So I understand this is a relatively new program and there are no real reviews out there... I'm just real curious about them as I interviewed there recently. They seemed pretty solid, lots of foreign grads though but they don't do call or work weekends. Too good to be true..?? I really like the location and wouldn't mind not working weekends. Anyone with more info on this program..?? Please help!!
UF Jacksonville anesthesia residency
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deleted171991
What do you mean they don't do call? They being the residents?
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Wow!!!
So no labor epidurals or trauma cases in the middle of the night?
I thought residency was supposed to teach you how to work hard and prepare you for the real world.
Obviously that's not the case anymore.
Well l don't know about all that, they're the only level 1 Trauma center in that region so they say you get enough trauma experience day or night. And the night float is supposedly for the overnight experience. They did say you stay longer on certain rotations. I just want to know if there are people out there who know more about the program than I do, all I did was interview there...
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Guys,
I am one of the graduating Anesthesiology Residents at UF-Jax and here is my take on this - yes, we are a relatively new program and hence the few misconceptions that seem to be in question in the current discussion. So let me adress them directly....
I always tell collegues that when evaluating a training program, you should look at it from three different perspectives - the clinical acumen at the end of the training (can you take care of any patient in any situation?), knowledge base (can you ace any test in the specialty?) and the research activities (does your CV look good for a job you want?).
Clinical - The hospital is a level one trauma center and takes care of the indigent uninsured population in the surroundings - this translates into patients with multiple comorbidities, very often involving critical decison making based on input from multiple subspecialty consultants. To quote a personal example - while on trauma call last year, i had a patient brought to the OR from trauma center 'lying on a body bag' - If you can handle the Anesthetic management of that patient (which thankfully i could), i think you would agree that you will be capable of handling the Anesthetic management of any trauma patient. We have residents from other programs in the city come to our hospital for rotations in specialties including Trauma, OB Anesthesia. We rotate to various hospitals for our specialty rotations as well. I often hear people from other hospitals tell us that 'if you are able to handle the patients at UF, our patients will be a cakewalk'. I was able to obtain all the ABA specified case numbers required for graduation with over 8 months before graduation. So i am pretty positive that we have a great clinical exposure. our seniors who are in practice now confirm this as well.
Knowledge - Unfortunately most hospitals tend to use residents as 'brute workforce'. This takes away from the academic learning of the residents and affects their scores on exams and boards. Being a new program, the hospital was used to using CRNAs as their workforce and after the program started, residents added to the existing workforce. So we have the rare opportunity to spend time on academic activities rather than being a work horse. We have faculty who are not only passionate about teaching but are also the national leaders in 'research in education' meaning that we use 'active learning' as opposed to traditional learning methods. We also have visiting proffessors from across the country come to us and give us talks on their research several times a year. Our team made the best impression among all the programs in Florida at resident Jeopardy last year and one of residents got one of the best scores in the country on our in training exam last year. I dont think i need to elaborate any further regarding academics!
Research - There has been an exponential increase in the research in our program in the last 2 years - I personally got my project IRB approved, presented it at ASA this year and also at a national resident research meeting at which almost all the other residents presented as well. I am writing a book chapter along with one of our faculty and at least 3 other residetns are writing other chapters also. All the residents do a root cause analysis and a 'six sigma' presentation which also count as research and i have another study that i am involved along with another faculty in chronic pain patients. Several of our residents are on ASA committees as well. As you know, all these things look great on your CV. All the graduating seniors including myself are going into the fellowships of their choice and the programs of their choice. The same was true during fellowship/job search for the class that graduated last year.
Really sorry about the verbose response but here is the bottomline - i feel lucky to be graduating from this program and i can say with confidence that all my co residents agree with me on this. Anesthesiology at UF Jax is a great residency to be in and Jacksonville as a city is a definite bonus! ill be glad to talk to you if you have any further questions or concerns regarding the program - feel free to respond or send me a message.
I am one of the graduating Anesthesiology Residents at UF-Jax and here is my take on this - yes, we are a relatively new program and hence the few misconceptions that seem to be in question in the current discussion. So let me adress them directly....
I always tell collegues that when evaluating a training program, you should look at it from three different perspectives - the clinical acumen at the end of the training (can you take care of any patient in any situation?), knowledge base (can you ace any test in the specialty?) and the research activities (does your CV look good for a job you want?).
Clinical - The hospital is a level one trauma center and takes care of the indigent uninsured population in the surroundings - this translates into patients with multiple comorbidities, very often involving critical decison making based on input from multiple subspecialty consultants. To quote a personal example - while on trauma call last year, i had a patient brought to the OR from trauma center 'lying on a body bag' - If you can handle the Anesthetic management of that patient (which thankfully i could), i think you would agree that you will be capable of handling the Anesthetic management of any trauma patient. We have residents from other programs in the city come to our hospital for rotations in specialties including Trauma, OB Anesthesia. We rotate to various hospitals for our specialty rotations as well. I often hear people from other hospitals tell us that 'if you are able to handle the patients at UF, our patients will be a cakewalk'. I was able to obtain all the ABA specified case numbers required for graduation with over 8 months before graduation. So i am pretty positive that we have a great clinical exposure. our seniors who are in practice now confirm this as well.
Knowledge - Unfortunately most hospitals tend to use residents as 'brute workforce'. This takes away from the academic learning of the residents and affects their scores on exams and boards. Being a new program, the hospital was used to using CRNAs as their workforce and after the program started, residents added to the existing workforce. So we have the rare opportunity to spend time on academic activities rather than being a work horse. We have faculty who are not only passionate about teaching but are also the national leaders in 'research in education' meaning that we use 'active learning' as opposed to traditional learning methods. We also have visiting proffessors from across the country come to us and give us talks on their research several times a year. Our team made the best impression among all the programs in Florida at resident Jeopardy last year and one of residents got one of the best scores in the country on our in training exam last year. I dont think i need to elaborate any further regarding academics!
