Hopkins Hours

[bailey-b]

It has come time to pull the trigger on my ROL and I have one last question about Hopkins. One thing that pops up time after time is JHU longer hours. From those who interviewed and possibly anyone who is a resident currently what are the daily times you are coming and going? I know ICU and heart etc demand longer hours but for general OR what was the consensus for hours. The reason I ask is that I seem to hear many different sides of the story. Did everyone get the opinion that it is getting better since Dr. Mittman and Ulatowski took over and wil this continue? Also was the call approximately 2-3 per month and 1 weekend per month?

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[Skip Intro]

I think, institution-wide, they know they are under the microscope after the whole ACGME 80-hour debacle in their IM department. Worst case scenario, you know you won't be working one minute over 80 hours in any given week.

http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2003/09/15/prsc0915.htm

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2003/12_20_03.html

-Skip

 

[bailey-b]

I agree but I really haven't heard of any anesthesia programs that are working 80hrs outside of SICU and mabey a few specialty months.

 

[Skip Intro]

I agree but I really haven't heard of any anesthesia programs that are working 80hrs outside of SICU and mabey a few specialty months.

True. But, there are a few work horse programs out there that routinely push it. Rush Univ comes to mind. Still, I agree. A lot of the programs I interviewed usually said 60-65 hrs/week max.

-Skip

 

[jester]

During regular OR weeks: between 55-60hrs
ICU: 75-79.5 hrs /wk
Cardiac: 65-73 hrs/wk
Pain Clinic: 48 hrw/wk
OB: 60 hrs/wk

good luck.

 

[Capsaicin]

One thing that stood out was the morning conference/teaching session at the end of call. I think in theory it's a great idea...to reinforce, get some didactics in, and any extra exchange of info is great, as I usually am in favor of these things. The residents seemed to like it as well, at least as far as we could tell interview day.


HOWEVER, I think it is stretching things a little too much. To finish things off 1.5 hours later every single call is asking a lot IMO. I mean, every other place that I interviewed at found a way to get their didactics in without keeping you longer. And while there are some days that I might be stimulated by this, a lot of times I would just want to get the hell out, especially after a tough night.

I generally liked Hopkins and have a lot of respect for the program historically. I really liked all the residents I met, too. But another thing that turned me off is the fact that they are holding only 12 spots for the match. I was told by residents, by the program director, and by the coordinator that there would be 22 spots, 18 advanced and 4 categorical. Maybe they decided to offer spots out of match to exceptional candidates. Maybe they added more CRNAs as someone posted on here a while back. Whatever...they are playing games, and I don't like it. I don't think it's a good sign about where the program is going, or more to the point, the openness of the program towards it's applicants, and therefore it's residents.

That being the case, I will still rank them around the middle of my list. The name is gold, the training is without a doubt beyond reproach. But sonething didn't feel right, and there are plenty of excellent programs out there.


Just my .02, since you asked.

 

[bailey-b]

One thing that stood out was the morning conference/teaching session at the end of call. I think in theory it's a great idea...to reinforce, get some didactics in, and any extra exchange of info is great, as I usually am in favor of these things. The residents seemed to like it as well, at least as far as we could tell interview day.


HOWEVER, I think it is stretching things a little too much. To finish things off 1.5 hours later every single call is asking a lot IMO. I mean, every other place that I interviewed at found a way to get their didactics in without keeping you longer. And while there are some days that I might be stimulated by this, a lot of times I would just want to get the hell out, especially after a tough night.

I generally liked Hopkins and have a lot of respect for the program historically. I really liked all the residents I met, too. But another thing that turned me off is the fact that they are holding only 12 spots for the match. I was told by residents, by the program director, and by the coordinator that there would be 22 spots, 18 categorical and 4 prelim. Maybe they decided to offer spots out of match to exceptional candidates. Maybe they added more CRNAs as someone posted on here a while back. Whatever...they are playing games, and I don't like it. I don't think it's a good sign about where the program is going, or more to the point, the openness of the program towards it's applicants, and therefore it's residents.

That being the case, I will still rank them around the middle of my list. The name is gold, the training is without a doubt beyond reproach. But sonething didn't feel right, and there are plenty of excellent programs out there.


Just my .02, since you asked.

I appreciate your opinion and thank you for taking the time to respond. Did you get a sense of their daily schedule outside of SICU months etc. Do you remember how many weekends they were doing per month??

 

[Capsaicin]

Happy to give my opinion anytime ...I am relatively new to posting on this forum, but I'd like to see the exchange being kept up into residency. It could really be a great way to see what colleagues at other places are up to in their training, staying informed, networking etc.

Anyways, the way I remember it, I was told that outside the ICU they tended to have 2-3 weekends off per month, so in that repect, it was on par with most everywhere else. It sounded like overall they were not worked to the bone they were like most somewhat hardworking programs with higher expectations of the residents, which is to be expected if you are to get top-notch training.

It sounds like you are like me in that I was just taking everything in on interview day, I didn't hurry back to my hotel room and write down the details of each place on index cards But, I do remember the key things that impressed me about each program, and every person I met there. Of course you cannot go wrong with Hopkins, though at least in my case I think I can go much more right elsewhere.

P.S. I must also say there may be some west coast bias on my part here, truth be told.

--Cap

 

[bailey-b]

Capcaisin,
You are correct. I didn't do my homework and write the info down. Actually, hopkins was one of my first interviews. At the beginning of this whole process I expected that one program would overwhelmingly stand out and I would have a clear #1 #2 and #3. After many interviews I walked away thinking to myself that it wasn't THE ONE and didn't take extensive notes. With two interviews to go I soon realized that there wasn't an outright #1 and regret not writing more down. I like different aspects of multiple programs and now still trying to sort out which are the important ones. I have pretty much finalized my list but just a few questions before I certify and walk away from it.

 

[michigangirl]

capsaicin,

there is a reason that hopkins has fewer spots being offered in the match. One big reason is that there are at least 3-4 pediatric residents who are joining the ca-1 class in 2006 to do a combined PICU fellowship/anesthesia residency. speaks volumes about the quality of the program. Just wanted to add some info. good luck