Kyle Chan, M.D., went to the University of California – Berkeley for undergrad and earned his medical degree here at the University of Florida. He’s currently a third-year resident in the Department of Anesthesiology.
Dr. Chan was kind enough to answer some of our questions about his experiences so far and give his advice for those preparing to interview for or begin residencies of their own.
Q: You attended medical school here at UF; why did you decide to stay here for residency?
A: I had the opportunity to do a preceptorship with the Department of Anesthesiology in my second year of medical school, which gave me an early introduction to both the people here and the specialty as a whole. I met several mentors during that experience and had the valuable opportunity to continue working with them in residency. After my core anesthesiology rotation early in my fourth year of medical school, I was convinced that the combination of challenging yet rewarding cases and an excellent support network at UF would push me to grow into a well-prepared anesthesiologist.
Q: What advice do you have for somebody getting ready to apply to or interview for UF’s residency program?
A: Please showcase your personality and some of the things that make you unique! Your body of work already speaks to your professional achievements and potential, but we want to meet the person behind the numbers. We work as a team—especially on rotations like mole (nights) and at the VA—and the daily workflow is a lot more enjoyable if you develop rapport with the people around you and trust that they have your back.
Q: What advice do you have for first-year residents?
A: Keep an open mind during your off-service rotations. Even if a lot of the work doesn’t seem directly related to what you’ll do with the rest of your career, there’s always a couple pearls from each rotation that end up helping you when you least expect it.
The residents from other departments that you work with in your first year will often be the same ones that are operating on the other side of the drapes from you one or two years later, or they might be the ones on the other end of the phone when you call for a consult during your ICU rotation. Developing a good relationship with these colleagues early on can help a lot down the line.
Q: What’s one highlight of your time in the residency program so far?
I recently had the opportunity to work with Dr. Frantz, the education office, and several of my co-residents to coordinate paired period, a transition period of approximately two months for the current CA-1 class to acclimate to working in the operating room. Having experienced that same transition period just a year prior, I enjoyed the unique opportunity to pay it forward, and I appreciated that both faculty and admin were receptive to resident input and feedback during the process.
Q: Are you doing any interesting work or research right now?
A: On the research side, I have been working on a national survey regarding airway management in trauma and non-trauma bays with Dr. Sappenfield, Dr. Brennan, and several other attendings, as well as another project with Dr. Frantz on providing training on obtaining informed consent to our residents during their intern year. I’ve also had the opportunity to help with recruitment at virtual open houses (if you see me at a future open house, please say hi!) and will be part of the Education Committee led by Dr. Hutchinson this year.
A: What are your post-residency goals?
I would like to find an opportunity where I can keep doing diverse, complex cases and continue learning how to use the latest technologies and equipment, while also having a chance to teach and mentor others. I have enjoyed doing all of these things at UF and would definitely be interested in working in academic medicine in the future.