OHSU vs. UMich

[Dawkter]

Any thoughts on these two programs and how they compare to one another in terms of strengths and weaknesses? Would love to know more information from anyone who interviewed at these programs last year or is a current resident at either. Thank you 🙂

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[Gasmaster]

These are both really great programs, but are very different from each other. Obviously, location is one of the biggest differences.

OHSU -- has a much more "family" feel to it than Mich, not just in terms of actual program size but also in the way the residents act with each other. Dr. Kirsch (chair) is a really nice man and huge advocate for all of his residents. In terms of the actual program, there aren't any big weaknesses (they don't do a lot of trauma, which really isn't a big deal). I didn't really like the weather in Portland, it basically just drizzles all year round, but there are great opportunities for skiing, hiking, camping, and anything else outdoors just a few miles away.

Michigan -- This is a really top notch program with an enormous case load. Residents are really happy because they don't take very much weekend call. The only downside I found was that they have 20+ residents/year if I'm not mistaken which takes away from the "personal" feeling of the program. That being said, the Michigan network is vast and residents get great fellowships/jobs. I wasn't nuts about living in Ann Arbor or I would have ranked this program higher.

Overall, both are fantastic programs and anyone would be fortunate to match at either. I personally liked OHSU more but that's just me. Hope this helped.

 

[givesmegas]

What are some other strong central or midwest programs (besides the chicago programs, mayo, ccf, etc)?

 

[Dawkter]

These are both really great programs, but are very different from each other. Obviously, location is one of the biggest differences.

OHSU -- has a much more "family" feel to it than Mich, not just in terms of actual program size but also in the way the residents act with each other. Dr. Kirsch (chair) is a really nice man and huge advocate for all of his residents. In terms of the actual program, there aren't any big weaknesses (they don't do a lot of trauma, which really isn't a big deal). I didn't really like the weather in Portland, it basically just drizzles all year round, but there are great opportunities for skiing, hiking, camping, and anything else outdoors just a few miles away.

Michigan -- This is a really top notch program with an enormous case load. Residents are really happy because they don't take very much weekend call. The only downside I found was that they have 20+ residents/year if I'm not mistaken which takes away from the "personal" feeling of the program. That being said, the Michigan network is vast and residents get great fellowships/jobs. I wasn't nuts about living in Ann Arbor or I would have ranked this program higher.

Overall, both are fantastic programs and anyone would be fortunate to match at either. I personally liked OHSU more but that's just me. Hope this helped.

Great reply, thank you!

 

[geogil]

What are some other strong central or midwest programs (besides the chicago programs, mayo, ccf, etc)?

U wisconsin, WashU

 

[flyingdutchman]

I can't say much about OHSU, but Michigan is a great program and I agree with the above assessment. The chair and PD are great and the department is incredibly supportive despite being large. The residents are very well-trained in all subspecialty areas (except maybe trauma, but that goes for a majority of programs), however they also remain very happy in the meantime. Everyone I talked to who interviewd at UM liked it, and geography is what kept them away. Honestly that is a huge factor, and if you're deciding between OHSU and Michigan that is a pretty big difference...

 

[geogil]

Michigan's interview dinner was awesome too, tons of residents with their families come out so you can really find someone to talk to frankly without any BS.

 

[Dawkter]

I can't say much about OHSU, but Michigan is a great program and I agree with the above assessment. The chair and PD are great and the department is incredibly supportive despite being large. The residents are very well-trained in all subspecialty areas (except maybe trauma, but that goes for a majority of programs), however they also remain very happy in the meantime. Everyone I talked to who interviewd at UM liked it, and geography is what kept them away. Honestly that is a huge factor, and if you're deciding between OHSU and Michigan that is a pretty big difference...

Surprised to hear this as I always thought Ann Arbor was one of the most desirable college towns in the US. Never guessed it gets that cold in Michigan compared to the rest of the east coast. Good to know!

 

[sunset823]

Michigan's interview dinner was awesome too, tons of residents with their families come out so you can really find someone to talk to frankly without any BS.

