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Any thoughts on the program, atmosphere? I'm considering this program for residency it seems really solid. Just looking for some inside information and not trying to ruffle any feathers 
EM at UT Houston?
- Thread starter enfuegoEP
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I am a 2nd year resident at UT Houston now. I may be a little biased, but I think we have a very solid program here.
We have a great group of residents who all work together very well, and a great mix of young and more seasoned attendings.
Memorial-Hermann, our primary teaching site, is the busiest level 1 trauma center in terms of acuity in the country (ie: more of our patients are sick and go to ICU level care than anywhere else). PLENTY of trauma, but great exposure to Medicine and Peds as well.
Our program director is very laid back and very willing to change our curriculum when we have problems with off-service rotations (for example, replacing trauma surgery rotation for an SICU month heavy in procedures when the trauma service turned into a 100+ hour a week scut rotation). When changes are made, they are made by a majority vote of the residents.
One thing I will say: If you learn better by pontificating over each patient and reading throughout your shift, this is not the place for you. We are a very busy level 1 trauma and referral center. We work hard while we are on, and see a lot of patients. In the end though, out in the community, seeing patients and "moving the meat" is what puts money in your pocket, and I think we learn to do that very well.
In all, we have a good relationship with other services, and any issues are quickly quelled by our program's leadership. Our department chairman is well respected in the university (recently serving as the school's chief operating officer), and can fix most situations with a phone call. He is married to the chief of the trauma service, so those issues can also be dealt with rapidly!
If you have more specific questions, feel free to PM me. Houston may not be the most glamorous city, but we have a great program here that gets better every year.
See our website here: http://www.uth.tmc.edu/uth_orgs/emer_med/
We have a great group of residents who all work together very well, and a great mix of young and more seasoned attendings.
Memorial-Hermann, our primary teaching site, is the busiest level 1 trauma center in terms of acuity in the country (ie: more of our patients are sick and go to ICU level care than anywhere else). PLENTY of trauma, but great exposure to Medicine and Peds as well.
Our program director is very laid back and very willing to change our curriculum when we have problems with off-service rotations (for example, replacing trauma surgery rotation for an SICU month heavy in procedures when the trauma service turned into a 100+ hour a week scut rotation). When changes are made, they are made by a majority vote of the residents.
One thing I will say: If you learn better by pontificating over each patient and reading throughout your shift, this is not the place for you. We are a very busy level 1 trauma and referral center. We work hard while we are on, and see a lot of patients. In the end though, out in the community, seeing patients and "moving the meat" is what puts money in your pocket, and I think we learn to do that very well.
In all, we have a good relationship with other services, and any issues are quickly quelled by our program's leadership. Our department chairman is well respected in the university (recently serving as the school's chief operating officer), and can fix most situations with a phone call. He is married to the chief of the trauma service, so those issues can also be dealt with rapidly!
If you have more specific questions, feel free to PM me. Houston may not be the most glamorous city, but we have a great program here that gets better every year.
See our website here: http://www.uth.tmc.edu/uth_orgs/emer_med/
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Thanks for the good info on UT Houston. I have heard this program is gaining some recognition and I am looking forward to interviewing there.
Any info on hours for residents-- 8s or 10s or 12s or a mix on your em months? Salaries (the ones on the website are out of date)? Faculty? My only concern is that the big names in trauma surgery may overshadow the EM department...any thoughts?
Thanks for the advice!
Any info on hours for residents-- 8s or 10s or 12s or a mix on your em months? Salaries (the ones on the website are out of date)? Faculty? My only concern is that the big names in trauma surgery may overshadow the EM department...any thoughts?
Thanks for the advice!
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Beanding-you really shouldn't be factoring salary into your residency decision. At most you will find 10K differences between residencies. This should have little to no impact. You are looking at your training for the rest of you career, there will be plenty of money in the future.
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Agreed, you should consider moreso the fact of hour long commutes and costs of living...
The big thing in Houston is to remember that looonnnggg commute (nothing is close in H Town) and the fact that a true right near the med center apt is costly....to buy a home, you are probably looking at an hour commute.....maybe someone from there can talk more about that.
As far as Temple, TX...you could live on the south side of Austin and still be within an hour commute...
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Thanks for the feedback, I know salary is not at all a factor for me as to where I go for my residency....I'm just trying to get an idea of what each program offers, so that I can factor in what type of living situation I may be able to afford in that particular city. For instance, 40K in San Francisco definitely doesn't go as far 40K in Temple, TX. It's all a part of the big picture for me.
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In response to specific questions:
We work all 12 hour shifts in the ED months:
19 as an intern
18 as a PGY-2
16 as a PGY-3 (15 for chief residents)
Salaries in 2007-2008:
PGY-1: $40,436
PGY-2: $41,223
PGY-3: $42,387
Agreed that salary really shouldn't factor into your decision though. My wife works as a retail store manager (not big $$) and we own a nice townhome in the medical center. My study window overlooks the med center skyline.
We work all 12 hour shifts in the ED months:
19 as an intern
18 as a PGY-2
16 as a PGY-3 (15 for chief residents)
Salaries in 2007-2008:
PGY-1: $40,436
PGY-2: $41,223
PGY-3: $42,387
Agreed that salary really shouldn't factor into your decision though. My wife works as a retail store manager (not big $$) and we own a nice townhome in the medical center. My study window overlooks the med center skyline.