Research - There has been an exponential increase in the research in our program in the last 2 years - I personally got my project IRB approved, presented it at ASA this year and also at a national resident research meeting at which almost all the other residents presented as well. I am writing a book chapter along with one of our faculty and at least 3 other residetns are writing other chapters also. All the residents do a root cause analysis and a 'six sigma' presentation which also count as research and i have another study that i am involved along with another faculty in chronic pain patients. Several of our residents are on ASA committees as well. As you know, all these things look great on your CV. All the graduating seniors including myself are going into the fellowships of their choice and the programs of their choice. The same was true during fellowship/job search for the class that graduated last year.
Really sorry about the verbose response but here is the bottomline - i feel lucky to be graduating from this program and i can say with confidence that all my co residents agree with me on this. Anesthesiology at UF Jax is a great residency to be in and Jacksonville as a city is a definite bonus! ill be glad to talk to you if you have any further questions or concerns regarding the program - feel free to respond or send me a message.
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Hello all. I am currently a CA1 at UF health jacksonville anesthesia department. Allow me to clarify what has been mentioned to avoid confusion or rumors and avoid propagation of false information. UF health is a level one trauma center. As anesthesia residents we have a surplus of trauma cases and have absolutely no issue obtaining numbers in any kind of case. We do not take call however we have a night float system in place. During nights you are expected to cover trauma cases among others and at this point we residents can do epidurals with our eyes closed. As anesthesia residents we are not the work horses of the department as we have plenty of nurses thus enabling residents weekends off and plenty of academic time to focus on exams and boards. Do not assume we do not work hard, we are a small program but all residents work extremely hard here, slaking in any way from clinical duties or academic performance is not accepted. Please if you have any other questions feel free to post I will answer! Good luck.
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deleted171991
To paraphrase my PD: residency is not for academic time. And I would add it's not for research either (if you graduate from a really good program you won't need it anyway to get the fellowship of your dreams). One doesn't learn much practical anesthesia when not providing it. One can catch up on the reading/research later, as an attending, but supervised learning never happens again. Residency should not be cush. So, yeah, I am totally unimpressed, except maybe for the trauma stuff.
Meeting the lame minimal requirements 8 months before graduation is something any decent program will do, so I wouldn't bring that up.
Meeting the lame minimal requirements 8 months before graduation is something any decent program will do, so I wouldn't bring that up.
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Being a resident physician in the discipline of anesthesiology in the 21st century is NOT about just doing cases. The physician anesthesiologist must be trained to work at the top of their license. Not only must they be technically excellent but also must master a large body of didactic information, comprehend how new knowledge is created, and understand and be able to manage complex health systems. Suggesting that physicians just do a lot of cases and learn by themselves or after training is suggesting that they simply do the same as the extenders we supervise. Not sage advice!
I have been an anesthesiologist for almost 25 years. My advice would be to look for a program that exposes you to a large number of diverse complex cases, prepares you to master the body of knowledge known as anesthesiology, allows you to understand how new ideas are created and tested, and doesn't use you simply as labor. In order to become a consultant you need to know how and why.
Listen to the trainees.
Good luck with your match season
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deleted171991
You learn the how and why when you get home from work and read up on your cases for the next day. One should read at least an hour every single day. One can also look up immediate answers to questions in the OR, given the electronic medical libraries most programs offer.
One doesn't become a good anesthesiologist by getting "academic time", or "research time". I went to a pretty good program (not top 10 though, in my book), and worked my butt off every day from 6 am till at least 4-5 pm, did call every 5th day or so, and still managed to pass all my ITEs and boards on first attempt, in the top 1/3-1/4. In my daily work as an attending, I seldom regret not having read about something during my residency, but boy do I regret not getting into serious trouble while I was still a trainee... And that only happens while providing anesthesia.
Another big mistake many programs make is not letting trainees use a lot of LMAs. The frequency of airway complications is much higher with LMAs, hence the airway training gets exponentially better. There is nothing like suddenly not being to able to ventilate anymore a BMI 50 patient, in lithotomy position, in the middle of the surgery.
The kind of program I would want is one where I'd soil my pants weekly for 3 years, so that I won't have to for the following 30.
My training was pretty recently, so I can actually compare both sides of the coin.
One doesn't become a good anesthesiologist by getting "academic time", or "research time". I went to a pretty good program (not top 10 though, in my book), and worked my butt off every day from 6 am till at least 4-5 pm, did call every 5th day or so, and still managed to pass all my ITEs and boards on first attempt, in the top 1/3-1/4. In my daily work as an attending, I seldom regret not having read about something during my residency, but boy do I regret not getting into serious trouble while I was still a trainee... And that only happens while providing anesthesia.
Another big mistake many programs make is not letting trainees use a lot of LMAs. The frequency of airway complications is much higher with LMAs, hence the airway training gets exponentially better. There is nothing like suddenly not being to able to ventilate anymore a BMI 50 patient, in lithotomy position, in the middle of the surgery.
The kind of program I would want is one where I'd soil my pants weekly for 3 years, so that I won't have to for the following 30.
My training was pretty recently, so I can actually compare both sides of the coin.
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I am not going to get into a "back and forth"
I was the PD of one of the largest training programs in U.S. My residents have and continue to get into the best fellowships and private practices in the country. I have mentored several generations of Anesthesiologists and hold leadership positions in our national organizations.
I am not going to tell you which residency to rank you have to listen to the residents in the program and your gut feeling. Do not be led by advice that is cynical and lacking validity.
Whatever your choice- good luck!
I was the PD of one of the largest training programs in U.S. My residents have and continue to get into the best fellowships and private practices in the country. I have mentored several generations of Anesthesiologists and hold leadership positions in our national organizations.
I am not going to tell you which residency to rank you have to listen to the residents in the program and your gut feeling. Do not be led by advice that is cynical and lacking validity.
Whatever your choice- good luck!
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deleted171991
Although our opinions differ, thank you sincerely for your input.
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Applicants,
I'm also a resident at UF Jax - Anesthesiology, CA-1. I just wanted to confirm what my other co-residents have said and add a little extra.
To start, my experience with the program has been phenomenal thus far. I am ecstatic to have ended up here. I have no complaints with the program and I'm certain that I will obtain my goals with my training at UF Jax, both clinically and educationally.
We are a high risk OB center and receive complex OB patients from throughout the region, just as our Level 1 trauma center status.