Out of curiosity, are a majority of UMich's residents married? My family is in Ann Arbor, and I went to undergrad there, and I love the town (and the weather), the only thing that makes me hesitant to go back is that Ann Arbor is not really the place for a single late 20-early 30something.

And to the above poster, Ann Arbor is pretty much as cold as the northeast (Boston, NYC, etc.), I don't see it as any colder having lived in both places long-term. But I like the cold so this is my bias. And yes it is a very desirable college town, I think the only rival for that status in the midwest is Madison.

 

[geogil]

Out of curiosity, are a majority of UMich's residents married? My family is in Ann Arbor, and I went to undergrad there, and I love the town (and the weather), the only thing that makes me hesitant to go back is that Ann Arbor is not really the place for a single late 20-early 30something.

And to the above poster, Ann Arbor is pretty much as cold as the northeast (Boston, NYC, etc.), I don't see it as any colder having lived in both places long-term. But I like the cold so this is my bias. And yes it is a very desirable college town, I think the only rival for that status in the midwest is Madison.

I'm not at Mich, but there was a good mix of single/married residents. I imagine it's probably 50/50ish

 

[DrN2O]

is 3 hours (time zones). Both are top notch programs. Personally I think anyone would be crazy deciding between anesthesia residency programs based on anything other than location.

 

[HalO'Thane]

I don't know much about the OHSU program but I was a peds fellow at the University of Michigan so I know the program fairly well. Having worked with the residents I don't think you can go wrong at all going there. The clinical volume is second to none with just about every type of case represented. I personally think this is the most important thing to look for in a residency program. You will come out of there ready to handle any type of case. The teaching is great, both in turns of intraop teaching and didactics outside of class. With any anesthesia department, the strenght of the department starts at the top. Drs. Tremper (chairman) and Sanford (program director) have been at Michigan for a long time and make sure the program is run very smoothly. As mentioned earlier, the alumni network is huge and the reputation on a national level is strong. I applied for jobs all over the country and I felt the Michigan name served me well. I also had a blast in Ann Arbor and think it is a great town for both married and single residents.

The only possible downsides I can think of: 1. Not sure how strong the regional program is, but as a peds fellow I wouldn't be the best person to ask. 2. Weather: Michigan is cold but I definitely think the benefits of living in Ann Arbor outweigh that

 

[anonymRus]

Current umich resident

positives: name within anesthesia especially, large national alumni network, nice facilities, friendly residents, british fellows/attendings provide great international perspective and other ways of doing anesthesia aside from the "Michigan way," big caseload, only about 1 weekend a month on call, post-call day off at 7am, post-post call day doing procedures and answering codes from 7-3 in preop holding area, plenty of big cases to go around, large program allows flexibility of scheduling needs arise, strong ICU experience, friendly chair who does difficult airway cases, research readily available but not required, free iPad 2's for all residents with all keywords, drug reference notes annotated from big text, room tips, miller loaded on in addition to other references loaded that require internet access, technologically cutting edge program, on call with 3 residents at a time so you don't feel "all alone" (except OB and peds calls where you are by yourself), ann arbor's a fantastic place to live during residency - very convenient with great culture/restaurants without much traffic if you live in the right area

negatives: average regional and pain experiences which are weak compared to rest of program, excessive ICU (9 months including intern year), chair is nice but has no time/interest to get to know residents personally outside the occasional difficult airway case in the morning, program director is your boss - not your friend, NO electives even as CA3 - you are needed to run the floor and have a ton of main months so it is not possible to make up for the ho-hum regional/pain experience acquired during residency, CA1's stay late a lot, CA2's stay late on specialty rotations (the work hours advertised are still nice but less rosy than it appears), no textbooks provided anymore now that the iPads are given out with texts loaded onto them, small incentive to become chief (ie lots of work for very little benefit except to be able to tell people you were chief)keep in mind: all top programs have weaknesses such as but not identical to those listed above

 

