Residency program insight

[twofish]

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Hi, I wonder if anyone can share some insight on the following peds residency program:
Cohen (Schneider children's) Long island Jewish
USC
University of Chicago
Orange County Children's
Thanks

 

[twofish]

wow, 250 views and no one can share some insight?

Hi, I wonder if anyone can share some insight on the following peds residency program:
Cohen (Schneider children's) Long island Jewish
USC
University of Chicago
Orange County Children's
Thanks

 

[babel]

What do you want to know specifically? What are your concerns? I am an applicant and interviewed at USC and UCI/CHOC so I could give you that perspective. Looking at your list my first question would be where do I want to live - Long Island, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Orange County? All very different places.

 

[twofish]

Thanks for the reply. Specifically I'd like to know about how does each of the program compared to each other in terms of reputation, fellowship matching,well-being of the residents (in terms of working hours and working environment) and education quality. Any info would help. I like Chicago, NY and LA, so location wise, I can't say which location I like more than the other.
Any input will be appreciated. Thanks!

What do you want to know specifically? What are your concerns? I am an applicant and interviewed at USC and UCI/CHOC so I could give you that perspective. Looking at your list my first question would be where do I want to live - Long Island, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Orange County? All very different places.

 

[GiardiaLOOMBlia]

I grew up, went to college, and am an m4, in Chicago. My family is all here and thought this is certainly where i'd want to stay for residency until i started my clerkships 3rd year. Pediatrics in chicago feels very different from that in other cities, perhaps not other major cities like NY or LA though. A lot of it feels more like a business with many of the pediatric hospitals (in realities small floors in the larger hospital) are just in existence with administration not really caring about them and with no interest in expanding them.

But onto U of C in particular which is a free-standing children's hospital unlike most of the programs in chicago. U of C has a great new facility, the building that Comer Children's sits in is wonderful. U of C as a medical institution, however, is having it's fair share of recent issues- both administrative and training wise. I'm not saying you will be a bad pediatrician coming out of U of C but that there are plenty of other places that will train you better and give you more opportunities. U of C fellowships have been unstable and some of them have simply collapsed in the last few years. While U of C still has some recognition because of its name it's not necessary an elite children's hospital. The PD and the associate PD there are super nice though and the residents seem happy. While some of the other peds programs have carved out their own niche per the chicago peds culture, it's hard to really say if U of C has a niche of their own because even their chronic care facility, La Rabida, is actually now a part of Children's Memorial. If you are not from Chicago and aren't simply trying to stay Chicago I'm confident you've interviewed at better programs than this. I definitely don't think this is a program worth leaving home for.

Good luck with your decision! March 17th cannot come soon enough!

 

[twofish]

Much appreciation for the input!

I grew up, went to college, and am an m4, in Chicago. My family is all here and thought this is certainly where i'd want to stay for residency until i started my clerkships 3rd year. Pediatrics in chicago feels very different from that in other cities, perhaps not other major cities like NY or LA though. A lot of it feels more like a business with many of the pediatric hospitals (in realities small floors in the larger hospital) are just in existence with administration not really caring about them and with no interest in expanding them.

But onto U of C in particular which is a free-standing children's hospital unlike most of the programs in chicago. U of C has a great new facility, the building that Comer Children's sits in is wonderful. U of C as a medical institution, however, is having it's fair share of recent issues- both administrative and training wise. I'm not saying you will be a bad pediatrician coming out of U of C but that there are plenty of other places that will train you better and give you more opportunities. U of C fellowships have been unstable and some of them have simply collapsed in the last few years. While U of C still has some recognition because of its name it's not necessary an elite children's hospital. The PD and the associate PD there are super nice though and the residents seem happy. While some of the other peds programs have carved out their own niche per the chicago peds culture, it's hard to really say if U of C has a niche of their own because even their chronic care facility, La Rabida, is actually now a part of Children's Memorial. If you are not from Chicago and aren't simply trying to stay Chicago I'm confident you've interviewed at better programs than this. I definitely don't think this is a program worth leaving home for.