We have some amazing fellowship trained regional attendings, and our acute pain service is growing on a daily basis. In my first 6 months I have already logged nearly 60 peripheral blocks, which does not include any neuraxial anesthesia.
Our patient population is ill in a number of ways, and many of our surgical patients have significant end-organ damage as sequela of their chronic medical conditions (i.e. it is rare to have a day where you don't care for at least one ASA 3+ patient).
Attached to the main hospital campus is an outpatient surgery center (ambulatory), GI lab, and across the street our eye surgery center. We also practice anesthesia in the EP lab, interventional radiology suites, and the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, where we gain experience in pediatric management.
We are a small program and our program director works individually with each resident in order to assure that we get the most comprehensive resident experience, and she works to tailor our rotation schedules so that we have experience in fields of our interest early in training. We are also relatively new, allowing resident concerns to be addressed quickly and easily, partly because the culture is still developing. I love that I can have a direct impact with my own training, and that change is welcomed.
I would not call the program easy or cush in any way. When in clinical duty we work our tails off, and give concerted effort to efficient turnover times and patient emergence in order to prepare for private practice. I am one member of a great team of residents, and we all have each other's back. We work together to solve work-flow issues. Each and every one of us is fully invested in the program and strive to ensure success of one another and of the program as a whole.
Our schedule is balanced with an obvious focus towards clinical duties and direct patient care. We do have one day per week dedicated to academic duties (didactics and what-not) but we also return to the OR in the afternoons IF we are needed, otherwise we have time to work on other scholarly activities. We are released of clinical duties each afternoon when possible, and our program staff believe that well rested (not burned-out) residents learn and perform better on a daily basis.
As residents progress in class and experience we inherit more clinical/resource responsibility on the night float rotation. By the time we are CA-3s we manage the OR at nights, including OB, acute pain service, level 1 traumas, and AIC (anesthesia in charge) to coordinate staff in the OR.
Make your own judgements regarding the anesthesiology program at UF Health - Jacksonville. The residents are happy to be here, the faculty is great, and we most certainly will reach whatever goals we have set for ourselves.
I'm also a resident at UF Jax - Anesthesiology, CA-1. I just wanted to confirm what my other co-residents have said and add a little extra.
To start, my experience with the program has been phenomenal thus far. I am ecstatic to have ended up here. I have no complaints with the program and I'm certain that I will obtain my goals with my training at UF Jax, both clinically and educationally.
We are a high risk OB center and receive complex OB patients from throughout the region, just as our Level 1 trauma center status.
We have some amazing fellowship trained regional attendings, and our acute pain service is growing on a daily basis. In my first 6 months I have already logged nearly 60 peripheral blocks, which does not include any neuraxial anesthesia.
Our patient population is ill in a number of ways, and many of our surgical patients have significant end-organ damage as sequela of their chronic medical conditions (i.e. it is rare to have a day where you don't care for at least one ASA 3+ patient).
Attached to the main hospital campus is an outpatient surgery center (ambulatory), GI lab, and across the street our eye surgery center. We also practice anesthesia in the EP lab, interventional radiology suites, and the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, where we gain experience in pediatric management.
We are a small program and our program director works individually with each resident in order to assure that we get the most comprehensive resident experience, and she works to tailor our rotation schedules so that we have experience in fields of our interest early in training. We are also relatively new, allowing resident concerns to be addressed quickly and easily, partly because the culture is still developing. I love that I can have a direct impact with my own training, and that change is welcomed.
I would not call the program easy or cush in any way. When in clinical duty we work our tails off, and give concerted effort to efficient turnover times and patient emergence in order to prepare for private practice. I am one member of a great team of residents, and we all have each other's back. We work together to solve work-flow issues. Each and every one of us is fully invested in the program and strive to ensure success of one another and of the program as a whole.
Our schedule is balanced with an obvious focus towards clinical duties and direct patient care. We do have one day per week dedicated to academic duties (didactics and what-not) but we also return to the OR in the afternoons IF we are needed, otherwise we have time to work on other scholarly activities. We are released of clinical duties each afternoon when possible, and our program staff believe that well rested (not burned-out) residents learn and perform better on a daily basis.
As residents progress in class and experience we inherit more clinical/resource responsibility on the night float rotation. By the time we are CA-3s we manage the OR at nights, including OB, acute pain service, level 1 traumas, and AIC (anesthesia in charge) to coordinate staff in the OR.
Make your own judgements regarding the anesthesiology program at UF Health - Jacksonville. The residents are happy to be here, the faculty is great, and we most certainly will reach whatever goals we have set for ourselves.
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"residency is not about academic time" - is a shocking statement!!
if i heard this from any of the faculty at a hospital that i was interviewing for residency i would have categorically rejected that program - and I'm sure current residency applicants would agree. It would at best be an excuse put forth by a program that wants to use you as pure workforce. in fact, if the ACGME reads such statements, the residency program in question would be in trouble!
i am certainly not underplaying the old school training that you are referring to - i am sure it creates good clinicians - unfortunately it also entrenches the "this is the way i do it and this is the only way to do it attitude"
Being an excellent clinician is just not sufficient in the current day and age - with every party in healthcare including the government pushing for outcomes based practice and evidence based medicine, it is imperative for anyone in residency to have adequate exposure to research and academics if they need to be ready for the future of healthcare and to be anywhere close to being a champion of patient safety!
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deleted171991
If you spend enough time on this forum, you will read a good number of posts from residents venting about their "academic days".
You should be more concerned about your program cutting your residency experience short by at least 20%. One academic day weekly? No overnight or weekend calls? You sure it's not a CRNA school?
There is a big difference between being cheap workforce and spending a lot of time in the OR in a meaningful way. All those book smarts are useless if one doesn't learn to apply them in a clinical context.
You should be more concerned about your program cutting your residency experience short by at least 20%. One academic day weekly? No overnight or weekend calls? You sure it's not a CRNA school?
There is a big difference between being cheap workforce and spending a lot of time in the OR in a meaningful way. All those book smarts are useless if one doesn't learn to apply them in a clinical context.
