Orlando Regional Medical Center (ORMC) Residency Reviews

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ED Facility: Community program, very nice hospital, large and clean and updated ED with very few beds in hallway. Six trauma bays, brand new Peds ED opening for our year at Arnold Palmer. Everything computerized including PACS except medication orders.

Location: Orlando seemed fun but not great… most residents only hang out downtown. A lot of chain restaurants and bars, not tons of character but pretty, nice, new, fun, and young. Weather was beautiful.

Status within Institution: EM seems to be the strongest residency at ORMC. I heard bad things about the Internal Medicine program. Trauma and ortho seem to be slightly stronger. EM does all of the airways in traumas. EM does FAST scans. Chest tubes are technically trauma, but there’s so much trauma that they get sick of them and pass them over regularly.

Pediatric Experience: Brand new peds ED at Arnold Palmer, seems to be one of the strengths of the program.

Trauma Experience: Residents all report tons of trauma and tons of sick patients in Orlando. This does not seem to be a downside to the program at all.

Ultrasound: Appears to have been weak in the past, but the program just hired three brand new US trained attendings and plans to start a fellowship in the future.

Off Service Rotations: Seem relatively weak. Trauma (two months) is supposed to be the toughest. Trauma call is oddly scheduled (about 7 per month, but irregular). There are at least 5 call months first year. ICU months are getting better but still not a strength of the program with the exception of the CCU month in Jacksonville which everybody seemed to love. There is a ton of procedures and autonomy during the Jacksonville month, but it’s pretty scary.

Residents: young, single, partiers. All VERY very happy. Lots of then seem to live in the same place called the Grant; it sort of reminded me of college the way they all live together and party together. Not sure how great of a program it would be for people with families.

Didactic Time: Presentations were a little weak. Apparently some of the new attendings are more EBM/research-oriented so maybe things will improve in this arena. This might be worth looking into some more because right now this is one of the major weaknesses of the program that I saw. About 15% of residents go into academics.

Number of Hours per Shift: 12 (adult), 10-10.5 (peds)

EMS Experience: PD is an EMS guys, so this experience seems to be pretty good.

Injury Prevention: there are a few disaster training exercises at the airport, but doesn’t seem like there’s a lot of public health type stuff going on in this program.

Orientation: 1 week (I think…). Program starts in July (later than others).

Special Features:
• 4 wks/yr of vacation
• Benefits seem great (health, dental, vision, matched 403b contributions)
• Good food in cafeteria, always free (not just on call)
• 1 teaching month as a PGY-3
• 2 elective months 3rd year, seem very flexible (can do pretty much anything, including a month in Hawaii that you have to sign up for pretty early); also in SE Asia, Africa, research month, clinic in the Dominican Republic
• Scholarly project required, can be research, case study, CPC competition, book chapter, or own project
• ½ hour lunch break every shift
• Conference 2 days/wk, T/R, protected time
• Journal club during T/R time, night lectures monthly at attendings houses on interesting topics including finances, absinthe, etc.
• SAEM conference paid as PGY-3s
• Paid ACEP dues and Annals of EM subscription

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I was going to do a lil review of Orlando, but I see membsr-8890 beat me to it, and did a pretty good job! We must of been there the same day, so we heard most of the same things. So, I'll be lazy and say that his/her facts are correct... a few good things that stuck out to me in addition:

(1) everyone is EXTREMELY happy. and nice. big plus.
(2) lots of growth: new faculty, new fellowships, new ED (peds), lots of energy. This was a plus to me. There was talk they may take 14 instead of 12 new residents this year... still a bit up in the air.
(3) Peds experience: Nice kid's hospital on site, new Peds ED which is coming online within a couple months, and dedicated peds shifts during EVERY ED month of residency so that you total 25-30% peds time during training. I liked this peds focus and thought it would prepare residents very well for practice.
(4) Orlando as a city: great weather, young populace for Florida. Not just disney. I grew up nearby so I already knew a lot about Otown (PM if you need details about living in the sunshine state).
(5) I liked the morning lecture we attended. Residents do about 50% of lectures, attendings and guests the rest.
(6) Elective flexibility.
(7) Free, nearby parking. I guess this can serve as your 54th tiebreaker between programs if need be.
(8) I'm sure I forgot something... hmm... I'll add an addendum later when I think of more things...


Overall I was very excited about Orlando. Check it out if you are applying in the future. If you are applying this year, cancel your interview. Seriously. Less competition is better;)
 
Orlando

Residents: 12 per class. Probably the most laid back and fun group of residents I’ve been around. A lot of them are single and seem to enjoy their single life a lot. (The residents were also the most attractive group I’ve been around, too bad I’m not single ☺) They seem to go out together a lot as well. The happiness factor was very high among the residents

Faculty: Dr. Silvestri is probably the nicest PD around. He came by the pre-interview dinner to say hi to everyone and make sure we were ok with lodging, etc. He also held doors open for us, the little things that made him come across as a truly nice guy. Residents were happy with the relationships between them and the faculty, with everyone on a first name basis.

