what's orthopedic surgery residency like?

[iwantneurosurg]

can someone in orthopedic residency tell me a little about what its like being a resident?

How many hours a week?
How long does an average operation last (for hip, knee, shoulder, spine, hand, etc.)
What percentage of time do you spend in the OR actually seeing operations?
What percentage of time do you spend on patient care/in the clinic?
What else takes up a large amount of time? (I'm M1, so I can only guess what residents do; maybe paperwork takes a long time too?)

Also, I don't have the steadiest hands in the world, but was able to dissect the cadaver just fine. I shadowed an ophthalmologist and saw the stitches around the iris they put in, and thought that maybe I shouldn't go into ophtho in case i got the shakes/was too shaky to do it.

However, I saw a couple brain tumor resections on or-live and thought i should be able to do that just fine

For ortho, is extreme precision/dexterity a requirement? Or is strength a greater asset? I go to the gym four to five times a week and am a lot stronger than most of the other people in the medical school gym, making me think that ortho may be more in tune with my strengths (no pun intended).

And what about research? Do you guys get a lot of research opportunities?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[dobonedoc]

Steady hands, strong shoulders, shows on TV . . . it all does not make a big difference. Instead, study hard and learn your med school basics. Then, during your clinical time you will start to figure out what you like to do and what you like to study. If you want Ortho, Neurosurg, or even Optho, you had better make sure you leave those doors open to yourself by maximizing your application with great grades and scores.

As for ortho residency: most residencies have long hours, ortho is no exception. Some surgical cases take minutes, others take the whole day. You're feet will be killing you, especially at the end of a day on the spine service. Hopefully at the resident level you are no longer watching surgery, but instead assisting and doing the cases. Muscles are useful in some cases, but technique is much more important. Too much force with the wrong technique only makes for a bad day when you break something you were trying to fix. Instead of dreaming of ortho while spending 4 hours a day in the gym, spend that time in the library. Finally, if a steady hand is really what you need some day, there are medicines that can help with that.

Good luck.

 

[RxnMan]

...As for ortho residency: most residencies have long hours, ortho is no exception. Some surgical cases take minutes, others take the whole day. You're feet will be killing you, especially at the end of a day on the spine service. Hopefully at the resident level you are no longer watching surgery, but instead assisting and doing the cases.

From the ortho guys I've spoken to, this is pretty accurate. Muscles might help with reducing a fracture or a dislocation, but there's a lot of tools/techniques available that reduce the strength requirement anyways.

Depending on how cush the ortho program is (community vs. university, q3 vs q5,) you may be doing just about everything on your own as a PGY3, or you may only be allowed to hold retractors at PGY5 because the fellows take all of the cases.

 

[iwantneurosurg]

thank you for your replies.

the reason i'm looking into this as an M-1 is simply to build contacts along the way. since i really like spine surgery so much, and the paths to this include ortho and neurosurgery, i'm setting up research with the corresponding department during my summer off in hopes of meeting the right people.

this has already fared well with neurosurgery, but after talking to a few ortho guys, i'm not sure if ortho would be a wiser path.

i know its presumptuous to choose this early, but the way i see it, the earlier i choose, the more publications i get done in that field, the stronger the application looks, and i can start looking into appropriate externships third and fourth year.

i know that's a lot to do, but this summer's quite boring, and until research starts, the only thing left to do is usmle-prep, but without path yet...well, there's only so much physio one can re-review in one day after just finishing the block

again, thank you for ur replies, and anymore insights into the world of orthopedics will be greatly appreciated

 

[Hardbody]

of dreaming of ortho while spending 4 hours a day in the gym, spend that time in the library

I guess I'm busted, but I'm still only pre-med (applying now) so there is still hope.

 

[Orthodoc40]

I guess I'm busted, but I'm still only pre-med (applying now) so there is still hope.

Worry not! You have time to change your ways.....!!

 

[dawg44]

You have to take the back entrance to the hospital everyday. Obviously due to the number of orthogroupies at the front of the hospital. The paparazzi can be very annoying as well. I don't know how many near accidents I have had through my residency. Sometimes you would like to just go to the grocery store and not have to sign an autograph. Disguises help with this. The only advice I would give his have an excellent bodyguard. Hats and sunglasses are good. And NEVER, EVER videotape ANYTHING.