Good luck with your decision! March 17th cannot come soon enough!

 

[Raspberry]

I grew up, went to college, and am an m4, in Chicago. My family is all here and thought this is certainly where i'd want to stay for residency until i started my clerkships 3rd year. Pediatrics in chicago feels very different from that in other cities, perhaps not other major cities like NY or LA though. A lot of it feels more like a business with many of the pediatric hospitals (in realities small floors in the larger hospital) are just in existence with administration not really caring about them and with no interest in expanding them.

But onto U of C in particular which is a free-standing children's hospital unlike most of the programs in chicago. U of C has a great new facility, the building that Comer Children's sits in is wonderful. U of C as a medical institution, however, is having it's fair share of recent issues- both administrative and training wise. I'm not saying you will be a bad pediatrician coming out of U of C but that there are plenty of other places that will train you better and give you more opportunities. U of C fellowships have been unstable and some of them have simply collapsed in the last few years. While U of C still has some recognition because of its name it's not necessary an elite children's hospital. The PD and the associate PD there are super nice though and the residents seem happy. While some of the other peds programs have carved out their own niche per the chicago peds culture, it's hard to really say if U of C has a niche of their own because even their chronic care facility, La Rabida, is actually now a part of Children's Memorial. If you are not from Chicago and aren't simply trying to stay Chicago I'm confident you've interviewed at better programs than this. I definitely don't think this is a program worth leaving home for.

Good luck with your decision! March 17th cannot come soon enough!

As a recent graduate of the Univ of Chicago Pediatrics program, allow me to clarify some points:

1) LaRabida is an independent institution that is not part of any other organization. They have a long-standing academic affiliation with The University of Chicago which continues today. The majority of their physicians are faculty at the University of Chicago. The treatment room (urgent care) is staffed by hospitalists from CMH.

2) The fellowships at the University of Chicago have not collapsed nor are they unstable. They have fellowships in most specialty areas.

3) The training there is equal to any in the city. Their graduates achieve highly successful fellowship matches and general pediatric positions. The current third years all had outstanding matches in highly competitive subspecialties.

4) Niche? Let's try: caring for the underserved, developing research interests, and training leaders. You'll be very well trained and sought after.

 

[Woot!]

As a recent graduate of the Univ of Chicago Pediatrics program, allow me to clarify some points:

1) LaRabida is an independent institution that is not part of any other organization. They have a long-standing academic affiliation with The University of Chicago which continues today. The majority of their physicians are faculty at the University of Chicago. The treatment room (urgent care) is staffed by hospitalists from CMH.

2) The fellowships at the University of Chicago have not collapsed nor are they unstable. They have fellowships in most specialty areas.

3) The training there is equal to any in the city. Their graduates achieve highly successful fellowship matches and general pediatric positions. The current third years all had outstanding matches in highly competitive subspecialties.

4) Niche? Let's try: caring for the underserved, developing research interests, and training leaders. You'll be very well trained and sought after.

Can either previous poster comment on Lutheran General and Rush?

I was surprised how much I liked these two programs, but I was wondering if anyone had extra insight?


Twofish: Cohens is a top program on long Island, that has really boosted its reputation. You hae any felllowship known to mankind there, and many attendings are very nice.

However, be prepared to work damn hard as its more work than most Peds programs.

 

[GiardiaLOOMBlia]

As a recent graduate of the Univ of Chicago Pediatrics program, allow me to clarify some points:

1) LaRabida is an independent institution that is not part of any other organization. They have a long-standing academic affiliation with The University of Chicago which continues today. The majority of their physicians are faculty at the University of Chicago. The treatment room (urgent care) is staffed by hospitalists from CMH.

2) The fellowships at the University of Chicago have not collapsed nor are they unstable. They have fellowships in most specialty areas.