Facilities: ORMC is the smallest hospital I’ve visited so far, but had more than adequate facilities. I would say the ED is above average. The new Arnold Palmer childrens ED will be opened by the time we start, and it sounds to be an incredible place.

Curriculum: Pretty standard EM curriculum. No ward months! MICU rotation in a hospital in Jacksonville for 1 month as a PGY-2. Residents will pretty much run the show and get TONS of procedures and experience during that month. All of them hailed it as an incredible rotation that made everything seems like cake afterwards. EMS experience seems like it would be very strong since Dr. Silvestri is the director for the county.

Patient population: They seem to have a pretty diverse patient population, seeing big executives from Disney to the homeless alcoholics we all love to see.

Location: Having lived about 1.5 hours from Orlando for the past 3 years, I’ve never been to downtown Orlando, but I must say that there is a lot to do there. Lots of restaurants and bars there where a lot of the residents hang out. They seem to go out A LOT! Many of them are single and live in an apartment complex near the hospital. The way they describe it sounds like a college dorm set up they unintentional put together. I’m still not 100% sure Orlando is a place I would want to live, much less anywhere in FL for that matter.

Overall: This is a good program and I’m glad I did decide to attend this interview. They have a lot going for it and they are probably still regarded as one of the better community programs out there, up there with Christiana but not quite a Carolinas or Christ anymore.
 
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Orlando Regional Medical Center

Residents: 12 residents per year, awaiting approval to increase to 14 per year. Residents play a big role in the selection process and were actively involved all day as well as the night before. I met more individual residents here than anywhere else so far, and they were all really friendly, outgoing, down-to-earth, and impressive. They genuinely seem to be friends. Everyone I spoke to ranked it first, and all of them emphasized how happy they were. There are a lot of single residents, but still a mix of married and a few with kids. Many residents live in the same complex downtown, and it seems like they all hang out a lot. They have a reputation as a fun, cohesive group and make it clear that they choose incoming residents that will fit the mold.

Faculty: They have added about 10 new faculty members in the last two years to complement a host of people who have been here for a long time. The PD, Dr. Silvestri, is very resident-friendly and was the region’s EMS director. Two of the senior attendings hold significant positions within the hospital, guaranteeing the Emergency Department support and funding. Residents report a first-name-basis relationship with almost everyone, and the some of the attendings also hang out with residents outside of work. The new faculty includes multiple Pedi-trained attendings to staff the new Ped ED, a research director, a simulation director, and a couple of ultrasound attendings. Additionally, the faculty responds very well to resident input.

Hospital:
Almost every rotation is in the ORMC campus, which includes the main hospital, Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital, and the very new Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women and Babies. Together, these three have >1100 beds, and the 2 EDs see >100,000 visits per year combined.

Orlando Regional Healthcare:
500+ bed community hospital, Level 1 Trauma center (blunt and penetrating), and the region’s burn center. The adult ED is a good facility, mostly private rooms and electronic patient tracking and ordering. There is a fast track staffed with PA and NP’s, and the residents rarely work there. Four busy trauma bays are located adjacent to a hallway with 2 dedicated CT scanners and X-ray. This ED gets about 70,000 people a year, a solid mix of insured and uninsured (maybe 60-40% or 70-30% as per resident estimate), with a high acuity level (30% admission rate).

A.P. Children’s Hospital: Dedicated children’s hospital with a brand new 33 bed ED. Private rooms with flat screen TVs, computerized tracking and ordering, 4 big trauma bays with dedicated radiology. Sees >30,000 and growing. Very pretty facility.

Ancillary Stuff: We were told the ancillary support is great in the ED. Additionally, everyone in the ED seems to get along very well, from the chair to the janitorial staff…

Admitting/Documentation:
No problems with admitting. Paper Charts (T-sheets), but computerized ordering, and no dictating. The rest of the hospital charts electronically, so you can look up old charts/EKGs on the computer.

Curriculum: Dynamic 3 year curriculum with emphasis on critical care and ED time. Interns have almost a half year in the ED, plus 2 months of trauma (there is a big trauma census here), an Anesthesia/Ultrasound month (room to room throwing tubes – there are no anesthesia residents in the hospital), and a month in the MICU. Second year is largely ED and critical care time (4 more months), including the popular Jacksonville ICU month (one on one with an attending with tons of procedures and autonomy). Third year is 9mo of ED time, and a month as teaching resident. They have 3 elective months (most I’ve seen for a 3 year program) – including many international options, and excellent Peds exposure (1 dedicated month in PGY1, then 20-25% interspersed shifts the rest of the way - plus a PICU month). This may be the best Peds exposure I’ve seen for a 3 year program, especially with the new facility and growing census. The off-service months have been streamlined towards EM – hold the consult pager for ortho, catch babies all day in OB, throw tubes all day in Anesth, etc. They each get a small lap top computer to carry for charting and ordering when on the floors. Also, the faculty has made changes based on resident suggestions. Mostly 12 hour shifts (Peds are usually 10s) – and everyone gets a 30min break during the shift. Interns work 20 shifts, second years work 18 shifts, and third years work 16 shifts per month. Residents get tons of procedures both in the ED and on off-service rotations, where they are valued members of the team (always among the strongest residents in the hospital). The program emphasizes ultrasound use, and is increasing the use of simulation medicine. Additionally, the program is very “resident-run” – beyond altering the curriculum based on resident suggestions, residents also establish committees for research, education, etc, and make decisions about the direction of the program as a group with the faculty.