[Breathe08]

negatives: average regional and pain experiences which are weak compared to rest of program, excessive ICU (9 months including intern year), chair is nice but has no time/interest to get to know residents personally outside the occasional difficult airway case in the morning, program director is your boss - not your friend, NO electives even as CA3 - you are needed to run the floor and have a ton of main months so it is not possible to make up for the ho-hum regional/pain experience acquired during residency, CA1's stay late a lot, CA2's stay late on specialty rotations (the work hours advertised are still nice but less rosy than it appears), no textbooks provided anymore now that the iPads are given out with texts loaded onto them, small incentive to become chief (ie lots of work for very little benefit except to be able to tell people you were chief)keep in mind: all top programs have weaknesses such as but not identical to those listed above

I'm a resident at Michigan.

I want to clarify some of the "negatives" the previous resident posted. All programs have downsides, but I think the "negatives" listed above are unfair, and warrant further clarification.

1. Regional/Pain: I wouldn't call the regional/pain experiences at U of M our strongest, but our residents do NOT have trouble obtaining their numbers for pain procedures and blocks. We also have new up and coming pain attendings who are focused on revitalizing the regional program and many of the new surgical staff are requesting more and more blocks. Its a work in progress, and not a negative aspect of the program.

2. ICU experience: My intern year we had 2 months of CVC ICU (cardiothoracic ICU). CA1 year we had 1 SICU month. CA2 year we had 2 months of CVC ICU. CA3 year, we have one month in the CVC ICU. All in all, I've had 6 months of ICU. I'm not sure where the person above is getting 9 total months of ICU. Michigan grads graduate from this residency well versed in ICU management which sets us apart from CRNAs and mid-level providers.

3. Chair/Program Director: Our chair is the most down to earth and personable person I've met. He cares about the residents and their education. I could go on and on about him, but I hope that the applicants who interview at our program get to see this for themselves. Our program director is also a sincere and personable man who cares deeply about resident issues and education. Unfortunately, as the program director he has the "bad cop" job of keeping everyone on task (reminding residents to record case logs, record hours, upload presentations, assigning M&M conferences etc). The thing that impresses me about our chair and PD is that both are very responsive to resident issues and complaints, and strive to keep the residents happy.

4. CA3 experience: CA3s do not have electives. It can't really be helped as our hospital is a premier teritary care center. We have about 5-6 months at the Main (general cases) as CA3s. I know I'm going to use this time to study for boards during my 8 hour whipple. We only run the floor when we are on CA3 call which is 2 calls a month at the Main. However, I believe this experience is vital because it teaches us how to manage the ORs and surgeons (which I'm sure will come in handy as attendings or in private practice). And like I said before, there are no issues with attaining block #s as we have 1 month on APS and 1 month at an outpatient center performing blocks.

5. Hours are sweet...way better than my surgery counterparts. The resident above sounds like he's whining or just lazy. CA1 year average 55-60 hours/week at the Main. CA1s have 1 late call/week where they stay till about 8pm. CA2 year 55-60 hours/week at the Main. On specialty rotations like cardiac, thoracic, neuro, hours can be a little longer (60-65 hrs/week). I'm not sure that this is much different from CA2s at other programs. CA3 year averages to about 45-55 hours/week.

Also, our calls are at 11AM-7AM as CA1/CA2s at the Main. As CA3s our calls are 3PM-7AM. Weekends are full 24 hour calls. We have on average 1 weekend, and 1 weekday call a month on a rotation (except for ICU and OB which are q4).

So please, don't complain about hours. I know other anesthesia residents at other programs who are still q4-5!

6. Ipad 2s with access to all the key anesthesia textbooks loaded onto the iPAD instead of 30 lb textbooks. I think that's a positive! 🙂 Sue me, I'm a tree hugger.

7. Chiefs: Why there should be an "incentive" or "benefits" with becoming chief? I thought the whole point was being a voice for the residents and being a leader. Anyways, the four chiefs do work hard (like any other chief resident for any other program), but they are compensated for the extra time spent on chief duties.