3) The training there is equal to any in the city. Their graduates achieve highly successful fellowship matches and general pediatric positions. The current third years all had outstanding matches in highly competitive subspecialties.

4) Niche? Let's try: caring for the underserved, developing research interests, and training leaders. You'll be very well trained and sought after.

I don't think U of C puts out bad pediatricians but as far as fellowships go they have had a few go down and come back up. As of now the cards fellowship is down and the cards program there is greatly suffering with no standout interventionalist or surgeon after the exodus of faculty to Rush occurred.

the pulm fellowship fell apart similarly 10-15 years ago and some other fellowships have gone through some rough times as well.

I don't deny that U of C treats the underserved due to it's location nor do i deny that it still produces good pediatricians.

As for La Rabida, yes it's an independent entity that is affiliated with U of C but it appears that Children's Memorial might be starting to push for more ground at La Rabida, and let's face it, this is Chicago peds so only one program will win in the end. Children's attendings are already being added at La Rabida and the 09 annual report mentions what was then their newly formed alliance (it also mentions the relationship with u of c). All I'm saying is that the experience U of C residents get at La Rabida may decrease in the future and may not continue to be what it is now.
http://www.larabida.org/news/five-childrens-memorial-physicians-added-to-la-rabidas-roster
http://www.larabida.org/page-2009-annual-report

 

[twofish]

Thanks a lot for the info Raspberry! Could you clarify a few of my questions regarding U of C?
1. What kind of patient are sent out of Comer?
2. Regarding the patient population, I heard 90% of the patient treated in Comer are African American? is this true?
3. How is teaching in residency?
4. How is the work load for the residents? Are they happy in general?
Thanks a lot!

As a recent graduate of the Univ of Chicago Pediatrics program, allow me to clarify some points:

1) LaRabida is an independent institution that is not part of any other organization. They have a long-standing academic affiliation with The University of Chicago which continues today. The majority of their physicians are faculty at the University of Chicago. The treatment room (urgent care) is staffed by hospitalists from CMH.

2) The fellowships at the University of Chicago have not collapsed nor are they unstable. They have fellowships in most specialty areas.

3) The training there is equal to any in the city. Their graduates achieve highly successful fellowship matches and general pediatric positions. The current third years all had outstanding matches in highly competitive subspecialties.

4) Niche? Let's try: caring for the underserved, developing research interests, and training leaders. You'll be very well trained and sought after.

 

[Raspberry]

Thanks a lot for the info Raspberry! Could you clarify a few of my questions regarding U of C?
1. What kind of patient are sent out of Comer?
2. Regarding the patient population, I heard 90% of the patient treated in Comer are African American? is this true?
3. How is teaching in residency?
4. How is the work load for the residents? Are they happy in general?
Thanks a lot!

Thanks for the questions. I am not sure what are the exact percentages of patient demographics. Comer is on the South Side so the general pediatrics service and ER are representative of the community, predominantly African American. The subspecialty services and NICU/PICU take patients from all over (Chicagoland area, Northwest Indiana, and even abroad) in addition to South Side Chicago so the population is more diverse. We never turned patients away or sent them out. There were clinic experiences in the South Side and Ukranian village where most patients are Latin American and spanish speaking only.

Teaching in residency was phenomenal. I never felt bad about asking a question; this was not the case in medical school. Attendings were excited to teach when residents were excited to learn. They taught me what I needed to know to become a pediatrician: when children are acutely ill and how to manage them (what every physician must know), and a great fund of knowledge (I passed the boards). Furthermore, I really enjoyed the resident as teachers curriculum. I wasn't aware of this when I applied, but there was a big focus on making us great teachers to our colleagues and patients. It is a really useful skill in our profession; it helps me every day.

The workload was challenging but I never felt underwater. We were happy and felt that the program was responsive to our concerns. They always had an open ear. If I had to reapply to residency, I would still choose UofC.