Didactics/Research: Didactics are split into 2 mornings a week. Residents have a near 100% boards passing rate over the last decade or more. Research has been stepped up quite a bit with the addition of new faculty (although ORMC has always published well). The new research director, Dr. Papa has NIH funded research. There are ongoing ultrasound, EMS, simulation and critical care projects. The program has EMS, Ultrasound, and Research Fellowships, and is in the process of starting a Peds fellowship. The overall mission of the program has appeared to take a turn towards being more academic in nature, and research projects are well supported.

City: ORMC is located in downtown Orlando, >15 miles away from the Disney parks and surrounding tourist wonderland most people associate with Orlando. The downtown area has been revitalized quite a bit in the last few years, with increasing residential areas and nightlife. There are many beautiful lakes, and some pretty parks around the city. Additionally, there is an unbelievable array of dining/drinking/entertainment options in the surrounding areas. The weather is hot and sunny year round, and the real estate is relatively cheap. You can be surfing in Cocoa Beach in an hour, or fishing in the Gulf in an hour and a half – any time of year. Fabulous golf courses are everywhere. Personally, there are significant career options for Mrs. UE here as well. Orlando is a great town, in a great location – and you can’t beat the weather!

Extras: Salary is good for Florida (starting $41,700+ as PGY1, no state income tax). Free food at the hospital 24hrs a day, and free parking right next door. 4 weeks vacation, including 1 week on either christmas or new years every year. Excellent insurance and a retirement package with partial matching of funds after one year. Moonlighting in the unit at a local hospital in the ORMC system as a third year. Chance to attend a Disaster Preparedness Course with NASA (in case of Shuttle emergency), also medical missions to the DR. The University of Central Florida is opening an allopathic medical school in 2009, and ORMC will be a major clinical site.

Negatives: I can think of very few. Would rather not do a month of floor medicine, but most places still have that (and at least they have night float here). The 2 consecutive trauma months sound rough, but apparently they are really high yield. People think you live in Mickey Mouse’s house, but I have always really liked the Orlando area.

Overall: I have a really great feeling about this place. It’s a community hospital with an academic side, which I think may be the best combination for EM training. This is an older, established, well-respected program with a culture of happy, productive residents. There is a “big family” type atmosphere between the faculty, residents and staff – all of whom have impressive skills but still manage to have more fun than anyone else I’ve met. In addition, the new faculty has brought a ton of expertise and academic potential. Just a great program overall…
 

EctopicFetus

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Ill chime in..

Res- Good community program. Residents are truly happy, I know one of their 2nd yrs and when I saw him on the wards during yr one he told me how much he loved it. Here is an excerpt of a previous post I made on Chicago Programs. I interviewed at Res and I think it is an up and coming program. It is a suburban hospital and while many of their past grads stayed within the Res system they are starting to make a bigger national name for themselves. They are churning out a ton of research. (I think when I was there they said they presented more stuff at ACEP than all of the other Chicago programs COMBINED). The hospital itself is nice and the nurses are solid. They claim they do NO SCUT. The facilities are nice and relatively new and updated. The attendings and residents seem to get along well.

Cook County - Ill give you my $0.02 on Cook County where I rotated. The place is completely busy. There is usually little time to rest. The pathology is at or near the best you will see in the nation due to the people who the hospital serves. The ED is divided into Red, Blue and Green. Red is generally the most sick people, blue is less so and of course green which is fast track. There is no shortage of opportunity for procedures. The traumas are brought into a special trauma area and I didnt have the opportunity to rotate there. They also have a dedicated 24/7 Peds ED. The attendings are great and you get a lot of autonomy. Since the program is a 2-4 the residents are more experienced than at other programs (I also rotated at ORMC which is a 1-3). The teaching is like anywhere else, it is dependent on who you work with. One of the attendings I worked with was absolutely amazing! Always willing to teach and always making time for it. They are starting a big push with ED US but you could say that about a lot of places. They have dedicated time to US each yr (I think). One of the attendings there (Dr. Cosby) is apparently the ED US goddess. I believe she has a book coming out soon on the subject. I worked with her and she was quite excellent. Being Cook County they send their grads all over the country and from what they were telling me that have no probs getting jobs anywhere in the country. The residents seem happy and get along quite well. The seniors basically run the whole show by themselves and seem to barely (I never saw it once) need attending help. The downside is that there is some scut. You will see attendings etc pushing patients to the CT scanner (which is real close). The staff is both a little slow with their work and also extremely busy! In the end I think the training has to be second to none! I hope this helps. If you have specific questions I would be happy to answer them. The program seems strong top to bottom!

