:
Stephen Kisiel, DO
Program Director, Osteopathic Focus Track
Berkshire Medical Center
skisiel@bhs1.org
Program Coordinator, Osteopathic Focus Track
Phone: 413-447-2839
lblay@bhs1.org
Internal Medicine FAQs
01
What type of Visa is offered?
02
How many attempts to pass the US Medical License Exam steps are accepted?
03
How long since graduating from Medical School is acceptable?
04
How many recommendation letters are required?
05
Do recommendation letters have to be from institutions/physicians within the United States?
06
When is your application deadline?
07
When do you schedule interviews?
Meet Our Team
Directors
Associate Program Directors: Hafez Alsmaan, MD & Amanda Staples Opperman, DOOur Residents
Our alumni are successful in achieving high-quality competitive fellowships and outstanding positions as internists either in hospital or outpatient practices throughout the United States. We have included a sampling of positions taken by recent graduates of the BMC Internal Medicine Residency below.
Essential Functions