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"Another big mistake many programs make is not letting trainees use a lot of LMAs. The frequency of airway complications is much higher with LMAs"
Where are you getting these statements from........? Here are the results from a pubmed search on LMA and ETT...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8712387
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20674126
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12883396
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25061426
Where are you getting these statements from........? Here are the results from a pubmed search on LMA and ETT...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8712387
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20674126
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12883396
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25061426
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deleted171991
There is this thing called experience. It is not a result of either "academic time" or "research time".
When you'll play with LMAs in some BMI 50+ patients in lithotomy position, you'll see what I mean.
Let me qualify my statement a bit more: I was talking about intraop complications. If LMAs were so safe intraop, we would see academic attendings use mostly LMAs, instead of mostly ETTs. Why? Because an academic attending does whatever is needed so that s/he won't have to come back to fix it before emergence.
Btw, I love LMAs, so you don't have to "defend" them.
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There is this thing called experience. It is not a result of either "academic time" or "research time".
When you'll play with LMAs in some BMI 50+ patients in lithotomy position, you'll see what I mean.
Let me qualify my statement a bit more: I was talking about intraop complications. If LMAs were so safe intraop, we would see academic attendings use mostly LMAs, instead of mostly ETTs. Why? Because an academic attending does whatever is needed so that s/he won't have to come back to fix it before emergence.
Btw, I love LMAs, so you don't have to "defend" them.
thing called experience.....?!! you 'love' LMAs....?!!
I'm sorry, my training teaches me to never put anecdotal personal experience over scientific studies..... all the studies that i quoted were for intraoperative management as well.
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deleted171991
Must be all those academic days I didn't have. 
By the way, bonus points if you tell us who Yoda1967 is.
For the students interested in this program, please look at the medical schools of your future co-residents (mouse over the photos). There seem to be just TWO American medical grads in the entire program, and one of them is a DO (but maybe there are studies that will show how wrong I am).
By the way, bonus points if you tell us who Yoda1967 is.
For the students interested in this program, please look at the medical schools of your future co-residents (mouse over the photos). There seem to be just TWO American medical grads in the entire program, and one of them is a DO (but maybe there are studies that will show how wrong I am).
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will be professional enough not to respond to personal affronts on the program...
people who were making choices regarding the program will already have gotten their answer regarding science versus dogma after reading your argument and my responses.......good bye....
people who were making choices regarding the program will already have gotten their answer regarding science versus dogma after reading your argument and my responses.......good bye....
I just wanted to comment as a graduate from this program this past July. I am truly proud of how much it has grown over its inception and to have been a part of it. It is a truly evolving program with the utmost dedication to each resident's success from all of the faculty. The experiences I had as resident in this department have truly prepared me for any situation and I am truly grateful. To argue over night shift versus call versus academic time versus hovering over photos as to where these residents went to medical school is a mute point. When you graduate from a program you need to be confident, clinically competent and prepared with a knowledge and skills set to adapt to any situation. I don't think it is at all about "selling" a program here. As a new program I feel it is important to share what you may have to offer to graduating medical students who have legitimate concerns, not ignore them. I am impressed with all of the resident's remarks and appreciate the time they took to try and provide information to these upcoming medical school graduates/potential candidates. As for post-graduate training, so far each resident has matched in their number one ranked spot of the specialty of their choice and I am very proud of all of you. This program will continue to blossom due to the leadership in place and the strength and dedication of its residents. I look forward to all that is to come for all of you and wish the applicants the best of luck as well.
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UF JAX is a bottom 1/3 program. That is fact. Does it mean that UF-Jax is a bad program? No. Since UF-Jax is new one would expect it to be in the bottom 1/3 and match a lot of FMGs. Again, that doesn't necessarily make it a bad program.
Residency training is about "balance" between academic or study time, clinical case load and clinical case exposure. Is UF-Jax a little weak in 2 out of 3? yes, but that doesn't mean the overall training is subpar depending on the outside rotations.
Jax is a great city but it has a another Residency program higher in the pecking order, Mayo-Jax, so the more desirable med students choose Mayo-Jax over UF-Jax. Still, I'd say Mayo-Jax is even more "cush" than any other program in the state with no trauma, no Ob and very limited call duty doing cases. But, then again Mayo offers transplant, advanced Cardiac and superior U/S training compared to most programs. Residents among both programs do rotations at the other facility.
Med Students these days are "lifestyle oriented" so I doubt they will be put off by a cushy program with weekends off.
Best of luck to those in the match this year.
Residency training is about "balance" between academic or study time, clinical case load and clinical case exposure. Is UF-Jax a little weak in 2 out of 3? yes, but that doesn't mean the overall training is subpar depending on the outside rotations.
Jax is a great city but it has a another Residency program higher in the pecking order, Mayo-Jax, so the more desirable med students choose Mayo-Jax over UF-Jax. Still, I'd say Mayo-Jax is even more "cush" than any other program in the state with no trauma, no Ob and very limited call duty doing cases. But, then again Mayo offers transplant, advanced Cardiac and superior U/S training compared to most programs. Residents among both programs do rotations at the other facility.
Med Students these days are "lifestyle oriented" so I doubt they will be put off by a cushy program with weekends off.
Best of luck to those in the match this year.
D
deleted171991
My point was that one can catch up on the former anytime, with some good reading material, but doing cases under supervision is a one-time deal that happens only during residency.
When the time comes to be an attending and maybe supervise others, all these residents from "lifestyle" programs will regret all those times they left the OR early and either did not see a complication in real-life, or did not practice a skill once more. There is something called experience, there is something called muscle memory. This stuff doesn't just happen at home with a good anesthesia book in one's lap (as much as I like reading).
The "balance" should be not between work and fun, but between reading and doing. One can rest and have fun when one becomes an attending.
P.S. I am not trying to be an a-hole here. I am talking from experience. Yeah, the personal non-evidence-based kind.
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FFP I don't know or care to know wh you are. However, your cynicism rings out.
I run a very academic and clinically busy program. Our residents get to perform cutting edge airway techniques, train extensively in crisis management, and graduate being able to confidently manage most cases. When they can't they call for help.
I don't know what us sparking your anger at this new program. Thankfully I sm not a Psychistrist- but think you would make an interesting discussion.