Orlando - I rotated here and it has more of a community feel than a crazy county feel. The ancillary staff is amazing. I did NO scut there. The attendings are incredible. Dr. Rothrock who wrong the Pocket EM and Pocket Peds EM is there. The asst Program director sorta runs the show and he is great to work with. The residents get along great and really enjoy their time in the city.

I'm pretty tired so I wont go on but as always I would be happy to answer specific Qs about ORMC or any of these other places. This thread is a pretty good idea IMO.
 
New member here! I am having problems finding information on Orlando's overall reputation nationally. I have the opportunity to train at some pretty well known spots with great national reputations but I liked Orlando Regional alot. Everytime a florida post goes up Quinn starts talking about USF and no one ever gets a clear picture on ORMC. Do practicing physicians in the midwest and the westcoast know about Orando? Is it considered strong? If I wanted to train there and move back to Midwest or Westcoast would I have problems obtaining a great job? Would it be easier for me to train at UCDavis or UNM if I wanted more options when I am done with residency?
After interviewing all over the place including all florida programs I have decided that Orlando shines in every respect FOR ME except that it is not affiliated with an academic University. Can someone help please?
 
Actually, it currently has a light affiliation with the University of Florida. But it recently agreed to become affiliated with the Univ of Central Florida's new medical school that opens in 2009. I am not a resident but I just rotated there in Nov and interviewed. ORMC is a great program and it shines in many aspects as you mentioned. I think the consensus is that it is currently the best program in FL right now and I've asked residents from other FL programs that very question and they agree. I would not hesitate making them your top choice. I loved it there and I really cannot see any weaknesses. The teaching is awesome and the residents are such a great bunch. Its reputation is strong in the southeast and they are becoming more academic from what the residents there told me. Still, the majority of graduates go into community practice. Good luck to you and hey, maybe I will see you there :D.
 
Well, I'm at ORMC, and as far as I can tell, we have a fine reputation...

Yes, it's a community program, and it's best known in the southeast. I am a PGY-3, and had no difficulty finding a great job in Florida (an academic AND community job, at that). As you've probably discovered, reputation is only part of it - EM is a very small world, and if you find a place that fits you well, that means something.

I do know that a classmate of mine wanted to go to the DC area. The hospitals there weren't familiar with ORMC, but she landed a great job anyway.

We're proud of our program (and we have the hottest residents, too! ), we churn out a lot of research, have a dedicated pediatric EM/trauma center at our children's hospital and have some EM fellowships. (More in the works). I've been very happy with my training, and if you have other questions, feel free to ask.
 
I think you would be fooling yourself if you didn't include Orlando as a well known spot with a great reputaiton.

Amongst the Florida programs, Orlando consistently gets the "better" applicants (A huge disclamer here: I'm not saying it is the best Florida program, simply that the residents are usually more competitive applicants than at other places). I think over 1/3 of their residents are AOA.

As far as out west, I mean, obviously use your brain in terms of regional alliances. A fair amount of doctors end up practicing in relative proximity to where they trained; ergo, if you wanted out west post-residency, you'd probably be better off with a UCDavis or UNM.

Let me again disclaim, though. The fact that Orlando attracts better applicants doesn't necessarily mean they are a better program or that they offer superior training. Factors such as benefits, reputation, city, etc. play a role as well.
 
Thanks for the replies. These are the kind of answers I was looking for. I realize that residents usually end up practicing in areas close to where they train but I have no idea where I want to practice. I just want to train at the best place for me and ALSO have the option to look all over the nation for a job including the tough markets with out being asked "where the hell did you train?" Now if the concensus is that I can do that from Orlando then I am a happy applicant.


Anyway I do have another question for drchristi. Can you comment on your off service months please? I know you do a peds floor month and I cant figure out how that would be helpful and also why individuals say that your off service icu moths are weak except for the Jax MICU month?
Oh and I am hot too so that should work out well!
 
We (the residents) have a lot of say in the program. We negotiated, and got rid of the peds ward month. I'm surprised you missed this, as it seemed like it came up at every pre-interview dinner I did. Anyway... This year, it was in exchange for an extra ED month, as we needed a tad more staffing for our new Peds ED. Next year, as UE mentioned, that month becomes another MICU month where as interns you'd take call with a second year EM res. How cool is that?

SICU is an excellent month - we see some crazy-sick trauma. I loved it. MICU same deal - Orlando = Florida = old people. PICU is PICU. I think you'll find about the same experience anywhere. Jax, well, is the best worst month we do. Period. I really can't comment on anyone else's ICU experience, but am completely satisfied with mine, such that I moonlight in an ICU and feel I can handle anything they hit me with.

I admit I'm biased, but I love it here.
 