Anyways, those are my thoughts regarding the unfair criticism. Michigan has provided me with an outstanding residency experience, and I'd be happy to talk more about my program if any of you have any questions. Good luck on the interview trail!

 

[anonymRus]

Another weakness - if you try to reasonably discuss negatives about the program in a meeting or other public forum you are accused of whining and being lazy. As I said the hours are still nice, just not as nice as advertised when you interview.

3 extra months of ICU as internship: neuro ICU, cardiac ICU, transplant month ICU - not all patients are ICU status but you take care of ICU patients everyday and therefore this can count towards ICU time. It does not, however. And it would be nice if it did because most residents truly dislike the ICU experience we have in the TICU and SICU (as most anesthesia residents everywhere probably do).

As I said, regional experience is just average compared with the rest of the program which is excellent (except pain which is average too). "Getting numbers" does not make one proficient but rather just familiar with only the most common regional techniques.

It's good training in a nice environment overall and on par with all the other top places. Applicants should have a fair view of a place, not this rosy unrealistic picture sold at interviews.

I'm a resident at Michigan.

I want to clarify some of the "negatives" the previous resident posted. All programs have downsides, but I think the "negatives" listed above are unfair, and warrant further clarification.

1. Regional/Pain: I wouldn't call the regional/pain experiences at U of M our strongest, but our residents do NOT have trouble obtaining their numbers for pain procedures and blocks. We also have new up and coming pain attendings who are focused on revitalizing the regional program and many of the new surgical staff are requesting more and more blocks. Its a work in progress, and not a negative aspect of the program.

2. ICU experience: My intern year we had 2 months of CVC ICU (cardiothoracic ICU). CA1 year we had 1 SICU month. CA2 year we had 2 months of CVC ICU. CA3 year, we have one month in the CVC ICU. All in all, I've had 6 months of ICU. I'm not sure where the person above is getting 9 total months of ICU. Michigan grads graduate from this residency well versed in ICU management which sets us apart from CRNAs and mid-level providers.

3. Chair/Program Director: Our chair is the most down to earth and personable person I've met. He cares about the residents and their education. I could go on and on about him, but I hope that the applicants who interview at our program get to see this for themselves. Our program director is also a sincere and personable man who cares deeply about resident issues and education. Unfortunately, as the program director he has the "bad cop" job of keeping everyone on task (reminding residents to record case logs, record hours, upload presentations, assigning M&M conferences etc). The thing that impresses me about our chair and PD is that both are very responsive to resident issues and complaints, and strive to keep the residents happy.

4. CA3 experience: CA3s do not have electives. It can't really be helped as our hospital is a premier teritary care center. We have about 5-6 months at the Main (general cases) as CA3s. I know I'm going to use this time to study for boards during my 8 hour whipple. We only run the floor when we are on CA3 call which is 2 calls a month at the Main. However, I believe this experience is vital because it teaches us how to manage the ORs and surgeons (which I'm sure will come in handy as attendings or in private practice). And like I said before, there are no issues with attaining block #s as we have 1 month on APS and 1 month at an outpatient center performing blocks.

5. Hours are sweet...way better than my surgery counterparts. The resident above sounds like he's whining or just lazy. CA1 year average 55-60 hours/week at the Main. CA1s have 1 late call/week where they stay till about 8pm. CA2 year 55-60 hours/week at the Main. On specialty rotations like cardiac, thoracic, neuro, hours can be a little longer (60-65 hrs/week). I'm not sure that this is much different from CA2s at other programs. CA3 year averages to about 45-55 hours/week.

Also, our calls are at 11AM-7AM as CA1/CA2s at the Main. As CA3s our calls are 3PM-7AM. Weekends are full 24 hour calls. We have on average 1 weekend, and 1 weekday call a month on a rotation (except for ICU and OB which are q4).

So please, don't complain about hours. I know other anesthesia residents at other programs who are still q4-5!