1) modern psychology and educational theory supports balanced lifestyle as a strategy to avoid burnout
2) I know all the Florida programs and I think each has its strength and would prepare you for future professional life
3) FFP you know nothing about educational theory and anesthesiology training in particular, graduates from programs that empathize balancing learning, clinical learning/ investigation produce superior residents
Saying that- listen to the residents of any program you apply for, ask questions, visit again.
Maintain an open attitude
Most importantly stay away from the cynicism that some of the posts placed on this thread - not only are they generally rude in attitude- but ignorant of details
Good luck in your search!
post: 15975134, member: 171991"]Must be all those academic days I didn't have.
By the way, bonus points if you tell us who Yoda1967 is.
For the students interested in this program, please look at the medical schools of your future co-residents (mouse over the photos). There seem to be just TWO American medical grads in the entire program, and one of them is a DO (but maybe there are studies that will show how wrong I am).[/QUOTE]
FFP. Don't know (nor care )
I run a very academic and clinically busy program. Our residents get to perform cutting edge airway techniques, train extensively in crisis management, and graduate being able to confidently manage most cases. When they can't they call for help.
I don't know what us sparking your anger at this new program. Thankfully I sm not a Psychistrist- but think you would make an interesting discussion.
1) modern psychology and educational theory supports balanced lifestyle as a strategy to avoid burnout
2) I know all the Florida programs and I think each has its strength and would prepare you for future professional life
3) FFP you know nothing about educational theory and anesthesiology training in particular, graduates from programs that empathize balancing learning, clinical learning/ investigation produce superior residents
Saying that- listen to the residents of any program you apply for, ask questions, visit again.
Maintain an open attitude
Most importantly stay away from the cynicism that some of the posts placed on this thread - not only are they generally rude in attitude- but ignorant of details
Good luck in your search!
post: 15975134, member: 171991"]Must be all those academic days I didn't have.
By the way, bonus points if you tell us who Yoda1967 is.
For the students interested in this program, please look at the medical schools of your future co-residents (mouse over the photos). There seem to be just TWO American medical grads in the entire program, and one of them is a DO (but maybe there are studies that will show how wrong I am).[/QUOTE]
FFP. Don't know (nor care )
Just to add to the lack of credibility of some of the outlandish statements made here.
An assertion about programs desiring AMG more than FMG, DO. Again please don't rely on the reliability of the information provided. It is very unreliable.
Most programs I am aware of interview based on competency not on school, country or origin, type of degree (DO/MD). The recruitment team reviews applicants files for USLME, previous experience, and letters. From this cohort they invite folks for interview.
Residents I do believe that the top programs in the country look at the most qualified applicant. FFP may be better off spending his time catching up on the reading he missed in residency rather than poison young minds that are simply looking for honest advice.
The level of discussion in this thread should be based on fact, experience, respect in discourse- some of which is missing here
Any resident who wants neutral advice can write me. I WILL NOT guide you to a particular program, rather I will go over general principles helping the applicant construct their match list based on their personal profile.
What I won't do is attack any particular program ( especially not one I have not been involved with on a professional level)
An assertion about programs desiring AMG more than FMG, DO. Again please don't rely on the reliability of the information provided. It is very unreliable.
Most programs I am aware of interview based on competency not on school, country or origin, type of degree (DO/MD). The recruitment team reviews applicants files for USLME, previous experience, and letters. From this cohort they invite folks for interview.
Residents I do believe that the top programs in the country look at the most qualified applicant. FFP may be better off spending his time catching up on the reading he missed in residency rather than poison young minds that are simply looking for honest advice.
The level of discussion in this thread should be based on fact, experience, respect in discourse- some of which is missing here
Any resident who wants neutral advice can write me. I WILL NOT guide you to a particular program, rather I will go over general principles helping the applicant construct their match list based on their personal profile.
What I won't do is attack any particular program ( especially not one I have not been involved with on a professional level)
FFP. Don't know (nor care )[/QUOTE]FFP I don't know or care to know wh you are. However, your cynicism rings out.
I run a very academic and clinically busy program. Our residents get to perform cutting edge airway techniques, train extensively in crisis management, and graduate being able to confidently manage most cases. When they can't they call for help.
I don't know what us sparking your anger at this new program. Thankfully I sm not a Psychistrist- but think you would make an interesting discussion.
1) modern psychology and educational theory supports balanced lifestyle as a strategy to avoid burnout
2) I know all the Florida programs and I think each has its strength and would prepare you for future professional life
3) FFP you know nothing about educational theory and anesthesiology training in particular, graduates from programs that empathize balancing learning, clinical learning/ investigation produce superior residents
Saying that- listen to the residents of any program you apply for, ask questions, visit again.
Maintain an open attitude
Most importantly stay away from the cynicism that some of the posts placed on this thread - not only are they generally rude in attitude- but ignorant of details
Good luck in your search!
post: 15975134, member: 171991"]Must be all those academic days I didn't have.
By the way, bonus points if you tell us who Yoda1967 is.
For the students interested in this program, please look at the medical schools of your future co-residents (mouse over the photos). There seem to be just TWO American medical grads in the entire program, and one of them is a DO (but maybe there are studies that will show how wrong I am).
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I am impressed by the passion the defense team of this program has demonstrated in their arguments.
It's refreshing to see people so proud of their training but I still think that it will be culture shock when a resident who never worked a night or a weekend transitions to the real world and discovers how different things are.
Life style residency is a great concept, and I am sure you get to read more and attend more lectures, but are you going to be prepared to work in busy private practice environment where no one cares about your life style and comfort???
It's refreshing to see people so proud of their training but I still think that it will be culture shock when a resident who never worked a night or a weekend transitions to the real world and discovers how different things are.
Life style residency is a great concept, and I am sure you get to read more and attend more lectures, but are you going to be prepared to work in busy private practice environment where no one cares about your life style and comfort???
D
deleted171991
No anger. I find it laughable to have academic days as a resident, but I personally couldn't care less.
That goes both ways. Just look at the infusion of arrogance in your posts.
My personal experience does the same. And I am a big fan of that, hence I personally prefer to work only 4 days a week. I used to argue with my PD about having academic days. Now that I am practicing, I can only thank him for not letting himself be convinced. One cannot have both just 3 years of residency and one day/week off clinical duties. There is too much missed.