Hey I am one of the Interns down at ORMC and first off gotta say I LOVE IT. At least the ED months. Gotta admit aside from procedures on trauma the best part of the off service months is remmember how much i love EM and how thankful i am not doing something else. I swear after this month of Eternal Medicine I feel like i should have a masters in social work...
Our attendings are amazing. all of them are first class teachers. Everyone has different styles some like to talk through differentials. others help you hone your intial workup and make you think about what you are ordering and why. but they always support us one hundred percent. Not only that but our 2nd and 3rd years are great if i need advice in a pinch or help with a procedure.
As far as research goes. Its definitely encouraged and yes it can only help your application. We have tons of ungoing projects from EMS capnography monitoring, Ultrasound, Sepsis, Cardiac and other projects which we LOVE us some med student help with and many of the residents are involved and tons publish and present at confrences. But that said if you're like me and not so interested in teh reasearch thing. Its ok. Its definitely not pushed down our throats and you not considered less of a resident if your biggest goal for the scolarly project is just completing one..
Gotta put a plug out for the med student rotation. its awsome. we have a dedicated teaching resident (3rd year) who works with you guys exclusively. there are tons of procedures to be had. mostly ID, suturing, but I've seen students getting reductions, central lines, LPs and tons of stuff i so got bumped off as a med student.
Gook luck with the match everyone !!! any questions about rotating here or about the program feel free to ask away
 
Can you comment a little on your patient population?
 
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Technically it's a community hospital, but we also function as the county hospital/level I, so we get the homeless and indigent, as well as local CEOs and politicians. Little bit of everything. It's more skewed towards the indigent than a typical community hospital so we rotate at another local hospital for a true community feel. We also have a lot of travelers, and internationals as well. A fair amount of Spanish speakers, and about 5% creole speaking. It's Florida, so lots of old, septic people. Also old people who fall off their golf carts. Honestly, most of the tourists go to one of the hospitals closer to the parks - unless they're really sick. We see tons of trauma, more than what you would think for a city that bills itself as a nice place to visit.

The peds ED sees kids, obviously. We also are in the unique position of seeing every Make-A-Wish kid who goes to Disney and gets sick, so we see a lot of peds pathology. There are weird conferences in Orlando too - there was a hemophilia conference here last fall, and I took care of a couple of them. (Yeah, the old joke about the busload of hemophiliac kindergartners? Coulda happened! I ended up calling the kid's hematologist, who was also in town for the conference...) Apparently there was a progeria meeting a couple of years ago, and we had one visit then, too.

Answer your question?
 
Hello Everyone. I am currently a PGY1 resident at ORMC and I am loving it. I cannot imagine a better program for me. I chose ORMC as my #1 because it is a powerhouse of a program. We are looking for smart, hard working, experienced , candidates that can also hold a conversation and have a little fun. The new 1st year class is a strong group of individuals who are down to earth, hard working, and enjoy life. Interviewing here is a must if you want to get strong clinical training in an area of the country where you can go to the pool in the winter. It is sunny right now with no humidity and it will stay like this until may. We will be unveiling our new website soon, but until then here is a little snap shot. If you train here you can get a job anywhere in the country. West coast to East coast no problem we have been around long enough to have sent graduates everywhere.

Here is an interview review post from last year below: I will add on my spin as well

OrlandoRegionalMedicalCenter

Residents: 14 residents per year. Residents play a big role in the selection process and were actively involved all day as well as the night before. The residents are really friendly, outgoing, down-to-earth, and impressive. They genuinely seem to be friends. Everyone I spoke to ranked it first, and all of them emphasized how happy they were. There are a lot of single residents, but still a mix of married and a few with kids. Many residents live in the same complex downtown, and it seems like they all hang out a lot. They have a reputation as a fun, cohesive group and make it clear that they choose incoming residents that will fit the mold.-
-my class is 50/50 married or single.

Faculty: They have added about 10 new faculty members in the last 3 years to complement a host of people who have been here for a long time. The PD, Dr. Silvestri, is very resident-friendly and was the region's EMS director. Two of the senior attendings hold significant positions within the hospital, guaranteeing the Emergency Department support and funding. Residents report a first-name-basis relationship with almost everyone, and the some of the attendings also hang out with residents outside of work. The new faculty includes multiple Pedi-trained attendings to staff the new Ped ED, a research director, a simulation director, and a couple of ultrasound attendings. Additionally, the faculty responds very well to resident input.

Hospital:
Almost every rotation is in the ORMC campus, which includes the main hospital, Arnold Palmer Children's Hospital, and the very new WinniePalmerHospital for Women and Babies. Together, these three have >1100 beds, and the 2 EDs see >100,000 visits per year combined.
Orlando Regional Healthcare: 500+ bed community hospital, Level 1 Trauma center (blunt and penetrating), and the region's burn center. The adult ED is a good facility, mostly private rooms and electronic patient tracking and ordering. There is a fast track staffed with PA and NP's, and the residents rarely work there. Four busy trauma bays are located adjacent to a hallway with 2 dedicated CT scanners and X-ray. This ED gets about 70,000 people a year, a solid mix of insured and uninsured (maybe 60-40% or 70-30% as per resident estimate), with a high acuity level (30% admission rate).