6. Ipad 2s with access to all the key anesthesia textbooks loaded onto the iPAD instead of 30 lb textbooks. I think that's a positive! 🙂 Sue me, I'm a tree hugger.

7. Chiefs: Why there should be an "incentive" or "benefits" with becoming chief? I thought the whole point was being a voice for the residents and being a leader. Anyways, the four chiefs do work hard (like any other chief resident for any other program), but they are compensated for the extra time spent on chief duties.

Anyways, those are my thoughts regarding the unfair criticism. Michigan has provided me with an outstanding residency experience, and I'd be happy to talk more about my program if any of you have any questions. Good luck on the interview trail!

 

[Breathe08]

Another weakness - if you try to reasonably discuss negatives about the program in a meeting or other public forum you are accused of whining and being lazy. As I said the hours are still nice, just not as nice as advertised when you interview.

3 extra months of ICU as internship: neuro ICU, cardiac ICU, transplant month ICU - not all patients are ICU status but you take care of ICU patients everyday and therefore this can count towards ICU time. It does not, however. And it would be nice if it did because most residents truly dislike the ICU experience we have in the TICU and SICU (as most anesthesia residents everywhere probably do).

As I said, regional experience is just average compared with the rest of the program which is excellent (except pain which is average too). "Getting numbers" does not make one proficient but rather just familiar with only the most common regional techniques.

It's good training in a nice environment overall and on par with all the other top places. Applicants should have a fair view of a place, not this rosy unrealistic picture sold at interviews.

Its all about perspective. If you want to make it negative, it will be. If you want to get the best out of it, you will. Michigan is an amazing place to train for anesthesiology. Its not perfect, but no program is perfect. However, it seems to me our program is never satisfied with being a "top program" and is always trying to improve.

Also, being an intern "taking care" of patients in the Neuro, Cardiac, Transplant ICU is not on the same level as being a senior resident actually managing ICU patients in the SICU, cardiothoracic ICU. Lets be honest, as interns we had checkboxes and tasks to accomplish. That is why I count 6 months, not 9 months.

As for regional, I have my #s and its only October and have yet to do my second rotation in blocks. And, I would like to think I'm more than just "familiar" with doing blocks. But its all how you approach it, I guess. However, I will agree that we need more experience with peripheral nerve catheters. We rarely see that here.

And as for the comment about hours, if you complain about working about the hours we work at our institution to other anesthesia residents in other programs that work way more hours than us, or to surgical residents, we do look "lazy" and that we are "whining." That was the only point I was trying to make. We have it pretty cush compared to other training programs.

Regardless, I'm glad we are having a healthy debate regarding our program. Just like every applicant, every program is going to put their best foot forward on interview day. All I can say as a CA3 here at Michigan is that I've been very happy with the program, and even though there are a few things to work on, I am confident that I've had superior training. And I think most of the residents that train here will agree with me.

Its all about perspective.

 

[MClove]

Hey everyone. So I don't post here often. Or ever really. So I may not have much credibility from your point of view. But then again I've never had much to add, so I figured why just take up forum space?

That being said, this is an issue that I feel I can contribute to. I'm only an intern, so I don't have much input as far as the CA years go. Regarding intern year, here's my take:
I was told by many people that it was going to be tough. Maybe because I went into it with this overblown picture of what it'd be like, I've been pleasantly surprised. There will be about 3-4 months out of the year that will be rough. You'll be worked hard. But in the end, while you'll see your surgical colleagues hating life, what will get you through it is the idea that this is finite. There's an end in sight. Outside of those months, the rest of the year is split up pretty nicely. You'll have 3 months of working less than 50 hours a week, and the other months are like 60-65. That sounds like a lot, but keep this in mind. I drive about 45 minutes to get U of M. Even with the drive, I've had time to see my family and friends, keep up with a gym schedule, and still manage to eat 3 meals a day... And I like to eat ;-)

As for the overall program:
What people have said is true. It is a big program. I feel like I meet new people from our department every week. But I don't know if that's necessarily a bad thing. People a bound to have varied interest/passions/hobbies/personalities, etc., and having a bigger group of people only fosters that. Our intern class gets together, even on our busier months, at least once or twice a month. We just overtake some poor restaurant somewhere, and hope their staff are experienced enough to deal with snarky interns. 🙂 We're also a pretty diverse group. Got people from all walks of life, all ages/religions/beliefs/sexual orientations, which, for me at least, is a plus.

