I don't recall all specifics from the interview but got a good impression:
Residents: 7 per yr. The PD gave a biography of each of the residents individually in his presentation. All that I met were laid back and very enthusiastic. I met the chiefs & interns and they seem well-diverse and very friendly; you're bound to find someone with similar interests. The chiefs appeared happy to have trained there and they are the first class to graduate.
Faculty: All seemed pro-resident and geared towards making it a nationwide program of excellence. The faculty seemed very enthusiastic about their program and appear to bond with the residents well. They made the statement that they are specifically seeking residents who are "kind, honest, and hardworking".
Curriculum: is more front-loaded, meaning that most of the off-service rotations are done as a PGY1 in addition to a couple ER months. This is probably a good idea to get to know the other services well before assessing and consulting more complex patients as a PGY2. The PGY1's are doing a General Surgery month now but said they will replace it next year with an extra ER month. Chiefs said their year is chill.
(I didn't write down exact hours/shifts for each program)
Patients: Diverse. LSU-S is a well-known hospital regionally but will also take any patient. It's a charity hospital and therefore accepts regardless of insurance or ability to pay, giving it a large breadth of pathology. I think residents graduating from this program definitely feel like they can handle anything that walks through the door.
Hospital: About 480 beds; 65,000 ED visits/yr. Level I Trauma serving Louisiana, Eastern Texas, and Southern Arkansas. There is a separate Peds ED and Fast-Track which might add to the # visits/yr stat. For 21 residents, there certainly is no shortage of patients to see and procedures to excel at! Traumas are shared with Gen Surg equally, and the ED manages all airways.
The Research building and Med-school are on the same campus. Meals are paid for with $250/mo allowance and Parking is free. I recall resident salaries were on the lower end but the cost of living in the area is very reasonable. I believe moonlighting is okay (?)
City: Shreveport/Bossier has a pop of about 280,000 and growing. For a smaller city there is a lot to do. Someone gave me a statistic that Louisiana is the only state where the real-estate market is growing, with a 17% increase last year! There are actually famous movie stars buying houses in the area because film-production is tax-free in Louisiana. There are 5 casinos situated on the Red River, and a variety of outdoor activities on the river and nearby lake. The Louisiana food and local restaurants visited were outstanding (not speaking for the chain restaurant at the resident social).
Overall: Also would add this to the "Programs that surprised you" thread. Seems to be heading in the right direction with an enthusiastic, dedicated, and friendly group to work with. I haven't completed my rank list yet but a couple people I met stated openly that they were ranking LSU-S at the highest.
Residents: 7 per yr. The PD gave a biography of each of the residents individually in his presentation. All that I met were laid back and very enthusiastic. I met the chiefs & interns and they seem well-diverse and very friendly; you're bound to find someone with similar interests. The chiefs appeared happy to have trained there and they are the first class to graduate.
Faculty: All seemed pro-resident and geared towards making it a nationwide program of excellence. The faculty seemed very enthusiastic about their program and appear to bond with the residents well. They made the statement that they are specifically seeking residents who are "kind, honest, and hardworking".
Curriculum: is more front-loaded, meaning that most of the off-service rotations are done as a PGY1 in addition to a couple ER months. This is probably a good idea to get to know the other services well before assessing and consulting more complex patients as a PGY2. The PGY1's are doing a General Surgery month now but said they will replace it next year with an extra ER month. Chiefs said their year is chill.
(I didn't write down exact hours/shifts for each program)
Patients: Diverse. LSU-S is a well-known hospital regionally but will also take any patient. It's a charity hospital and therefore accepts regardless of insurance or ability to pay, giving it a large breadth of pathology. I think residents graduating from this program definitely feel like they can handle anything that walks through the door.
Hospital: About 480 beds; 65,000 ED visits/yr. Level I Trauma serving Louisiana, Eastern Texas, and Southern Arkansas. There is a separate Peds ED and Fast-Track which might add to the # visits/yr stat. For 21 residents, there certainly is no shortage of patients to see and procedures to excel at! Traumas are shared with Gen Surg equally, and the ED manages all airways.
The Research building and Med-school are on the same campus. Meals are paid for with $250/mo allowance and Parking is free. I recall resident salaries were on the lower end but the cost of living in the area is very reasonable. I believe moonlighting is okay (?)
City: Shreveport/Bossier has a pop of about 280,000 and growing. For a smaller city there is a lot to do. Someone gave me a statistic that Louisiana is the only state where the real-estate market is growing, with a 17% increase last year! There are actually famous movie stars buying houses in the area because film-production is tax-free in Louisiana. There are 5 casinos situated on the Red River, and a variety of outdoor activities on the river and nearby lake. The Louisiana food and local restaurants visited were outstanding (not speaking for the chain restaurant at the resident social).
Overall: Also would add this to the "Programs that surprised you" thread. Seems to be heading in the right direction with an enthusiastic, dedicated, and friendly group to work with. I haven't completed my rank list yet but a couple people I met stated openly that they were ranking LSU-S at the highest.