 

[Wahoos]

How many hours a week?
- More as a junior resident and less as a senior. Also depend on the program. I would say 80-90 is a safe bet. Probably on the high 70s as you approach your chief years.

How long does an average operation last (for hip, knee, shoulder, spine, hand, etc.)
- Hip cases are 2-3 hours as are total knees. Hand cases range depending on the procedure. 4 finger replant = ~7-10 hours of micro surgery, carpal tunnel release = 10-20 minutes, Big spine cases can be 5-8 hours long like multi level fusion, anterior and posterior. Scopes are often < 1hr. Trauma cases vary....

What percentage of time do you spend in the OR actually seeing operations?
- You spend most of the day in the OR, morning rounds are usually less than 45 mins. Whether you do the operation or watch is program dependant. Some programs, the residents do the whole case, others, the chief resident is retracting for the attending.

What percentage of time do you spend on patient care/in the clinic?
- clinic is mandated by the Ortho residency review committee = 1 day per week needed in clinic

What else takes up a large amount of time? (I'm M1, so I can only guess what residents do; maybe paperwork takes a long time too?)
- dictations, paper work, notes in the morning, tansfer/admit/consent/H+P can take up a bulk of the time. The ED will take up a ton of time for consults.

For ortho, is extreme precision/dexterity a requirement? Or is strength a greater asset?
- Hand / spine surgery is needs more dexterity. Total hip and total knee need a little more strength than the others... but a normal person with normal strength can do all the Ortho cases, no problem.

And what about research? Do you guys get a lot of research opportunities?
- Yes. Believe it of not, Orthopedics is one of the more academic fields in medicine in terms of research. There is huge funding and research areas for ortho. Our field have biomechanics, tissue engineering, basic science, specific bone disease research, gene therapy in orthopedics is becoming a huge field, stem cell research, many many outcomes research looking at treatment methods....

The best part is that no other medical field can try to take over the things orthopods do, because once you break a bone.... you can not fix it with min invasive or endo vascular surgeries. Like how cardiology is taking over the Cardiac surgery cases.

Also with all the baby boomers aging, the # of people over 65 is going to double by 2010, = more orthopods needed for all the total knee, hip, fractures, sports related injuries, etc. It is a great field to be a part of.

Hope this helps.

 

[cdql]

Thanks for the post!

I'm a little confused though. You're an M1 and also a PGY-2? How does that work?

 

[nzdavid]

His class of 2005 means he graduated in 2005.

 

[Zoom-Zoom]

His class of 2005 means he graduated in 2005.

I think he's referring to this: "What else takes up a large amount of time? (I'm M1, so I can only guess what residents do; maybe paperwork takes a long time too?)"...which was copied and pasted from the OP's question, not part of the answer.

 

[Wahoos]

I graduated in 2005 and currently in my 2nd year of ortho residency.

Here is a couple of cool links to total hip / knee surgeries, if interested.

http://www.minitotalhip.com/webpages/Video.htm
http://www.memorialcare.org/health/orthopedic_video.cfm

One talks about min invasive total hip which is not really min invasive but more like min incision total hip

The other is a self promotion for a hospital but has some cool surgerys

 

[Hardbody]

I graduated in 2005 and currently in my 2nd year of ortho residency.

Here is a couple of cool links to total hip / knee surgeries, if interested.

http://www.minitotalhip.com/webpages/Video.htm
http://www.memorialcare.org/health/orthopedic_video.cfm

One talks about min invasive total hip which is not really min invasive but more like min incision total hip

The other is a self promotion for a hospital but has some cool surgerys

Good stuff !

 

[DoctorPardi]

How many hours a week?
- More as a junior resident and less as a senior. Also depend on the program. I would say 80-90 is a safe bet. Probably on the high 70s as you approach your chief years.

How long does an average operation last (for hip, knee, shoulder, spine, hand, etc.)
- Hip cases are 2-3 hours as are total knees. Hand cases range depending on the procedure. 4 finger replant = ~7-10 hours of micro surgery, carpal tunnel release = 10-20 minutes, Big spine cases can be 5-8 hours long like multi level fusion, anterior and posterior. Scopes are often < 1hr. Trauma cases vary....