The staff involved with the program are also really great. Literally, every time you will walk into the office, you're greeted by Toomage, who you'll get to know quickly. He's always smiling. Just a happy person all around. No matter how bad your day, he will somehow manage to make you smile. Pam and Susan are two of the other staff you'll encounter on a regular basis. They can pretty much help you with any problem you have. And they are always available. They both just want residency to run as smoothly as possible for us.
I haven't worked or had much interaction with Dr. Tremper this year, so I can't really comment one way or another. Dr. Sanford is a different story. He's genuinely one of the nicest people I've encountered here at Michigan. Incredibly supportive and protective, just wants us all to do well. He doesn't just have an open door policy, where you come to him if you're having issues. He will literally pull you into his office if you're passing by, just to chat. I'd say that's pretty awesome.

Overall, from the quality of the program, and seeing where all the CA3's are going for jobs and fellowships this year, I feel confident that I made the right decision in ranking this place #1. I'm sure I'll meet some of you during interview season. Good luck, where ever you end up 🙂

 

[anonymRus]

Its all about perspective. If you want to make it negative, it will be. If you want to get the best out of it, you will. Michigan is an amazing place to train for anesthesiology. Its not perfect, but no program is perfect. However, it seems to me our program is never satisfied with being a 'top program'; and is always trying to improve.

Also, being an intern "taking care" of patients in the Neuro, Cardiac, Transplant ICU is not on the same level as being a senior resident actually managing ICU patients in the SICU, cardiothoracic ICU. Lets be honest, as interns we had checkboxes and tasks to accomplish. That is why I count 6 months, not 9 months.

As for regional, I have my #s and its only October and have yet to do my second rotation in blocks. And, I would like to think I'm more than just "familiar" with doing blocks. But its all how you approach it, I guess. However, I will agree that we need more experience with peripheral nerve catheters. We rarely see that here.

And as for the comment about hours, if you complain about working about the hours we work at our institution to other anesthesia residents in other programs that work way more hours than us, or to surgical residents, we do look "lazy" and that we are "whining." That was the only point I was trying to make. We have it pretty cush compared to other training programs.

Regardless, I'm glad we are having a healthy debate regarding our program. Just like every applicant, every program is going to put their best foot forward on interview day. All I can say as a CA3 here at Michigan is that I've been very happy with the program, and even though there are a few things to work on, I am confident that I've had superior training. And I think most of the residents that train here will agree with me.

Its all about perspective.

Yes I agree it is what you make of it. Going in with a good attitude, even expending that extra bit of energy that you'd rather not at 6am pretending to have a good attitude, even if you don't mean a word of it, will make residency and life in general much more pleasant and fruitful. But I wouldn't use the word 'perspective' By that argument nobody should ever complain of anything since there will always be someone worse off than you and if you take the worse-off person's perspective your life is wonderful. People at every level have their own problems and stressors. To minimize those problems by saying, 'at least it's better than x' is patronizing and unrealistic, especially in a context where expectations created by false advertising are not met. In that case you are creating a 'perspective' for an applicant going in that is then not satisfied. Regardless of our philosophical differences, I think we agree that the hours are very nice overall. I say they are less cush than advertised but nice nonetheless.

I hope our superiors don't agree with your ICU argument since that would mean the 3 months in the SICU/TICU we spend as juniors with lists and checkboxes shouldn't count either! How about we replace our those months spent as juniors in our clinical anesthesia years with our internship ones? That would be nice but I fear impossible since they need residents to staff those departments and no other program is willing and/or qualified to subject their residents to it.