It is highly reliable. There is a very easy way to prove it: most of the anesthesia programs have waaaay more AMGs than FMGs, and waaay more FMGs than US IMGs. Many American grads will look down on a program with extensive foreign faculty or residents. I don't know whether it is human psychology, or there is a "scientific" basis for this, but I am not telling them anything they don't know.
Really? That's why we have our medical school listed in the application files, because nobody cares where we graduated, they just care about our scores, right? Nothing can be further from the truth. If American PDs were so objective, we would all just go through a big national residency entrance exam, like in Europe, and may the best people choose the best residency spots.
If I had to spend my time "catching up on my reading", at least 75% of the graduates would need to do that, too (based on my written boards percentile).
It takes two to tango. I have not seen respect in any of your posts, just know-it-all arrogance.
Nobody "attacked" your particular program, just your particular schedule and way of teaching, and the naive rationalizations your residents were making here. I personally would prefer to be wrong (being a work-life balance kind of guy myself).
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Let's cut through the B.S. here. Instead, here are the facts:
1. UF-Jax is a new program. This means they will struggle to attract top med students to rank them highly on their list. Hence, UF-Jax will be getting the weaker applicant pool applying to anesthesia. But, if you are a med student looking to match into Anesthesiology and your stats are average or below average I encourage you to interview at UF-Jax in order to increase the odds you match into the field.
2. UF-Jax is a Level 1 trauma center but lacks the volume and payer mix of many tertiary care centers. That said they do make the most of what they get in terms of cases but caseload is limited. This is why they are scaling back their SRNA training program; there are not enough good cases to go around.
Cardiac and Regional at UF-Jax are weak which is why I hope they send the residents across town to Mayo-Jax for these types of cases. Cardiac at Mayo-Jax is particularly strong with great cases.
3. Residents graduating UF-Jax can do a Fellowship in order to improve their chances of landing an academic job or being more competitive for Private practice outside their geographic region. I addition, I doubt the AMCs will care if you graduated from UF-Jax or Emory when it comes time to determine salary. In other words, you get to be a Board Certified Anesthesiologist.
At this time UF-Jax is last in the State in terms of prestige. Miami, UF-Gainesville and Mayo-Jax are all higher on the perceived prestige list. Of course, that may change over time but that is the situation on the ground today.
Best of Luck in the match this year.
1. UF-Jax is a new program. This means they will struggle to attract top med students to rank them highly on their list. Hence, UF-Jax will be getting the weaker applicant pool applying to anesthesia. But, if you are a med student looking to match into Anesthesiology and your stats are average or below average I encourage you to interview at UF-Jax in order to increase the odds you match into the field.
2. UF-Jax is a Level 1 trauma center but lacks the volume and payer mix of many tertiary care centers. That said they do make the most of what they get in terms of cases but caseload is limited. This is why they are scaling back their SRNA training program; there are not enough good cases to go around.
Cardiac and Regional at UF-Jax are weak which is why I hope they send the residents across town to Mayo-Jax for these types of cases. Cardiac at Mayo-Jax is particularly strong with great cases.
3. Residents graduating UF-Jax can do a Fellowship in order to improve their chances of landing an academic job or being more competitive for Private practice outside their geographic region. I addition, I doubt the AMCs will care if you graduated from UF-Jax or Emory when it comes time to determine salary. In other words, you get to be a Board Certified Anesthesiologist.
At this time UF-Jax is last in the State in terms of prestige. Miami, UF-Gainesville and Mayo-Jax are all higher on the perceived prestige list. Of course, that may change over time but that is the situation on the ground today.
Best of Luck in the match this year.
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cutting out the unproffessional and unnecessary comments made earlier, heres what any applicant considering training in our program should know...
We have case load that can make you a competent Anesthesiologist whichever way you choose to pursue your career - either private practice or academic - Graduates from this program are in private practice jobs right now and are doing stellar - so for anyone SPECULATING or questioning that the programs design might not make you ready for a private practice job, we have PROOF that it does.
Regarding case load in regional, it is COMPLETELY false that we do not get adequate regional opportunities - The program is actually starting a REGIONAL FELLOWSHIP next June - As residents, we rotate for 2 months on this service and each day we get to do about 10 blocks - this means that the graduation requirement of 40 blocks can be taken care of in the first week of that rotation.
yes, it is true that we scaled back our SRNA program to get our residents adequate Cardiac numbers - The result being that all the residents get adequate exposure to cardiac surgery and feel confident enough to handle a cardiac case.
The program is solidly based on education and teaching - we do not 'LOVE' or 'HATE' or 'DEFEND' LMAs - we understand their role and USE them appropriately. We do not LOVE or HATE drugs - We understand them and we USE THEM AS INDICATED. This is a 'SCIENCE' - Unless you'd been sitting under a rock for years the days of 'dogmatic medicine' are long gone.....
Let me reiterate - Ours is NOT a LIFESTYLE residency as people seem to be suggesting - Residents in this program work as hard as any other program and gain equal or better clinical exposure. With regards to taking call, its definetly NOT true that we do not take call or do weekends - our schedule has Q4 call in the ICU months adding up to 70-75 hour work weeks, we take 24 hour beeper call while on Neuro, Cardiac and Pediatric Anesthesia months and of course take Trauma call. The only period you do not have call is during your first 6 months of training when you are expected to be consolidating your skills in Anesthesia after finishing your transitional/Prelim year to get ready to take call in the following months
I dont know what the perceptions of program directors regarding FMGs or AMGs or DOs is - What i do know is this - People who match in our program are among the top 15-20 of the ones we rank. Could we do better - absolutely and WE WILL - Our target is to create THE BEST SMALL PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY - AND WE ARE CERTAINLY ON OUR WAY TO DO THAT! People may 'rate and review' 'branded' programs higher than us but as a resident in this program, i can say with confidence that i wouldnt have been happier anywhere else nor do i believe that anyone else could have trained me any better. That should be the only thing that should matter to any applicant
We have case load that can make you a competent Anesthesiologist whichever way you choose to pursue your career - either private practice or academic - Graduates from this program are in private practice jobs right now and are doing stellar - so for anyone SPECULATING or questioning that the programs design might not make you ready for a private practice job, we have PROOF that it does.
