University of Louisville
1. Ease of Communication:
The program coordinator, Christy Castle-Greenwell, emailed the invitation with available dates and did the scheduling - very easy (No ERAS/Thalamus/IB). She sent a super helpful, detailed email far in advance with everything you need to know for interview day (time, address, dinner info, etc). The email also included contact information for two of the chief residents, as well as her own personal cell phone, which I found to be a nice touch. I got a very kind and welcoming vibe from her.
2. Accommodation & Food:
Christy includes a list of hotel options in the email. However, the hotel is not paid for, and there are no special rates for interviewees. I did not stay in a hotel (I knew someone who lives in Louisville with whom I stayed).
Dinner was hosted at a resident's home with casual dress (i.e. jeans), which was really great. Pizza was ordered from a local pizza place, and there was beer and wine. It was well-attended by residents, and there were 2 groups of interviewees (one who interviewed that day and the other who interviews the next day). The dinner was relaxed, and was an excellent way to talk to the residents. The fact that it wasn't at a restaurant took off a lot of pressure, and it had a personalized touch. The residents all had great comradery, and I could tell they all got along well. There was a fire pit and we made s'mores. I had so much fun - I felt like I was at a party!
3. Interview Day (Schedule, Type of Interview, Unusual Questions, Experiences):
Parking was $9 in a garage with a connected walkway to the building (not paid for by the program). The day started at 8:30am and lasted until 4pm. There was breakfast with coffee, fruit and pastries. First we had a group interview with the department chair, Dr. Casey. He asked everyone to talk about what brought them to psychiatry, what they see themselves doing after residency, and why they like UofL/the city of Louisville. While a little intimidating at first, it was actually a really neat experience to hear everyone's story and shared love of psychiatry. Dr. Casey seems very nice and seems like a competent chair. Just make sure you have an answer to those questions (which you should at every interview anyway). Next, the 8 interviewees were split into 2 groups of 4. One group did interviews first and then tour, and the other was in reverse. The interviews were very laid back (make sure you have plenty of questions to ask during the interview, even if it’s just to use as a conversation starter - like, "I like xyz about your program and I'd like to know more about it"). There were three half hour interviews, and there were no weird or unfair questions. Lunch was catered with BBQ pulled chicken and buns, yummy potatoes and cooked veggie mix with zucchini and squash. Tours were conducted by the chief residents, who also hung out with people in a central conference room between interviews and were very happy to answer questions. The tour consisted of Norton hospital (private) and UofL hospital. There is a "group meeting" were interviewees "interview each other" and present it to the group. Again, it sounds scary but it really wasn't a big deal. It was neat to learn more about the fellow interviewees. We discussed hobbies and interests, things like that. The day ended with a wrap-up from Dr. Robert Caudill, the program director. He seems very down-to-earth and transparent. He showed us funny YouTube videos about the match.
Overall, interview day was relaxed and FUN!
4. Program Overview:
They have an excellent website that outlines the rotation and didactic schedule by year, so I won't write all of that here. They take 9 residents per year. Didactics seemed very well planned out, and they take their didactics seriously. Fellowships are CAP, Addiction, and Psychosomatic. The PD is very enthusiastic about building up a forensic fellowship, and is hoping that it is coming soon. They offer an academic track and a community service track. The sites residents rotate at are centrally located, and there are several food trucks parked outside of the hospital. There are two 20 bed adult inpatient units (Norton and UofL). Norton also has a 20 bed child and adolescent unit. Norton is a private hospital on the same street as UofL. Norton's facilities were old and depressing. UofL has a brand new psychiatry floor which is absolutely GORGEOUS. The UofL Healthcare Outpatient Center is also gorgeous. Residents also rotate at the VA (a couple of miles away), Central State hospital (20 minute drive), Jewish Hospital, The Brook Hospital, and Centerstone. UofL hospital has a dedicated five-bed Emergency Psychiatric unit physically separate from the main ED, which is where all residents take their psych night call. Residents collaborate to come up with a call schedule, and I get the sense that this is usually not a contentious process. They seem very open to resident feedback, and make changes when and where they can. Call seemed fairly reasonable.
5. Faculty Achievements & Involvement:
Dr. Caudill, program director, is a pioneer in telepsychiatry (i.e. video conferencing). All residents get exposure to telepsych. Dr. Wright does all of the CBT training and he is a student of Aaron Beck.
Personally, this aspect is not super important to me, and I did not research it further. I do not want my lack of research on the matter to be a disservice to the program and faculty - I'm sure there is more.
6. Location & Lifestyle:
Louisville is the largest city in Kentucky, located on the Ohio River, and it has a lot to offer. It is famous for Churchill Downs, where the Kentucky Derby is held annually during the first Saturday of May. The Derby is preceded by a two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival, which starts with the annual Thunder Over Louisville, the largest annual fireworks display in North America. Bardstown Road is known for its cultural diversity and local trade. It has a zoo and several museums. There is also a nice restaurant and bar scene. Great parks. There is a massive 100-mile green belt/bike trail around the city. Real estate and traffic are very reasonable, so owning a house and commuting are not a problem.
7. Salary & Benefits:
Health insurance (shared cost), Professional liability insurance (malpractice) coverage, Long-term disability insurance coverage, Life insurance of two times the annual salary. Kentucky medical license fee, both initial and renewal. Travel allowance to attend psychiatric meetings (PGY2-4 year). Twenty days paid vacation per year. One week educational leave during PGY1 year. Two weeks educational leave per year (PGY2 - 4 years). One dental examination/ cleaning per year in the Dental Clinic. Hepatitis vaccinations and other immunizations at no cost.
Salaries (2018-2019)
PGY 1 $54,621
PGY 2 $55,785
PGY 3 $57,340
PGY 4 $58,927
There are moonlighting opportunities including Central State hospital, and several other facilities. There is an opportunity to moonlight in Fargo, ND on weekends, with all expenses paid.
8. Program Strengths:
+ Diversity of training sites
+ Frontier in telepsych
+ Excellent psychotherapy training (pick up patients PGY-2 year)
+ Child and adolescent exposure/fellowship
+ ECT/TMS exposure
+ Some cool specialty clinics available PGY3 including psycho-oncology, different substance abuse clinics
+ Many, many cool electives
+ Dedicated emergency psych
+ Gorgeous new psych floor at UofL
+ Respected and well-utilized consult service
+ Moonlighting opportunities
+ Louisville is a very livable city with excellent cost of living
9. Potential Weaknesses:
- Many faculty/graduates stay in the area; not helpful if you want to make connections on the coasts for example
- No forensic psych (though in the works - may come in the future)
- No wet/bench research; not a research-heavy program (though research is possible if you want it)
- Norton was old and depressing (but you only spend a few months there)
- I got the impression that you only get fed at some locations were you rotate, but not others
- Weekend and short call in the psych ED as a PGY1 even while off service. Call requirements in psych ED continue into PGY3, and you still have 2-3 call shifts per month PGY2 despite 2-3 months of night float
- Many required inpatient months during PGY-4
10. Overall Impression
I was pleasantly surprised by how great this program is. Everyone here is exceptionally kind and dedicated. I love their dedication to teaching psychotherapy, and I think their involvement in telepsych is really neat. Louisville is also a really cool city with a great cost of living and a lot of stuff to do (food/drink/parks). I think that this is a well-balanced program with a lot to offer. Residents genuinely get along with one another. The program director is very receptive to resident feedback.There were no red flags on my interview day, and I got caring, friendly vibes from everyone there. I will be ranking this program very highly, and I would be very happy to match here!