What percentage of time do you spend in the OR actually seeing operations?
- You spend most of the day in the OR, morning rounds are usually less than 45 mins. Whether you do the operation or watch is program dependant. Some programs, the residents do the whole case, others, the chief resident is retracting for the attending.

What percentage of time do you spend on patient care/in the clinic?
- clinic is mandated by the Ortho residency review committee = 1 day per week needed in clinic

What else takes up a large amount of time? (I'm M1, so I can only guess what residents do; maybe paperwork takes a long time too?)
- dictations, paper work, notes in the morning, tansfer/admit/consent/H+P can take up a bulk of the time. The ED will take up a ton of time for consults.

For ortho, is extreme precision/dexterity a requirement? Or is strength a greater asset?
- Hand / spine surgery is needs more dexterity. Total hip and total knee need a little more strength than the others... but a normal person with normal strength can do all the Ortho cases, no problem.

And what about research? Do you guys get a lot of research opportunities?
- Yes. Believe it of not, Orthopedics is one of the more academic fields in medicine in terms of research. There is huge funding and research areas for ortho. Our field have biomechanics, tissue engineering, basic science, specific bone disease research, gene therapy in orthopedics is becoming a huge field, stem cell research, many many outcomes research looking at treatment methods....

The best part is that no other medical field can try to take over the things orthopods do, because once you break a bone.... you can not fix it with min invasive or endo vascular surgeries. Like how cardiology is taking over the Cardiac surgery cases.

Also with all the baby boomers aging, the # of people over 65 is going to double by 2010, = more orthopods needed for all the total knee, hip, fractures, sports related injuries, etc. It is a great field to be a part of.

Hope this helps.

Great post, I am only a senior premed, but I've spent a lot of time shadowing orthopods and I work in an OR. I really feel like ortho is where I want to end up, although I am sure I could change my mind a hundred times in the next 4 years.

 

[JimBeezie]

How many hours a week?
- More as a junior resident and less as a senior. Also depend on the program. I would say 80-90 is a safe bet. Probably on the high 70s as you approach your chief years.

How long does an average operation last (for hip, knee, shoulder, spine, hand, etc.)
- Hip cases are 2-3 hours as are total knees. Hand cases range depending on the procedure. 4 finger replant = ~7-10 hours of micro surgery, carpal tunnel release = 10-20 minutes, Big spine cases can be 5-8 hours long like multi level fusion, anterior and posterior. Scopes are often < 1hr. Trauma cases vary....

What percentage of time do you spend in the OR actually seeing operations?
- You spend most of the day in the OR, morning rounds are usually less than 45 mins. Whether you do the operation or watch is program dependant. Some programs, the residents do the whole case, others, the chief resident is retracting for the attending.

What percentage of time do you spend on patient care/in the clinic?
- clinic is mandated by the Ortho residency review committee = 1 day per week needed in clinic

What else takes up a large amount of time? (I'm M1, so I can only guess what residents do; maybe paperwork takes a long time too?)
- dictations, paper work, notes in the morning, tansfer/admit/consent/H+P can take up a bulk of the time. The ED will take up a ton of time for consults.

For ortho, is extreme precision/dexterity a requirement? Or is strength a greater asset?
- Hand / spine surgery is needs more dexterity. Total hip and total knee need a little more strength than the others... but a normal person with normal strength can do all the Ortho cases, no problem.

And what about research? Do you guys get a lot of research opportunities?
- Yes. Believe it of not, Orthopedics is one of the more academic fields in medicine in terms of research. There is huge funding and research areas for ortho. Our field have biomechanics, tissue engineering, basic science, specific bone disease research, gene therapy in orthopedics is becoming a huge field, stem cell research, many many outcomes research looking at treatment methods....

The best part is that no other medical field can try to take over the things orthopods do, because once you break a bone.... you can not fix it with min invasive or endo vascular surgeries. Like how cardiology is taking over the Cardiac surgery cases.

Also with all the baby boomers aging, the # of people over 65 is going to double by 2010, = more orthopods needed for all the total knee, hip, fractures, sports related injuries, etc. It is a great field to be a part of.

Hope this helps.

On average, what time do you get to the hospital and what time do you leave? How about weekends?