University of Wisconsin Residency Reviews

stretched said:

I'm looking for general impressions of the faculty/residents, any recent impressions by residents or student rotators/interviewees.

Impressions on the programs particular strengths, weaknesses.
How it compares in terms of fellowship/job placement/happiness.

Suprising there are no threads regarding this program. or maybe I just haven't found them.

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I have a biased view of the residents because I'm one of them, but to be as unbiased as possible I feel like we have a pretty strong group. The seniors have had a lot of experience so far, because when they started there weren't any other residents to compete with for interesting cases or procedures. They've been extremely helpful to the new residents and have served as guides to them, I think they have set a great standard for all future senior residents to follow at UW.

From a faculty standpoint, we have a lot of faculty who have been here a long time and have transitioned over to having EM residents very well, they are very happy to have us and are great teachers. Some are more interactive in teaching than others, but when prompted or asked for advice/instruction they have ALL been great. Even more exciting is the new faculty that we have brought on board in the last several months including an ultrasound fellowship trained person, a toxicologist, and our new program director, Janis Tupesis from Chicago. We've also got three pediatric EM fellowship trained attendings, 2 of which are coming from Children's in Milwaukee with a lot of experience and another new guy out of fellowship whom I've worked a ton with and think he's great. A lot of change recently, but definitely great change and I'm really excited to see where things go from here.

Strengths of the program include being at University of Wisconsin Hospital, which is obviously the major tertiary care center in the area and one of three level 1 trauma centers in Wisconsin (the other two being Froedtert/MCW and Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, both in Milwaukee). The curriculum is good so far; we're working on having more skills and simulation during our weekly conferences. We have MedFlight, which is the optional aeromedical program, where you are the doc on board and by third year you are flying independently with a nurse/paramedic. The other thing I gotta mention is the nursing/social workers/techs in the ED, who I have a great time working with; they've all been very happy to have us and do excellent work.

We have a rotation in Beloit, Wisconsin, which is a good inner city experience in a community-based program; so far everybody that's been down there loves it. Residents have had moonlighting opportunities in community EDs and also at mixed-martial arts fighting tournaments. We're just starting to take over medical "crowd control" at Wisconsin Badger football games as well...not medical support for the players, but covering anything else that happens in the stadium. Dr. Tupesis is lining up international stuff in Ethiopa (I think) as is one of our chief residents who is going to be doing stuff in El Salvador.

In terms of fellowship or job placement, it's hard to say because we have 3rd year residents for the first time this year. I know at least one or two have jobs lined up already but off the top of my head don't know where. We're young and still evolving, but I only see great things ahead with our recent changes and opportunities. Definitely worth a look and put us on your ERAS application! I've been very happy to be here.

Happy to answer any other questions!

I'll post this caveat before each of my reviews: I'm not really a numbers person, so I don't really remember all the details like annual number of patients seen, board pass rates, etc. etc. So, forgive me if some of my details are slightly off and feel free to correct them.

Residents: Seemed like a good group of people. We actually were meeting the first graduating class of the EM residency. I really liked the current chief, who seemed to have made a big impact on the program. I got along well with everyone. No red flags.

Faculty: I have a hard time judging a group based solely on the few people I interviewed with, but I guess that's all I have to go on. My first interview was with a pretty new faculty member who hadn't read my file. I went into the interview and she was finishing up with a file she had just reviewed and then asked me a question from it. Unfortunately, it wasn't mine. My other 2 primary interviewers were fine. I interviewed with a family medicine doc who had been grandfathered into EM. He was probably one of my better interviews of the season.

I kind of had a problem with the PD. He's a younger guy, fairly new to the program. He spent a large chunk of his introduction talking about himself and all the cool stuff he's done and how he knows the Obamas. Then during the talk by the Chair, the PD sat in the back and kind of wisecracked and made little asides. It was weird. Oh, and during my interview with him he asked me what other programs I was applying to. I tried to be vague ("oh, a number of programs in the Midwest") but he kept asking until I told him specifically which ones while he wrote them all down. Other people have told me that they'd run into this kind of thing while interviewing, but it was a first for me.

I also asked during my interview why the previous PD recently left. I was told that he wanted to spend more time with his family or something similar. But I'd heard rumors on the interview trail that his departure wasn't that amicable and that a number of faculty left with him. Anyone else able to comment on this? Anyone able to talk more about current faculty status?

Curriculum: Pretty standard, from what I remember. Though, since it is a newer program I think they really are open to new ideas. Residents are expected to make an impact on the program. Oh, and you get to fly in the helicopter, which is cool.

Facilities: Nice, if small ED.

Location: Oh, it was devil cold when I visited. But Madison seems like a likable and livable small town. And I liked how it was situation between the two lakes.

Negatives: Based solely on my interview day experience, I'd put the PD in the negatives column. Also in a new program like this especially when there's been recent administrative changes, there are always huge question marks that you won't even realize until you're knee-deep in the program.

Other points: Does anyone else judge a program that you're visiting by the fellow applicants? Well, I do. And this was one of the more diverse groups I'd been with. Good group. On the other hand, this was also one of the largest groups I interviewed in (12 applicants), which made it seem a little more chaotic.

Overall: Kind of a middle-of-the-road program in my mind. Being a new program has its advantages (you get to really make an impact if you're a hands-on type), but it also has a lot of potential pitfalls.

What is the schedule like on ED months?

2 observations:

1 - This thread is so outdated I'm not sure anyone should make a rank list decision based on the PREVIOUS posts.

2 - Agent Splat's profile pic is the creepiest thing I've seen since I watched The Babadook.

madog1881718 said:

What is the schedule like on ED months?

