Highlights of Anesthesia Training at UF

Focus on Education

Residents who train at the University of Florida leave with a solid set of clinical skills and the ability to practice anesthesiology in any setting – private or academic – they choose. The emphasis on didactics is ubiquitous in each training year. Lecture is held daily from 6:30 – 7:15 am, with an 8:00 am operating room start time. One morning each week is dedicated to small group teaching with residents in each subspecialty meeting with faculty from that specialty, meanwhile the CA1′s review chapters of a textbook with the Program Director.

In addition to their book fund, residents are provided with iPad 2’s with access to the medical record system, as well as textbooks and study materials such as in-training exam key word applications. Faculty members dedicate extra time and effort to provide board review sessions on a biweekly basis, as well as additional opportunities to practice for oral board examinations. Our written American Board of Anesthesiology examination pass rate for the past 5 years averaged well over 90%.

Visiting professors and journal clubs are a regular occurrence, as is bimonthly Jeopardy competitions with a reward for the winning team at the end of the year. Mock orals are scheduled at least twice per year, with additional opportunities on various subspecialties and at the request of residents. Individual 2-hour tutoring sessions with a former board examiner are provided for all seniors, and by request.

All residents are encouraged to participate in the Gulf Atlantic Resident Research Conference, as well as other regional and national conferences with departmental support for travel.

Clinical Experience

As a tertiary referral center for much of the Southeast, the average patient residents care for in and out of the operating room has a multitude of medical and surgical comorbidities, many of which were considered to be out of the scope of practice at a different facility from which they were referred or transferred. Residents truly get exposed to everything here. The following are just a few examples…

  • Our pediatric surgical colleagues have made UF a center for babies with congenital heart disease, congenital diaphragmatic hernias, neurosurgical abnormalities, as well as children with medical conditions relating to craniofacial abnormalities or ear, nose and throat pathology requiring surgical correction. Without a pediatric anesthesiology fellowship, the residents at UF have the opportunity to provide anesthesia for the vast majority of these cases.
  • UF at Shands is a major referral center for complex vascular and cardiothoracic surgical conditions. Our vascular surgeons provide services ranging from simple dialysis access to complex endovascular thoracic aortic aneurysm stent grafting. Our cardiothoracic surgeons’ practice involves a large number of aortic and valve operations, and UF also serves as an active heart and lung transplant center.
  • Residents obtain early exposure to Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Medicine beginning with a dedicated rotation their CA-1 year as well as multiple opportunities for regional procedures during their rotations at the VA.
  • Basic TEE certification training and reading of exams is available to residents who desire to accomplish this during their residency.
  • By mid-way through their CA-2 year, most residents have reached all of their ACGME case requirements.
  • A unique “Transition to Practice” rotation is available to CA-3 residents, mimicking a private practice setting with CRNA supervision experience.

 

Fellowships and Academic Medicine

The following fellowships are offered through the Department of Anesthesiology:

In addition the Department is willing to work with graduating residents to design fellowships that meet their needs in areas such as neuroanesthesia, patient safety, research, and transplant anesthesia to name a few.

For residents with a special clinical interest, “subspecialty” tracks are offered during the CA-3 year where up to an additional 6 months of specialty training can be arranged in a selected subspecialty. A research subspecialty track also exists, with 6 months of the CA-3 year dedicated to a research project guided by a faculty member.

There are ample opportunities for research and all residents are given the opportunity to participate. The Department provides assistance including: an internal funding agency, an IRB/grant specialist, a librarian, a graphic artist and a professional editor.

The Gravenstein Scholars Program was developed for interested and qualified residents to participate in structured research during their training in preparation for a career in academic medicine. It is a 5 year commitment which incorporates up to 18 months of protected research time. Those interested in getting more information can access its web page at: http://anest.ufl.edu/research/the-gravenstein-scholars-program/.

Work Hours and Moonlighting

  • Our current work hours average 58 hours per week.
  • Call while assigned to the Main OR is one Saturday per month, leaving 3 out of 4 weekends free from work commitments. Weeknights are covered by a night-shift. Each resident completes two of these 2-week “mole shifts” per year.
  • Moonlighting opportunities exist where residents can work a 12 hour overnight shift doing OB anesthesia or a 6 hour Sunday day-time shift doing preoperative evaluations.