A.P. Children's Hospital: Dedicated children's hospital with a brand new 33 bed ED. Private rooms with flat screen TVs, computerized tracking and ordering, 4 big trauma bays with dedicated radiology. Sees >30,000 and growing. Very pretty facility.

Ancillary Stuff: We were told the ancillary support is great in the ED. Additionally, everyone in the ED seems to get along very well, from the chair to the janitorial staff…
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very fun place to work. You do not do scutt work. In my first month I was averaging 12-16 patients a shift. You don't have to put in peripheral lines, (unless the nursing staff cannot get them and they need your Ultra sound guided support), everything is done for you and runs to make our job as smooth as possible so that we can see as many patients as possible. You are the doctor and you do doctor duties. The ancillary staff is great.
Admitting/Documentation: No problems with admitting. Paper Charts (T-sheets), but computerized ordering, and no dictating. The rest of the hospital charts electronically, so you can look up old charts/EKGs on the computer.

Curriculum: Dynamic 3 year curriculum with emphasis on critical care and ED time. Interns have almost a half year in the ED, plus 2 months of trauma (there is a big trauma census here), an Anesthesia/Ultrasound month (room to room throwing tubes – there are no anesthesia residents in the hospital), and a month in the MICU. Second year is largely ED and critical care time (4 more months), including the popular Jacksonville ICU month (one on one with an attending with tons of procedures and autonomy). Third year is 9mo of ED time, and a month as teaching resident. They have 3 elective months (most I've seen for a 3 year program) – including many international options, and excellent Peds exposure (1 dedicated month in PGY1, then 20-25% interspersed shifts the rest of the way - plus a PICU month). This may be the best Peds exposure I've seen for a 3 year program, especially with the new facility and growing census. The off-service months have been streamlined towards EM – hold the consult pager for ortho, catch babies all day in OB, throw tubes all day in Anesth, etc. They each get a small lap top computer to carry for charting and ordering when on the floors. Also, the faculty has made changes based on resident suggestions. Mostly 12 hour shifts (Peds are usually 10s) – and everyone gets a 30min break during the shift. Interns work 20 shifts, second years work 18 shifts, and third years work 16 shifts per month. Residents get tons of procedures both in the ED and on off-service rotations, where they are valued members of the team (always among the strongest residents in the hospital). The program emphasizes ultrasound use, and is increasing the use of simulation medicine. Additionally, the program is very "resident-run" – beyond altering the curriculum based on resident suggestions, residents also establish committees for research, education, etc, and make decisions about the direction of the program as a group with the faculty.
The orientation month consists of daily morning lectures and 10 ED shifts. In addition interns are allowed to focus on other required courses such as PALS, ACLS and ATLS. The ED shifts mainly consist of adult shifts but do include several pediatric shifts. This allows interns to get comfortable in the new environment with supervision and guidance. Having the extra time to get oriented to the ED, the computer systems, and the ED staff (ancillary as well as other physicians) is an excellent advantage for a new resident. One of the greatest advantages to this approach is to ease the transition from medical student to an intern. The lectures and extra time spent with attending physicians and senior residents, allows new interns to learn what is expected of them and how to provide superior patient care. The orientation month builds the knowledge base through didactics, simulation, and patient care. It also serves as a team building time. It allows new interns to meet senior residents and faculty
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After you get comfortable in the department you start seeing sick patients right away. In my first 2 month I was treating sepsis, playing with pressors, Placeing central lines, intubating people, thoracentesis, lumbar punctures, my colleagues were putting in chest tubes, diagnosing surgical emergencies with bedside US and on and on. Just a lowely intern. You dont see that at every program.
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you also have the opportunity to rotate in New Zealand, Hawaii, BAli, Dominican republic, or any other place you can muster up. What other programs give you those opportunities? You get 3 months of electives to do what ever you want.
Didactics/Research: Didactics are split into 2 mornings a week. Residents have a near 100% boards passing rate over the last decade or more. Research has been stepped up quite a bit with the addition of new faculty (although ORMC has always published well). The new research director, Dr. Papa has NIH funded research. There are ongoing ultrasound, EMS, simulation and critical care projects. The program has EMS, Ultrasound, and Research Fellowships, and is in the process of starting a Peds fellowship.
The overall mission of the program is academic in nature and a solid clinical training program that has been known to turn out some bad-ass clinicians. We are all involved in research and is getting stronger and stronger each year.

City: ORMC is located in downtown Orlando, >15 miles away from the Disney parks and surrounding tourist wonderland most people associate with Orlando. The downtown area has been revitalized quite a bit in the last few years, with increasing residential areas and nightlife. There are many beautiful lakes, and some pretty parks around the city. Additionally, there is an unbelievable array of dining/drinking/entertainment options in the surrounding areas. The weather is hot and sunny year round, and the real estate is relatively cheap. You can be surfing in CocoaBeach in an hour, or fishing in the Gulf in an hour and a half – any time of year. Fabulous golf courses are everywhere. Orlando is a great town, in a great location – and you can't beat the weather!