As for subsequent posts about the support our department provides: I agree in a pinch the department will step up to the plate for you. However, this is not a warm and fuzzy place. While I don't agree with some of the character assessments of aforementioned individuals, this is not the place to levy personal insults.

 

[Azcomstud]

100+ residents= a lot of opinions. Having recently graduated from Michigan's program, I can validate most of the points made here. The program is very family friendly with half the residents being married and a lot of them having kids (my class had at least 6 residents with 4+ children). As far as the regional experience goes, I am the go to guy in my group for blocks as most of my partners know only how to use nerve stim. My regional experience experience was more than adequate there. I did every big case possible in residency and those experiences are invaluable in private practice

 

[Dawkter]

Excellent input from the Michigan residents, thanks guys! Any thoughts from current OHSU residents?

 

[El Dooderino]

it's sad that a resident comes on here and voices his seemingly very fair opinion about a program, including some negatives, and he's labeled a lazy malcontent

 

[Breathe08]

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and with 120 anesthesiology residents in our program, we are are not going to make everyone happy. But insulting the Chair of the program and the Program director is never fair and its not professional, especially when 99.9% of our residents and the entire anesthesiology community have the most utmost respect for these leaders and pioneers. And the chair and PD absolutely care about residents, and only want the best for them. I know this, because I meet with them on a monthly basis discussing resident issues, and ways to improve our program.

If you are going to be interviewing with us this season, I encourage you to ask a lot of questions, grill us, and talk to the residents. We have something very special at Michigan, and I'm absolutely confident that you will see this for yourself. And I can not emphasize enough, how happy I am that I trained here, and I know that majority of our residents will agree with me. The teaching is very good, and the cases are challenging yet rewarding. You will be more than adequately prepared for life outside of residency. Finally, despite our large residency size, we are family, and we try our best to take care of our own.

I've reached out to the above poster. And I hope get to the root of the problems and address the issues he/she has brought up. Hopefully, he or she will take me up on my offer. And I regret the fact if it seems that he/she is being labeled lazy or malcontent, that is not my intent. And I sincerely apologize if it seems that way. We take care of our own, and it seems like he/she has been lost the mix. But we will try our best to address these concerns.

Please feel free to PM me with any questions about our program including the intern year, and the CA years. I've tried my best to paint an accurate picture based on my experiences. Again, good luck on the interview trail! I know its a very stressful time, and also financially draining! I know this, as I interviewed at over 20 places because of the couple's match. 🙂 It was well worth it, as I found my home at Michigan.

 

[El Dooderino]

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and with 120 anesthesiology residents in our program, we are are not going to make everyone happy. But insulting the Chair of the program and the Program director is never fair and its not professional, especially when 99.9% of our residents and the entire anesthesiology community have the most utmost respect for these leaders and pioneers. And the chair and PD absolutely care about residents, and only want the best for them. I know this, because I meet with them on a monthly basis discussing resident issues, and ways to improve our program.

If you are going to be interviewing with us this season, I encourage you to ask a lot of questions, grill us, and talk to the residents. We have something very special at Michigan, and I'm absolutely confident that you will see this for yourself. And I can not emphasize enough, how happy I am that I trained here, and I know that majority of our residents will agree with me. The teaching is very good, and the cases are challenging yet rewarding. You will be more than adequately prepared for life outside of residency. Finally, despite our large residency size, we are family, and we try our best to take care of our own.

I've reached out to the above poster. And I hope get to the root of the problems and address the issues he/she has brought up. Hopefully, he or she will take me up on my offer. And I regret the fact if it seems that he/she is being labeled lazy or malcontent, that is not my intent. And I sincerely apologize if it seems that way. We take care of our own, and it seems like he/she has been lost the mix. But we will try our best to address these concerns.

