Best places in academia-faculty

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What are the best places to practice academic anesthesia for faculty? ie Support from administration, good work enviroment, salary?

Consider UPMC in Pittsburgh. As I resident I don't have all the details, but it seems like they have the ability to support faculty that want to do all clincial work, almost all research work, or anything in between. I also lack the perspective of what other places pay, but rumor is the money is very good for academics.

Originally Posted by bigdan

Consider UPMC in Pittsburgh. As I resident I don't have all the details, but it seems like they have the ability to support faculty that want to do all clincial work, almost all research work, or anything in between. I also lack the perspective of what other places pay, but rumor is the money is very good for academics.

True. Pitt does pay fairly well, but the clinical expectations are higher than most.
It's not just about the salary. You have to look at what they view as full time work, hours and days. Is it essentially 5 days a week clinical job like private practice or 3 days a week? How are the retirement benefits? One famously poorly paying academic powerhouse has a magnificent retirement plan and a very light clinical load. If that's what you want, it's fantastic, even though looking at the salary alone you would run away. In terms of what you get for hours worked it's actually a good job.
Some places are more clinically centered, some have a very academic focus. Some pay mode for clinical productivity, some pay everyone the same. Some give you extra time and seed money to start your research, some expect you to do it all yourself. Some want tenure track researchers, others prefer part time academicians. Ease of promotion is also very variable, the biggest name places set the bar very high. Do you want that pressure? Up or out is not for everyone.
You have to figure out what you want in your dream academic job, then seek out the best arrangement for you. Maybe that's a nice clinician job at a place that values that like Pitt, or maybe it's the tenure track at Harvard, spending less than 50% of your time in the OR.

VERY well stated.

Originally Posted by IlDestriero

True. Pitt does pay fairly well, but the clinical expectations are higher than most.
It's not just about the salary. You have to look at what they view as full time work, hours and days. Is it essentially 5 days a week clinical job like private practice or 3 days a week? How are the retirement benefits? One famously poorly paying academic powerhouse has a magnificent retirement plan and a very light clinical load. If that's what you want, it's fantastic, even though looking at the salary alone you would run away. In terms of what you get for hours worked it's actually a good job.
Some places are more clinically centered, some have a very academic focus. Some pay mode for clinical productivity, some pay everyone the same. Some give you extra time and seed money to start your research, some expect you to do it all yourself. Some want tenure track researchers, others prefer part time academicians. Ease of promotion is also very variable, the biggest name places set the bar very high. Do you want that pressure? Up or out is not for everyone.
You have to figure out what you want in your dream academic job, then seek out the best arrangement for you. Maybe that's a nice clinician job at a place that values that like Pitt, or maybe it's the tenure track at Harvard, spending less than 50% of your time in the OR.

One thing to look at is also the tuition payment plans for some of the Academic jobs.. I think JHU for instance will cover full tuition at its university for undergraduates... that benefit is worth about 43K I think (a year). They'll also cover half tuition if your kid goes somewhere else. So, if you're coming close to having kids for college, this is a nice benefit...

drccw

Thanks I am interested more in clinical and education, research is not something I want to do unless I get pulled kicking and screaming. Just not my thing. More looking to balance lifestyle and money. Any other kinds of benefits out there? Anyone else with experience especially with programs in the midwest and south?

Originally Posted by halflife94

Thanks I am interested more in clinical and education, research is not something I want to do unless I get pulled kicking and screaming. Just not my thing. More looking to balance lifestyle and money. Any other kinds of benefits out there? Anyone else with experience especially with programs in the midwest and south?

What is your subspecialty? That can sometimes determine how easy it is to get a spot based on the particular departmental needs at the time.

Critical care- hopefully basic TEE certified

I suspect you will be in high demand for academics. The number of CC trained anesthesiologists coming out each year is not very high.

Originally Posted by halflife94

Thanks I am interested more in clinical and education, research is not something I want to do unless I get pulled kicking and screaming. Just not my thing. More looking to balance lifestyle and money. Any other kinds of benefits out there? Anyone else with experience especially with programs in the midwest and south?

The Tuition benefit is a nice advantage (since you'll make too much money to deduct educational expenses, but obviously this is only relevant if you have a lot of kids. 40K X 4 years = 160K, which could be EASILY made up for with a higher paying job.

I trained at U of Chicago, and the faculty were well-supported. Nothing is free, but generally people started at 80% clinical and could work down to 60% clinical if they had other contributions. These need to be tangible things (mentoring resident grand-rounds, being physician director of the PACU, etc). My own experiences have been that whatever the activity you're engaged in will take up more time that the amount of non-clinical time you're granted.

As far as research goes, it's hard to imagine being forced to do it. At least at larger, research-intensive universities, the process is so scrutinized and competitive that you'd have to have come out of residency with a lab to even qualify for research time. I guess I can only speak for my own shop, but there's a pretty clear line between the research faculty and the rest of us.

Originally Posted by cchoukal

The Tuition benefit is a nice advantage (since you'll make too much money to deduct educational expenses, but obviously this is only relevant if you have a lot of kids. 40K X 4 years = 160K, which could be EASILY made up for with a higher paying job.

I trained at U of Chicago, and the faculty were well-supported. Nothing is free, but generally people started at 80% clinical and could work down to 60% clinical if they had other contributions. These need to be tangible things (mentoring resident grand-rounds, being physician director of the PACU, etc). My own experiences have been that whatever the activity you're engaged in will take up more time that the amount of non-clinical time you're granted.

As far as research goes, it's hard to imagine being forced to do it. At least at larger, research-intensive universities, the process is so scrutinized and competitive that you'd have to have come out of residency with a lab to even qualify for research time. I guess I can only speak for my own shop, but there's a pretty clear line between the research faculty and the rest of us.

They can't make you do research, but they can say they won't hire you unless you do research. If you're on the fence, that could make you do research. We have 3 tracks. Tenure (>>50% research time), research (20-50% research) and clinical/admin (no research).
They're always looking for tenure track people, but they're extremely rare. Hiring into the other groups varies based on the clinical needs. The trend for several years is to hire research track >>> clinical track. If you're a proven superstar you can get a clinical offer otherwise it's research is the only way in.

What's the criteria for superstar clinician status?


On the iPhone

Originally Posted by MTGas2B

What's the criteria for superstar clinician status?
On the iPhone

Several years of experience at a children's hospital with letters of recommendation indicating superior clinical abilities and documented high teaching scores. Or perhaps one of our own fellows with previous clinical experience who is clearly head and shoulders above average.

Any thoughts from faculty members/residents about the experience at Stanford?

Originally Posted by funkyfaroh

Any thoughts from faculty members/residents about the experience at Stanford?

I haven't worked there but I have heard that turnover is high there. Also, no CRNA's (both good and bad).

Any thoughts on Vanderbilt?