The Kern program was once a giant.... it was the first DPM surgical residency program. My clinical dean did his residency there, and so did David G Armstrong and many other well known DPMs. There are many great pods who got their training at Kern. Earl Kaplan was their director, and he - along with maybe McGlamry, Kalish and a few others - are the guys who really helped propel podiatric surgery to where it is today. I think they, among others, were also the ACFAS founders.
Fast forward to today, and I would be a tad wary of it with all the good programs available (assuming you applied yourself in pod school). Gary Kaplan, the current director, is well respected and from what I have seen and heard, and he's trying to do a lot of good vascular stuff there - SilverHawk in particular. They had a couple posters at the conference this past spring, and I also remember that APMA News or one of the other podiatry mags had an article on their PVD research recently.
However, I just finished clerking in Detroit for 2 months (3 area programs), and word around the campfire seems to be that the residents Kern has been taking in recent years may be of vastly different quality as they used to get.... if you catch my drift. Do keep in mind that the applicant pool has been shallow for the programs in recent years... but one of the people who told me this is an (anonymous) person who trained there, so I would tend to believe her. In the end, just like anything else, you have to find out for yourself and make your own decision.
The Michigan programs are an "untapped resource". A resident I met up there said that to me, and I would agree 100%. They have so many DPMs doing great foot surgery and making good $. Sure, there are also many medioicre and a few crummy foot/ankle surgeons in the city also, but that's mostly because those few are using a standard of care that's a decade or more behind the literature. In the end, skills are skills. The thing is that not too many of the programs up there publish a whole lot, so that may be one reason why many Detroit programs fly way under the radar among prospective students. Detroit is a rough city, so that surely plays a role in their lack of also. On the flip side, many of the area programs pay quite well when you consider that cost of living in Michigan is very reasonable.
Oakwood is nearly a West Penn (academics, technique focus, good clinic, etc) in a worse city. At DMC, their trauma and overall numbers will literally rival any of the other PMS36s out there (yes, that means PSL, etc). StJohn North Shores program has great surgical volume, clinic, tradition (ie good jobs in the midwest afterwards). I've also heard great things about Providence and Gensys (sp?) even though I didn't visit them.