Regarding case load in regional, it is COMPLETELY false that we do not get adequate regional opportunities - The program is actually starting a REGIONAL FELLOWSHIP next June - As residents, we rotate for 2 months on this service and each day we get to do about 10 blocks - this means that the graduation requirement of 40 blocks can be taken care of in the first week of that rotation.
yes, it is true that we scaled back our SRNA program to get our residents adequate Cardiac numbers - The result being that all the residents get adequate exposure to cardiac surgery and feel confident enough to handle a cardiac case.
The program is solidly based on education and teaching - we do not 'LOVE' or 'HATE' or 'DEFEND' LMAs - we understand their role and USE them appropriately. We do not LOVE or HATE drugs - We understand them and we USE THEM AS INDICATED. This is a 'SCIENCE' - Unless you'd been sitting under a rock for years the days of 'dogmatic medicine' are long gone.....
Let me reiterate - Ours is NOT a LIFESTYLE residency as people seem to be suggesting - Residents in this program work as hard as any other program and gain equal or better clinical exposure. With regards to taking call, its definetly NOT true that we do not take call or do weekends - our schedule has Q4 call in the ICU months adding up to 70-75 hour work weeks, we take 24 hour beeper call while on Neuro, Cardiac and Pediatric Anesthesia months and of course take Trauma call. The only period you do not have call is during your first 6 months of training when you are expected to be consolidating your skills in Anesthesia after finishing your transitional/Prelim year to get ready to take call in the following months
I dont know what the perceptions of program directors regarding FMGs or AMGs or DOs is - What i do know is this - People who match in our program are among the top 15-20 of the ones we rank. Could we do better - absolutely and WE WILL - Our target is to create THE BEST SMALL PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY - AND WE ARE CERTAINLY ON OUR WAY TO DO THAT! People may 'rate and review' 'branded' programs higher than us but as a resident in this program, i can say with confidence that i wouldnt have been happier anywhere else nor do i believe that anyone else could have trained me any better. That should be the only thing that should matter to any applicant
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Just to clarify, we have one half day a week as "academic day" that consists of morning conference, didactic session and or workshops. The rest of the day the residents return to the OR or work on preops etc. i have not heard one resident complain about this, as a matter of fact we enjoy these sessions because they are interactive, not your boring power point lectures. I personally know residents from Miami and UF gains. Who complain abt how boring and pointless their lectures are because they are just powerpoints.
I don't know who this FFP character is but residency is the time to get as much clinical experience as possible while being able to study. The idea that you can catch up on reading when you become and attending is completely asinine! I reject the notion mentioned earlier that we are a cush residency and will not be prepared for the real world. We work hard, have a night float system and take 24 hr call q4 in the SICU. And all the residents from our last graduating class are in fellowships and private practice and excelling. The difference is we work hard but aren't over worked like many other programs. If you interviewed here our program is very friendly and open to scheduling second looks. Decide for yourself!
And honestly FFP seems to have a little too much time on his/her hands. Maybe since your an attending now (supposedly) who only works four days a week you can make better use of your time and catch up on all that reading you clearly lack. Or since you scored so highly on written boards maybe you'd get a lifestyle by now and not be posting on a thread at 4am.
I don't know who this FFP character is but residency is the time to get as much clinical experience as possible while being able to study. The idea that you can catch up on reading when you become and attending is completely asinine! I reject the notion mentioned earlier that we are a cush residency and will not be prepared for the real world. We work hard, have a night float system and take 24 hr call q4 in the SICU. And all the residents from our last graduating class are in fellowships and private practice and excelling. The difference is we work hard but aren't over worked like many other programs. If you interviewed here our program is very friendly and open to scheduling second looks. Decide for yourself!
And honestly FFP seems to have a little too much time on his/her hands. Maybe since your an attending now (supposedly) who only works four days a week you can make better use of your time and catch up on all that reading you clearly lack. Or since you scored so highly on written boards maybe you'd get a lifestyle by now and not be posting on a thread at 4am.
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Interesting that suddenly a bunch of people who have never posted on this forum appeared out of no where and started posting inflammatory comments against established members.
It's OK to defend certain ideas or beliefs with passion but turning this into a pissing match is a bit childish and unnecessary.
I did not think FFP was unprofessional, he simply stated his opinion and people are free to disagree with him, but I am not sure why he is being attacked so relentlessly?
Did he touch a nerve?
It's OK to defend certain ideas or beliefs with passion but turning this into a pissing match is a bit childish and unnecessary.
I did not think FFP was unprofessional, he simply stated his opinion and people are free to disagree with him, but I am not sure why he is being attacked so relentlessly?
Did he touch a nerve?
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I'm not attacking the program. UF-Jax is a decent program. But, "adequate" training doesn't equate with "exceptional" training and that point should not be lost with all the banter. Second, Mayo-Jax is a far superior program in terms of Cardiac and Regional compared to UF-Jax. That said, UF-Jax has exposure to trauma and Ob which Mayo-Jax lacks. Mayo has the best transplant program in the State outside Miami. Once Dr. Lweis starts rotating residents at Mayo-Jax for Cardiac, Transplant and Regional the program has the potential to greatly improve the training of its residents.
I totally agree UF-Jax will prepare you to be an adequate Anesthesiologist; but, the goal should be to become an exceptional one. I believe JPP coined the term: ROCK STAR
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I commend Dr. Lewis for taking time out of his schedule to post on SDN. He deserves credit for caring what we all think here and working to improve the program. In fact, I would be glad to join Dr. Lewis as faculty in a few years if there is a need for my services.
Again, best of luck to those in the match.
Again, best of luck to those in the match.
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Was that Blade applying for a job?
D
deleted171991
The forum time is not Florida time. Hence 4 am can be 1-2-3 hours later elsewhere. I actually posted while I was drinking my coffee before going to work.
I think all the "characters" who advertise their programs on this forum are underestimating the intelligence of the American medical student. Good programs don't need to be advertised, neither do good surgeons or good anesthesiologists. Good programs don't try to do character assassination of their critics either, because they just don't need to.