Please feel free to PM me with any questions about our program including the intern year, and the CA years. I've tried my best to paint an accurate picture based on my experiences. Again, good luck on the interview trail! I know its a very stressful time, and also financially draining! I know this, as I interviewed at over 20 places because of the couple's match. 🙂 It was well worth it, as I found my home at Michigan.

the issues he brought up seem pretty fair and reasonable. He also mentioned some great positives. To people interviewing this year, find the people like anomyRus who will give you a fair assessment of their programs. Anyone who can't think of anything negative about their programs is full of crap and not worth talking to. The interview day is staged making it even more necessary to find residents willing to give you an honest opinion

 

[anonymRus]

I didn't say anything insulting about either of our leaders/pioneers/etc. I don't think I was 'unprofessional,' whatever that word that is so often used in academic medicine is supposed to mean.

People reading this should realize that the things I'm pointing out about Michigan are the ONLY things I can think of that are negative about this place and overall that's pretty awesome. If you all can deal with these issues, you'll love it here and have NO negative surprises. How many places can you say that about? And like breath08 said, I encourage all interviewees to ask about regional, pain, and electives since those are the biggest things on my list. Not HUGE things by any means but why not have an honest discussion about it? May help shape the program for the better.

Hearing from a graduate that they're the go-to for regional is reassuring too. Thanks for posting that.

 

[seinfeld]

I am the go to in my group for pretty much anything, Whether it be regional, Cardiac, a sick patient in PACU or ICU. I have been out 2.5 years. Michigan is the real deal, but just like anything in life you get out of it what you put into it.

I trained with many people who decided that anesthesia was the "A" on a ROAD to a good life. All they ever did was whine about this, that, and the other thing but were unwilling to stick it out during a good learning case, or if they couldnt do the block they would sit on their butt instead of watching and learning. This will be found at any program and any practice. Some people will actually love what they do and find a passion in it and to others its a way to pay the bills. Upsides and downsides to both philosophies, in the end try to end up somewhere in the middle.

To answer the original question about OSU vs UM, ask your self would you really want to be a suckeye?

 

[Dawkter]

I am the go to in my group for pretty much anything, Whether it be regional, Cardiac, a sick patient in PACU or ICU. I have been out 2.5 years. Michigan is the real deal, but just like anything in life you get out of it what you put into it.

I trained with many people who decided that anesthesia was the "A" on a ROAD to a good life. All they ever did was whine about this, that, and the other thing but were unwilling to stick it out during a good learning case, or if they couldnt do the block they would sit on their butt instead of watching and learning. This will be found at any program and any practice. Some people will actually love what they do and find a passion in it and to others its a way to pay the bills. Upsides and downsides to both philosophies, in the end try to end up somewhere in the middle.

To answer the original question about OSU vs UM, ask your self would you really want to be a suckeye?

Lol, the original Q was about Oregon Health Sciences University, not Ohio State 😛

 

[seinfeld]

My bad

 

[thx1138]

As a former resident at University of Michigan and now in private practice I must say that I was given amazing training. Sure I never did a continuous nerve catheter (how hard is it really, same as a single shot block but instead you thread a catheter-big flippin deal). Sure we didn't get quite the volume of blocks as some places but let me put it this way, since we were trained with the latest ultrasound techniques we are far better trained than 99 percent of the old practicing anesthesiologists who learned with stim. And plus like most of us you learn a lot on the job. I remember my first day as an attending getting ready for an interscalene block under ultrasound and my older partners coming to me to watch how the guy from Michigan does his blocks. Felt pretty weird but at the same time shows how well respected Michigan really is. At Michigan we took care of some really sick patients and had the breadth of experience unparalleled at other places. I've taken care of some really sick cases in private practice and my experiences at Michigan made me confident to do them. And the fact that we were given floor running and supervision experience helped with the transition to supervising up to 4 rooms in private practice without getting overwhelmed. And trust me the name goes a long way. As I was starting lot of the surgeons would ask where I trained and when I said Michigan they were all impressed and even though I was the new guy I got an extra level of respect. Michigan prepared me to take care of all kinds of patients and cases from pediatrics to adults and everything in between. Its easy to get annoyed and nitpick at the little things that aren't ideal such as late relief times and other little things but you will look back and be thankful that you went to such an amazing training program.