Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
Chairman, Dr. Marcus, is approachable and a great advocate for the residents. Tremendous fellowship trained trauma surgeons at Metro (County Hospital), and at least one fellowship trained surgeon in each specialty at University Hospital (Academic Hospital). Trauma surgeons (the Wilburs, Sontich, Vallier, more) are great instructors and great surgeons. Spine surgeons (Furey, Ahn, Eubanks) are great.
Didactics / Teaching
Very good! Grand Rounds on Wednesdays consistently have distinguished visiting professors, as well as high-quality lectures from staff surgeons. Fracture conferences on Monday mornings led by senior residents and provide thorough instruction on all fracture/dislocation types. Numerous specialty conferences.
Operating Experience
Good, not great. Operative experience starts pretty early, with 2's frequently doing bread-and-butter cases, but it isn't too uncommon for seniors to bump a junior from a case. Many members of the staff are great instructors. Less autonomy than at other programs, but I think its enough and always dependent upon resident ability.<br />
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Aside from Trauma, Spine is a real strength here despite the recent death of Dr. Bohlman. Probably one of the best spine trainings among all residency programs. Furey and Ahn have been around for quite awhile and are excellent. Dr. Eubanks is a new addition and seems well-liked.
Clinic Experience
Very good. Less clinic time than at other programs, but they make the most of it. Residents run trauma clinics at Metro (the County Hospital), and have a fair amount of autonomy at
Research Opportunities
Extremely ample. Two of the 6 residents do a research year (between intern and PGY2), typically in some sort of basic science. Hamann-Todd skeleton collection at the Natural History museum is a tremendous resource for anatomical studies. Lots of basic science, clinical research, and translational studies.
Residents
Solid, standard set of guys and a few girls. Nothing different than anywhere else...they all get along and enjoy what they do.
Lifestyle
You work hard here, but its not awful...maybe one standard deviation above average. Trauma at Metro is tough, and has a traditional call schedule (Q3-4, I think), and you do a fair amount of Trauma. NF system at University Hospital, which is a Level 1 pediatrics hospital.
Location / Housing
Cleveland is not as horrible as many people imagine. Weather is cold, snowy, and windy for several months of the year, but fall/spring/summer are great. Lots of outdoor activities in cold-weather months (snow-shoeing, X-country, sledding, etc...). Housing is dirt cheap here and there are plenty of safe neighborhoods.
Limitations
Sports is a recognized weakness, which they are addressing with the addition of a simulation lab.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
This is a great residency program, with a strong reputation for a reason. Very well-rounded, with relative strengths in Trauma and Spine, and relative weakness in Sports
