NEPain said:
I've followed this discussion with interest. I finished my fellowship in pain medicine recently and am now faculty at Dartmouth. I would be interested in knowing what people have heard about the fellowship at Dartmouth.
I have no interest other than to gain insight into our reputation so as to improve any perceived deficiencies and make sure the good things continue.
When I was applying and asked around, I heard good things about the Dartmouth program. The problem was that even being in New England, I had a hard time getting information about the program. I imagine that those applying from others areas might have an even more difficult time.
What I've heard is:
1. Overall, you will get the opportunity to do lots of procedures (including pumps and stims).
2. Fellows are not overworked.
3. Attendings are a pleasure to work with.
4. Multidiscplinary training is not as good as other programs.
5. For those intersted, not as much research going on, but program is generally very supportive of potential projects.
6. Good opportunities in Pediatric Pain Management.
NEPain said:
Would also like to know what potential applicants are looking for when choosing a fellowship.
When I applied, many of the applicants were concerned with the following:
1. How many pumps and stims will I get to do and will I feel comfortable doing them after fellowship?
2. How many fellows are there and what's the call like? Home call or overnight? Are the fellows happy?
3. What are the people like? Will it be a miserable year?
4. What kind of reputation does this program have and will this be an asset when looking for a job? Are faculty members connected to the Pain community as a whole?
5. What opportunities do I have to get exposure to other facets of Pain Medicine that will be covered on the boards and in clinical practice (EMGs, MRIs, MSK medicine, etc.). If it's not a part of the fellowship program, how many electives are there and are these other specialties open to having us?
6. Is there support to attend conferences such as ASRA, ISIS, NASS, etc.
7. How many c-arms does the clinic have and how are things set up for the fellows. Are there separate days for seeing patients and doing procedures or are they mixed in throughout the day?
8. Besides the clinic, what will my other responsiblities be? Are we covering perioperative patients and managing their PCAs/epidurals or is this covered by the Anesthesia residents?
9. Are there opportunities to do newer procedures such as vertebroplasty, IDET, percutaneous discectomy, peripheral nerve stimulators, etc.