Good night and good luck!
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Advertising any anesthesia residency program is unethical since this is a specialty that has no future.
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Blade, for those of us wanting to match in Florida, would you say Miami is the best program in Florida? How do Mt. Sinai Miami Beach and Mayo Jacksonville compare to University of Miami's program? Thanks.
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Oh no!! Not the doom and gloom again. Just when I was most excited about going into anesthesiology.
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Sounds like you already know the answer. Dave Lubarsky built Miami into a good program. Michael Lewis may do the same at UF-Jax. It takes time, effort and devotion to build a good program. I think Lewis has all three qualities.
As for Mt Sinai Miami Beach vs Mayo-Jax I think you know the answer.
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Ouch. Right to the point.
Let’s address some of the issues raised in this thread.
1) Unethical- I can’t see in any of my postings that I advertise any of the programs in the state. My advice was based on educational principles and in fact doesn’t mention specific programs. On the other hand the moderator (Ps blade) ‘outs me’ which I feel is very unethical on a private list (identity protected website). My reading is that such behaviour is a basis for permanent banning on the SDN network- and I plan to further investigate this issue.
2) Ranking of Programs: assertions about programs ranks in the state were made. I have been in academic medicine for a long time and am unaware of data that backs this assertion. Just as an observation I PERSONALLY know every program in the state in a very detailed fashion- and the information being offered in this posting is erroneous.
3) Respect in Debate: I have shown the postings to friends both here and the UK (faculty, students, and residents)- especially those of “FFP”- although not a scientific measure universally they were met with disdain with the tone and contents
I am signing off on this thread (which I only became aware of because a friend in the Midwest contacted me in disgust of some of the postings.
My advice for medical students who are applying for anesthesiology residencies is to look for programs in areas in which you would be happy living in. Additionally, I would look at programs that are invested in the training of residents as described by the ACGME- a balance between clinical service, education, and training in research (creation of new knowledge). A program that is busy clinically, doesn’t base service mission on residents, and allows time to be taught and read.
1) Unethical- I can’t see in any of my postings that I advertise any of the programs in the state. My advice was based on educational principles and in fact doesn’t mention specific programs. On the other hand the moderator (Ps blade) ‘outs me’ which I feel is very unethical on a private list (identity protected website). My reading is that such behaviour is a basis for permanent banning on the SDN network- and I plan to further investigate this issue.
2) Ranking of Programs: assertions about programs ranks in the state were made. I have been in academic medicine for a long time and am unaware of data that backs this assertion. Just as an observation I PERSONALLY know every program in the state in a very detailed fashion- and the information being offered in this posting is erroneous.
3) Respect in Debate: I have shown the postings to friends both here and the UK (faculty, students, and residents)- especially those of “FFP”- although not a scientific measure universally they were met with disdain with the tone and contents
I am signing off on this thread (which I only became aware of because a friend in the Midwest contacted me in disgust of some of the postings.
My advice for medical students who are applying for anesthesiology residencies is to look for programs in areas in which you would be happy living in. Additionally, I would look at programs that are invested in the training of residents as described by the ACGME- a balance between clinical service, education, and training in research (creation of new knowledge). A program that is busy clinically, doesn’t base service mission on residents, and allows time to be taught and read.
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Could you clarify what information is erroneous and what the correct information is? How would you rank the programs in your state and why? Can you give more detailed information about the programs in your state? Strengths and weaknesses of each? Feel free to PM me but I think it would really help other 3rd and 4th year medical students reading this. Thanks
Sirach 38- I can not be relied on to be an objective describer of programs- nor do I think the moderators on this site have the information to make such an assesement. My suggestion would be to visit the programs websites, speak to the residents, call/ write to the PD.
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Again, the fact that Yoda 1967 cares what we post on SDN Is a good indicator that he cares about his program and his residents. The key to a successful program is a program chairman who strives to improve the program for the sake of the residents.
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When did Blade become a moderator?
D
deleted171991
I am sorry if the tone was disrespectful. I am used to talking to (less than) peers, not to leaders of national organizations, hence the tone can be sarcastic (especially when there is sarcasm or arrogance on the other side). On this forum, respect tends to be earned rather than assumed. It's an anonymous forum, and that creates discussions which would never happen in a Grand Rounds. Would I ever bother to contradict you in that setting (even if I were sure that I was right)? No. There is nothing to gain and much to lose. I bet not many people contradict you in real life, or they do it with a lot of deference. I am not a leader of anything; I used to lead only student organizations, but I find that truly free and anonymous speech is conducive for a much better exchange of ideas. That's probably the reason why SDN has much more users than Sermo.
The contents of my posts represent my non-scientific personal opinions and life experience, as I have already pointed out. And nobody here assumes otherwise. Some things I say might not be politically correct but, if you spent more time on this forum, you would get to literally read posts about how a program "sucks" just because it has foreign grads or attendings. It's not my opinion (I am an foreign medical graduate myself); it's the way many recent American graduates see the GME world.
There is so much secrecy about residency programs, there is no real data out there. Residency program directors love to present only the things that put them in a good light. So medical students go only by what they get in a short day of interviews, and from discussions with peers. For them, the most predictive factors tend to be: who is accepted in the program, who are the teachers in the program, and how successful graduates are after they leave the program. Even that kind of data is pretty limited.
This thread was not the first time somebody asks a question about a program, then somebody from the program doesn't like the answer or the discussion, then they create new accounts to defend the program (and new users typically don't get much respect on online forums because, as I said, respect here is gained). It happens all the time and, unfortunately, it happens more with programs which do have some problems (no smoke without fire). That's why a fresh user posting only positives about a program will attract sarcasm and distrust. I apologize; it's just the nature of the beast.
I might be hot-headed (both here and in real life), but I have absolutely no secondary gain here. This discussion is all for the benefit of hardly-indebted students looking for a great residency program to give them a head-start for a successful professional life. That's the way I was looking at your program and the only thing I really cared about. So please don't take my words personally.
Respectfully,
The "character" FFP
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(Man I love these threads! Everyone acts like they really matter.)