Extras: Salary is good for Florida (starting $41,700+ as PGY1, no state income tax). Free food at the hospital 24hrs a day, and free parking right next door.
4 weeks vacation, including 1 week on either christmas or new years every year. Excellent insurance and a retirement package with partial matching of funds after one year. Moonlighting in the unit at a local hospital in the ORMC system as a third year. Chance to attend a Disaster Preparedness Course with NASA (in case of Shuttle emergency), also medical missions to the DR. The University of Central Florida is opening an allopathic medical school this year, and ORMC will be a major clinical site.


Overall: I have a really great feeling about this place. It's a Academic center in a community hospital with beds that move and a system that makes a residents life easier. Which I think may be the best combination for EM training. This is an older, established, well-respected program with a culture of happy, productive residents. There is a "big family" type atmosphere between the faculty, residents and staff – all of whom have impressive skills but still manage to have more fun than anyone else I've met. In addition, the new faculty has brought a ton of expertise and academic potential. Just a great program overall…
- You are taught entirely by our friendly experienced EM faculty, not residents who all love to teach. Once you get here you will see the opportunity to truly build you skill set. You will defiantly work hard in our department but you will never feel alone. I traveled to many places last year and ORMC had everything I was looking for; an outstanding reputation, academics in a community hospital with large indigent population (simulating real life). We have a supportive staff, funding for travel and research, and an unbelievable patient load because everything flows so well here. You will feel like part of the ORMC family. We hang out with our staff and they treat us like friends and colleagues Also, the great weather is a plus along with Orlando being a fairly cheap place to live.
 
Applying to residency is a humbling experience. Reality is there are hundreds of bright, hardworking dedicated residents applying to every program in the country. and its hard to tell why people do or don't get interviews at certain programs.

I loved Orlando from the moment I got down here. Our attendings are passionate and approachable. The residents are genuinely happy (most of the time I dont think anyone except a masochist is happy during trauma call) and I don't have to fight residents from other subspecialties for procedures. My first patient was a septic (pneumonia/urosepsis) with a NSTEMI. I hesitated at first to take the chart wondering if i should let a more senior resident have it. The guy was tachy in the 120s with a BP 90/50 and definitely confused. I paused and looked at my attending who said "you're a doctor, go see the patient" so I did; I got my first exposure to early goal directed therapy as well as medical management of MI. And the patient survived having me as his doctor.
 
So Im pretty enamored with the residency program at ORMC. The training is top knotch, the residents are super friendly and the town....well its South florida so how can anyone complain. Question is....i did an audition rotation there back in June and I think things went well. Even had a few attendings who I later worked with along the way, ORMC EM residency grads make phone calls for me. Is there anything in particular that really makes one applicant stand out over another during the ranking process? Thanks!
 
Hey Surfer, I am glad you have had such a great experience with us. You are spot on about or residents and training. Well there are plenty of things that make an applicant stand out. Of course we look at Your steps and EM rotation grades and evaluations, but besides that we are looking for individuals that truly want to train here. Shoot Sal (our program director) an email and express your sincere interest and that will help alot. One of the reasons we are a happy bunch is because we all realized what you did and wanted to come here. Sal loves hearing that.
As long as you look good on paper (did well on your steps and rotations)
and you were a friendly guy who was interested in learning while you were here you shouldnt have a problem. We look more at the applicant as a whole package than as a step score. We have a very well rounded cast and look to continue that tradition in next years interns.
I didnt rotate here and I ranked Orlando #1. I sent Sal an email expressing my interest and it worked out for me. Granted, I'm a stud, but it did not hurt me. Just kidding by the way......... well kind of.
Orlando Downtown is a beautiful place to be all year round. Well this January has been strangly cold but it is normaly pretty darn perfect from november to may. Gets steamy June to September but I love the heat.

I have had a great time in residency so far. The people are the biggest contributers to my happiness for sure. You will get your ass kicked here right away. We work fast and hard but I feel very comfortable even being only half way done. As you know we are a private hospital but over half of our patients are "County" type patients so it is a good mix butu makes for a full ED. Good news is we are funded and our ancillary staff is top notch so we do not do Scut.
Anyway, good luck in the match. Where ever you end up will be great just remember that. Hopefully I'll see you this summer. If you pm me your name I can pass on your interest to our program director.
-ephedra
 
Hey duddees...i interviewed back at ORMC a while ago...does anyone remember the shift break down..for some reason im thinking First year-20 X12hrs. Second year 20 with a mix of 12s, 10s, and 8s...and then 3rd year-14X 12s, 10s, and 8s.....

This just seems odd to me, but I dont remember.
 
This is correct. The PGY-1 ED months are all 12h shifts (20 for non-vacation months; 16 for vacation months). The PGY-2 shifts include a mix of 8/10/12 hour shifts as of this year. We (the residents) voted to try the mix of different shift lengths.

I'm a PGY-2 resident and love the program. Feel free to PM me with any questions/inquiries/concerns. Good luck in the match!
 