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Not sure how much it helps, but they do 9s. I didn't asked how it's scheduled.

Agree with above though, would really love to see a new review from a resident.

WilcoWorld said:

1 - This thread is so outdated I'm not sure anyone should make a rank list decision based on the PREVIOUS posts.

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Soooo I matched here and have absolutely zero regrets. This thread is wildly outdated. AMA peeps.

EM17ThrowAway said:

Soooo I matched here and have absolutely zero regrets. This thread is wildly outdated. AMA peeps.

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How's the volume/acuity/diversity of your patients? I really liked a lot of things about this place, but the ED seemed pretty quiet... did my tour group just pass through during an inopportune lull? Thanks!

monkeyfeet said:

How's the volume/acuity/diversity of your patients? I really liked a lot of things about this place, but the ED seemed pretty quiet... did my tour group just pass through during an inopportune lull? Thanks!

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I think the volume is good. Even when we have 6 residents/APPs in the department there's plenty to go around. I thought the same thing on my interview, but I've come to realize that unless we're filling hallway beds the department just feels calm. If you interviewed after Thanksgiving it was oddly quiet for a week or two, but it's been hopping recently.

Acuity is good too. Plenty of actually sick medical patients. People in Madison have great primary care and many don't tend to come to the ED until they're super sick. I don't think it's any secret that we get less penetrating trauma, but that's picking up (sadly). I'll say this though, some of the sickest most interesting trauma patient's I've ever seen have been farm accidents.

Hey, everyone. I'm a current PGY-3 at the University of Wisconsin. Looks like this thread is pretty sparse and outdated. Am very happy with my training here and think we have a really great group. I'd be happy to answer any questions that come up about the program.

jtc2009 said:

Hey, everyone. I'm a current PGY-3 at the University of Wisconsin. Looks like this thread is pretty sparse and outdated. Am very happy with my training here and think we have a really great group. I'd be happy to answer any questions that come up about the program.

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Hi there! How does the program view DO applicants/rotators? I noticed there are no DO’s in the program currently.

TTPpentad said:

Hi there! How does the program view DO applicants/rotators? I noticed there are no DO’s in the program currently.

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Sorry for the delay! You're right--we don't have any DOs in the program currently. However, one of our chief residents that graduated two years ago was a DO, so we're definitely open to it!

The place is ok ish. Look elsewhere if you have any other reason to be somewhere else. If you're a passive person who can put up with lots of BS then this program might be for you. Not going to get you well prepared on ortho or ob-gyn. If you like to consult lots, gossip like you're in a sorority, and if you jump at the sight of your own shadow then sign up! If you're headed community afterwards, then you're on your own for finding a job. Reunion type dinners for previously graduated physicians have been cancelled before due to lack of interest from prior graduates if that says anything.

The program Mech knows and clearly loves is not the program that exists today. If you’d like info about how the program is today, we’re here to answer questions.

MechEDoc said:

The place is ok ish. Look elsewhere if you have any other reason to be somewhere else. If you're a passive person who can put up with lots of BS then this program might be for you. Not going to get you well prepared on ortho or ob-gyn. If you like to consult lots, gossip like you're in a sorority, and if you jump at the sight of your own shadow then sign up! If you're headed community afterwards, then you're on your own for finding a job. Reunion type dinners for previously graduated physicians have been cancelled before due to lack of interest from prior graduates if that says anything.

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Both programs are alive today. Might want to ease off the koolaid.

Dr.McNinja said:

MechEDoc's viewpoint may have been valid.

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I think my viewpoint still is valid. I keep in touch and don't live that far away... I just want to recommend that prospective candidates to any program or job consider all viewpoints, not just the glowing opinions from the gung ho, planted shills, or the perpetually enthused. No job is perfect, be sure to think over the pros and cons before falling in love with a place.

MechEDoc said:

I think my viewpoint still is valid. I keep in touch and don't live that far away... I just want to recommend that prospective candidates to any program or job consider all viewpoints, not just the glowing opinions from the gung ho, planted shills, or the perpetually enthused. No job is perfect, be sure to think over the pros and cons before falling in love with a place.

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This is definitely true. I don't have anything to add about UW's program, but in hindsight I'm pretty sure that I ultimately chose the wrong program for myself. I chose to ignore several aspects while interviewing/ranking that ultimately came back to bite me in the ass. Most every program will have downsides, which will typically differ. Unfortunately these are hidden from applicants, which ultimately leads to unhappy/burnt-out residents.

Place is not what they think it is. This hurts me to say, for reasons I won't go into. Good but not great.

That being said. Almost ANY if not all programs can teach you to be a great ED physician. If you think a residency will "make" you then you're a fool and probably a weak link in ANY program or institution, regardless of prior credentials.

YOU are responsible for your learning. YOU want to be a BAD-A** ED doc who yawns at anything and everything that comes through door and can doorway diagnose methemogobinemia from watching patient breathe....then go after as many difficult cases as you can as a resident. Go crazy, see MORE than you are comfortable seeing again and again, shift after shift. Get UNCOMFORTABLE as much as possible. Then do it again. And again. READ, and then read some more. Then repeat everything I said. Then look over at a co-resident who is a bit less busy or stressed.....but will pay for it the rest of their career and decide to sign up for the next 3 patients that hit the ED, all at once. Trust me, YOU WERE MADE FOR THIS!

Attendings, Legacy, Reputation, Procedures, etc....it's ALL the same. YOU. You, control 90% of your education at least.

Only question I would have for you:

Where do you want to live?

The rest is superfluous BS and you're a myopic weak-sauce wannabe pawn in a game you cannot be a player in if you don't get the above.

Cool?

TPM