Psychiatry Residency

Psychiatry Residency at Ocean University Medical Center

A Welcome Message from the Program Director

Welcome to the Hackensack Meridian Health General Psychiatry Residency Training Program at Ocean University Medical Center. I am honored and excited to introduce you to a program deeply committed to clinical excellence, intellectual curiosity, and humanistic care.

Our mission is to train the next generation of psychiatrists to be compassionate clinicians, thoughtful leaders, and engaged scholars, equipped to provide high-quality, evidence-based psychiatric care across highly varied settings and populations.

Although based at Ocean University Medical Center (OUMC)—a vibrant community hospital along the Jersey Shore—our residency program is part of the Hackensack Meridian Health Network, one of the largest and most academically active health systems in the region. This affiliation provides our residents with access to outstanding teaching faculty, wide-ranging patient populations, a collaborative and positive work environment, cutting-edge treatments, and robust academic resources across a wide network of hospitals.

Our program offers the best of both worlds: the close-knit, hands-on learning environment of a community-based program, with the clinical depth and academic collaboration of a large academic health system. Through shared didactics, grand rounds, and elective rotations, our residents work alongside faculty and trainees from two other affiliated psychiatry residencies, ensuring a rich and multidimensional training experience.

Warm regards,

Scot G. McAfee, M.D.
Program Director, Psychiatry Residency
Ocean University Medical Center
Hackensack Meridian Health

Program Overview

The General Psychiatry Residency Training Program at Ocean University Medical Center is a fully ACGME-accredited, four-year program offering broad clinical exposure and a strong academic foundation. In addition to our core training in General Adult Psychiatry, we are closely involved with the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine Fellowships in the HMH system, as well as their fellows, to provide more robust and expansive training in these subspecialties. We also host medical students from multiple medical schools, both at the MS-3 and MS-4 level, as well as residents from other specialties with the medical center, allowing ample opportunities to provide teaching experiences for our residents.

Clinical Rotations and Training Sites

Residents rotate through several core and elective clinical sites within the Hackensack Meridian Health network, gaining experience across a wide range of psychiatric subspecialties and settings.

Ocean University Medical Center (OUMC)

Our home institution, OUMC houses the Emergency Psychiatric Services (EPS) unit—a dedicated psychiatric crisis stabilization service located within the Emergency Department—and a Consult-Liaison Psychiatry service. These rotations expose residents to acute psychiatric emergencies and the interface between psychiatry and other specialties of medicine.

Raritan Bay Medical Center (RBMC)

This is home to our 81-bed inpatient psychiatry unit, which includes both voluntary and involuntary beds and treats patients with severe, persistent, and treatment-resistant mental illnesses. RBMC also serves as the site for ECT and TMS training, where residents gain hands-on experience delivering electroconvulsive therapy and transmagnetic stimulation therapy under close supervision. Additionally, RBMC provides a Consult-Liaison Psychiatry service throughout the hospital and a brand new, state-of-the-art Emergency Psychiatric Services (EPS) unit within its Emergency Department, which opened in July 2025, giving residents valuable experience in managing psychiatric emergencies and complex medical cases.

Outpatient Psychiatry (1610 Route 88)

Our primary outpatient training site provides comprehensive mental health services across the diagnostic spectrum. Residents care for a broad range of patient populations using both pharmacologic and psychotherapeutic approaches. Residents at our clinic receive individual preceptorship with attending psychiatrists with each case and patient encounter. In addition, our residents collaborate with PhD-level psychotherapists to conduct individual and group therapy starting in PGY-2 year. This location also houses our Ketamine Clinic, where residents gain experience administering and managing esketamine therapy for treatment-resistant depression.

Other Core and Elective Rotations across the Network

Residents have access to a wide range of clinical opportunities within the Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH) system, including rotations at Jersey Shore University Medical Center (JSUMC), The New Jersey Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative (NJPCC), the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, and other outpatient clinics and academic centers within and affiliated with the HMH network. These rotations allow residents to customize their training and engage with faculty across multiple academic campuses.

This structured and flexible rotation schedule ensures that residents develop a comprehensive skill set in general psychiatry, while also having opportunities to explore specialty areas, academic interests, and innovative treatments.

Academic and Professional Development

Education is the heart of our residency. Our didactic curriculum is rigorous, evidence-based, and highly collaborative, incorporating shared lectures, grand rounds, and academic sessions with two other psychiatry residency programs within the Hackensack Meridian system. Weekly sessions include core curriculum, journal club, case discussions, and interdisciplinary conferences, with teaching led by nationally recognized faculty.

In addition to structured education, residents have access to research mentorship and scholarly activities through our academic affiliates. Whether your interests lie in clinical innovation, medical education, health equity, or neuroscience, we support your academic goals with resources and guidance.

Our curriculum follows the ACGME’s six core competencies and psychiatry-specific milestones, progressing each year in complexity and autonomy. Every rotation has clearly defined learning objectives in knowledge, clinical skills, and professional development, supported by individualized supervision and feedback.

Culture and Community

We are proud to be a program that values authenticity, cultural humility, and the richness of varied experiences. Our residents bring a wide array of personal and professional backgrounds, and we believe that this range of perspectives is one of our greatest strengths.

With 35 residents across all four years, we maintain a strong sense of community. Faculty, staff, and residents work together in an atmosphere that is collegial, supportive, and growth-oriented. We emphasize wellness, work-life balance, and mentorship, creating a space where residents can thrive both personally and professionally.

Why Choose Us?

Extensive inpatient psychiatry training at an 81-bed unit at RBMC

Hands-on experience in ECT and TMS at RBMC and esketamine therapy at our outpatient clinic

Comprehensive clinical exposure across emergency, outpatient, consult-liaison, and subspecialty psychiatry

Consult-Liaison Psychiatry throughout OUMC and RBMC hospitals and EPS (Crisis Services) within their Emergency Departments

Robust psychotherapy training under PhD-level psychologists at our 1610 outpatient clinic, including both individual and group therapy. Residents learn to lead therapy sessions under direct supervision, gaining progressive responsibility and confidence in psychotherapeutic care

Individualized clinical supervision from attending psychiatrists—each a specialist in their field—after every patient encounter at the 1610 outpatient clinic. Residents present their case and treatment plan, followed by joint evaluation with the attending, ensuring real-time feedback and collaborative learning for every patient visit

Academic integration with affiliated residency programs and access to leading faculty

Elective opportunities across the Hackensack Meridian system, including rotations at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Old Bridge Medical Center, and John F. Kennedy Medical Center

Deep Involvement in the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine Fellowships for deeper subspecialty expertise

The opportunity to work with allopathic and osteopathic medical students

Strong emphasis on inclusion, professionalism, and mentorship

A tight-knit, supportive training environment within a large academic network

“Internal” moonlighting opportunities for senior residents