Programs in the Pacific Northwest

[medicine2006]

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I would like to know people's impressions of the anesthesiology programs in Oregon (OHSU) and Washington (UW, Virginia Mason Medical Center).

 

[Skrubz]

I really enjoyed interviewing at Virginia Mason. The residents and attendings there seemed really friendly and I spent the day in scrubs wandering around the OR. It did seem a little more scripted though, and our "host" for the day was one of the attendings, not a resident. However, he was really nice and had gone through our CVs and personal statements and actually knew stuff about us. It seemed like a tight-knit family there.

UW was more impersonal and didn't really impress me that much. The residents didn't seem that happy for the most part, and almost all of the ones I met had transferred from other specialties. Of course, this was my last interview (of 30) and I think my view of UW was colored by the fact that I was just really tired and I wanted to go home. Addendum: Like Fluorinator, I had also heard through the grapevine that UW was rather malignant but I have no first-hand evidence to back up that claim. It does look like they had some difficulties matching this year.

 

[medicine2006]

I really enjoyed interviewing at Virginia Mason. The residents and attendings there seemed really friendly and I spent the day in scrubs wandering around the OR. It did seem a little more scripted though, and our "host" for the day was one of the attendings, not a resident. However, he was really nice and had gone through our CVs and personal statements and actually knew stuff about us. It seemed like a tight-knit family there.

UW was more impersonal and didn't really impress me that much. The residents didn't seem that happy for the most part, and almost all of the ones I met had transferred from other specialties. Of course, this was my last interview (of 30) and I think my view of UW was colored by the fact that I was just really tired and I wanted to go home.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. And congrats on Stanford Anesthesiology.

 

[Fluorinator]

University of Washington: I have heard first-hand from residents that it is a malignant program. You don't have to look much further than the current match results to know that there are problems at the program!
OHSU on the other hand, with the arrival of Dr. Jeffrey Kirsch from Johns Hopkins, has made leaps and bounds in its reputation. Having talked to some of their residents and alumni, the program offers outstanding teaching but the residents do work hard. Will certainly be on par with UCSF, Stanford and UCLA on the west coast in the next five years. 😎