This is correct. The PGY-1 ED months are all 12h shifts (20 for non-vacation months; 16 for vacation months). The PGY-2 shifts include a mix of 8/10/12 hour shifts as of this year. We (the residents) voted to try the mix of different shift lengths.

I'm a PGY-2 resident and love the program. Feel free to PM me with any questions/inquiries/concerns. Good luck in the match!

Thanks! Just curious why do you guys do 20 second year and then only 14 third year....Did the residents vote on that instead of 18 and 16?
 
Thanks! Just curious why do you guys do 20 second year and then only 14 third year....Did the residents vote on that instead of 18 and 16?

A better explanation would include a break-down of HOURS per month (not just shifts). When I was there (recently) the breakdown in shifts was approximately 20/18/16 for PGY 1, 2, and 3 respectively. This year they started instituting shorter PGY 2 adult shifts (all PGY2/3 peds shifts have always been 10 hours) shifts to try and maximize staffing during the busiest portion of the day and avoid everyone signing out at the same time. With the shorter shifts, you may work the same number of shifts, but your hours worked go down (sometimes substantially (20x 10s = 200hrs whereas 18x 12s = 216hrs) although this is an oversimplification of the actual system). You'd have to speak to a current resident to see how that's working out.

Also - many of the PGY2/3s take advantage of internal moonlighting opportunities that fill up some of that "extra" time.
 
Thoughts from interview day:

Orlando has a nice skyline with a downtown with lots of bars and clubs. There’s plenty of theme parks too. A lot of residents live downtown. You can get a really nice spacious place at for about $1000 for 1br/1ba. The medical campus is large and beautiful. The main ED is nice and clean looking but Arnold and Winne Palmer children and OBGYN ED are really beautiful. Winne Palmer has the most deliveries in the entire country and you do a month there. You still get GYN cases come in to the regular ED too. You rotate about 25% of your shifts in the peds ED even when it’s not your designated peds ED month. There’s a peds ED fellowship. You do 1 month in the local community hospital South Seminole and you can moonlight there. There’s in house moon lighting in the fast track area starting your 2nd year $50/hr per shift. The majority of the time you spend on the ORMC campus. Attendings hang out with residents. Everyone really gets along and even parties together. There’s 14 residents per class and it seems like they’re most singles with a few married. Residents do a sports day every Tuesday usually ultimate Frisbee. There’s graded responsibility in the program. Your first year you’re not expected to see many patients just concentrate on knowing your patients well. Second year you have slightly more work load. Third year you handle the traumas and the STEMIs. There’s an ortho program. They come down for a lot of the reductions but you have a month with them and you can always ask to do it. You mostly work 12hr shifts with some 8 and 10 hr shifts your 2nd and 3rd years. You have UCF and FSU students rotate through here. There’s a month of teaching resident.


Positives:

1. Huge amount of peds experience with very sick kids

2. Nice community hospital but functions like county hospital since Orlando doesn't have a county hospital.

3. Fairly prestigious program with a good name in E-med

4. Gets hot in the summer, but still sub-tropical so good bye cold!


Negatives:

1. Not the biggest city, but a fun, young city with a new performing arts center and MLS team coming.
 
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So Im pretty enamored with the residency program at ORMC. The training is top knotch, the residents are super friendly and the town....well its South florida so how can anyone complain. Question is....i did an audition rotation there back in June and I think things went well. Even had a few attendings who I later worked with along the way, ORMC EM residency grads make phone calls for me. Is there anything in particular that really makes one applicant stand out over another during the ranking process? Thanks!
How was the rotation here? And how did match turn out for you? I know it's clearly been a while so you might not be on here anymore. I applied to the away and just got put "under review" on VSAS today.
 
How was the rotation here? And how did match turn out for you? I know it's clearly been a while so you might not be on here anymore. I applied to the away and just got put "under review" on VSAS today.
Yeah, the last time that this person posted on SDN was 6 years ago this August.
 
How was the rotation here? And how did match turn out for you? I know it's clearly been a while so you might not be on here anymore. I applied to the away and just got put "under review" on VSAS today.

The program director unexpectedly passed very recently. If things take longer than usual or are a little hit and miss, allow them some grace.
 
Yeah, the last time that this person posted on SDN was 6 years ago this August.
Yeah I figured, I don't get on here much. Should I start a new thread to find anyone who has done any away there?
 
He was.

A terrible loss for ORMC, EMS research, and the entire EM community, especially in Central Florida. It still seems quite surreal.
 
Does anyone know what EMR they use? I saw on some other thread that someone mentioned the residents still write paper notes in the ED. Does anyone who rotated there recently or current resident verify this? Is it the same for off-service rotations?
 
Does anyone know what EMR they use? I saw on some other thread that someone mentioned the residents still write paper notes in the ED. Does anyone who rotated there recently or current resident verify this? Is it the same for off-service rotations?
Rotated there this past season. They use paper charts still and told us they were getting off of them by January (still haven't). They have sunrise and another system. One to track labs, etc and one to look up history.
 
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