fellowship work hours

[BrownieMasshole]

about how much do fellows work? i've heard everything from 50 hours a week to 80+ hours a week. i'm sure it depends on the service (e.g. consult, wards, CCU, cath, etc), but i'd like to get an idea.

thanks!

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[H_Caulfield]

I too would like for somebody to address this. The programs listed on FREIDA consistently list ~50 hours per week for cardiology, with call every seven days, yet a few people on this board refer to how demanding the fellowship is.

 

[P Diddy]

about how much do fellows work? i've heard everything from 50 hours a week to 80+ hours a week. i'm sure it depends on the service (e.g. consult, wards, CCU, cath, etc), but i'd like to get an idea.

thanks!

i just looked at my duty hour history (1st year cards fellow) and it looks like 45-60 hours a week, excluding time not in hospital. We have home call and we get called in occassionally but I am only including time in hospital; weekend call is worse since we have to round in the CCU and do echos so we always havee to come in (we do this on weekday calls as well but those are only stat; everyone and their mother orders saturday/sunday AM TTEs).

The worst week was 64 hours (CCU) and the best was nuclear (23 hours + golf). Cath month was high 50s/low 60s. So far, it states I have had 119 days off during the year. My overall average hours/week (including vacation which is 0 hours/week) is 41.5.

second year will be much better since we're backup call and only have to come in when we round on the weekends.

p diddy

 

[cowbell]

I too would like for somebody to address this. The programs listed on FREIDA consistently list ~50 hours per week for cardiology, with call every seven days, yet a few people on this board refer to how demanding the fellowship is.

The hours and calls reflect an average of demanding and light rotations. Granted, there will be a great deal of variability between training programs. In my hayday, I consistently pushed the 80 hour work-week to its limits on certain rotations. During light rotations, like P diddy, I took every chance to chill and catch up on R & R. Remember that once you are an attending or in private practice, ACGME hours no longer protects you. The hours can be brutal.

That being said, I think of the IM specialties, the Renal and GI folks work just as hard a the Cards fellows (all three have frequent emergencies and busy consultation services).

 

[tibor75]

Remember that once you are an attending or in private practice, ACGME hours no longer protects you. The hours can be brutal.

Uh, yeah, there is also the little matter of earning 400,000 instead of 50,000.

 

[cowbell]

Uh, yeah, there is also the little matter of earning 400,000 instead of 50,000.

Yes, there is that benefit of having monetary compensation for our time, but if I wasn't mistaken, this thread was about fellowship work hours.

Thanks for perpetuating the image that cardiologists are superficial and money-grubbing.