what is your personal experience in an orthopedic residency

[mrPTehee]

For people who have done or is doing an orthopedic residency, what was your experience like? No detail is too minute to share. I've read about a few programs but I am curious to hear about the nitty gritty or details that only someone who have experienced it first hand can talk about. What is it like to have a mentor? How does one "mentor" you? Does he/she sit in on your evals and critique during an exam? What are the classes/lab's like in terms of furthering your education? What do you do in class/lab? what is your lifestyle/routine? Can you take vacation days? I know residencies helps with clinical reasoning, but what is an example where residency has clearly changed the way you think in the clinic? Please share anything, I am interested in all comments.

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[topher031888]

I saw you post a few days ago and just got around to responding. I am currently in a 2 year residency program. I make a normal salary and work a full schedule. My mentor comes to the clinic every few months and we treat patients together. He is in the room most of the time, he asks question, we case, and he helps me with my clinical reasoning. It is all very professional and I love the feedback. Occasionally I select appropriate patients and we "skype" a treatment session and he provides feedback that way. In addition I write up cases, magazine articles and he helps me with my writing skills as well as my clinical reasoning in that way. Our coursework includes all 600 level NAIOMT and subsequent certification, additional leadership, billing, pharmacy, imaging, spinal manipulation, and several courses geared towards efficiency and marketing as we all work in private practice. There are also some peer learning assignments and something called a "special interest" where we get involved in some type of intervention specialty of our choice. Lots of people just work with a personal training, take SFMA courses, or some sort of HIIT training. I am leaning towards SFMA or a mountaineering course (there is a lot of flexibility).

Most courses are over the weekend or online. This issue I have is most of my company is situated around western Oregon and Washington and I am roughly 3-4 hours away. Compared to the other residents, I have to travel a ton. We also become credentialed clinical instructors and as part of the residency will mentor at least one student and be mentored while mentoring.

I get vacation like a normal employee and the program is kind of a go at our own pace. I have three kids and am married so life is kind of crazy and I am not sure if I will be finishing on time, I have discussed this with my mentor and company and it is not a problem. In reality, they are trying to convince me to take more time to finish.

So far I have become immensely more effective as a provider and a lot of that is due to my residency training. I am much better at pattern recognition, more skilled as a PT in regards to manual interventions and knowing when to put my hands on a patient and when not to.

 

[mrPTehee]

Thank you for the feedback. How do you like NAIOMT? I have attended the 500 courses and I really enjoy their methods. I definitely don't think I am able to carry out their teachings without a mentor trained in NAIOMT.

Do you think it's beneficial to start a residency right after school? I have spoken to a residency director and he says it's not a bad idea to practice for a year to figure out your "style" then jump into a residency. How did you decide on the residency program that you are currently in?

 

[topher031888]

I really enjoyed my NAIOMT courses, I took the whole 600 series last year and it was a lot, (would recommend spreading it out a little more than that) but very good. It definitely helps that all of our mentors are fellowship trained in the NAIOMT system but if you are in Seattle or Portland area there are NAIOMT sponsored study groups you could attend even if you don't have a mentor.

I think it is definitely helpful to have some time to establish yourself into some sort of rhythm or system prior to beginning residency. I was hired in May and didn't start my residency until the following January. As a new graduate, there is a lot of adjusting to be down. Getting used to being truly autonomous without always have a CI or someone to consult with, getting documentation skills and learning whatever EMR you will be using.

I chose my particular residency because my wife was sick of moving every year and with my residency, I was not hired as a resident. I was hired as a staff therapist and regardless of whether or not I decided to enroll in the residency program, I had a salaried full time job. With other residencies I had considered, at the end of the program I would no longer be employed. They also only paid 3/4 salary and my current position is full salary. However, the program does end up costing about $6,000 over two years. Fortunately, if I stay with them for two years I will be reimbursed the full amount.

 

[Metzer882]

Thanks for sharing! I am thinking about a residency after PT school and I am wondering about when I should start looking for the right one? I see your program will reimburse if you stay with them long enough. Do you know if there are companies that will help pay for PT school or residencies? My mom's friend did that for PT school years ago and they paid half of her tuition! I can't seem to find the same deal now.

 

[topher031888]

Thank you for the feedback. How do you like NAIOMT? I have attended the 500 courses and I really enjoy their methods. I definitely don't think I am able to carry out their teachings without a mentor trained in NAIOMT.

Do you think it's beneficial to start a residency right after school? I have spoken to a residency director and he says it's not a bad idea to practice for a year to figure out your "style" then jump into a residency. How did you decide on the residency program that you are currently in?

Sorry I forgot to get back to you. We had a 3rd child and my response got pushed to the back of my mind.

I think NAIOMT is fantastic, first it is a great review of a lot of stuff that you may have forgotten since your orthopedic courses. Second, it will really help with build a strong foundation for a local biomechanical exam and make your manual treatments much more effective and efficient.

I know a lot of people that went directly into a residency and found it very beneficial. That being said, have 6-9 months to "settle in" would definitely let you be more mentally ready to take all the new information in because you will be using less mental resources just trying to adjust to being a clinician full time. I had about 7 months and it really helped me learn a bit of my style, learn the EMR very well, and just develop a decent work flow without having to worry as much about the residency.