- Programs
- Residency Programs
- Florida
- University of Florida (Gainesville)
University of Florida (Gainesville)
Hot
Updated
Contact Information
City
Gainesville
State/Province
Florida
Program Information
Residents per class
4
University of Florida (Gainesville) Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program
User reviews
6 reviews
Overall rating
9.2
Staff Surgeons
9.8(6)
Didactics/Teaching
8.3(6)
Operating Experience
9.7(6)
Clinical Experience
9.2(6)
Research
9.0(6)
Residents
9.8(6)
Lifestyle
9.7(6)
Location
8.2(6)
Overall Experience
9.3(6)
Already have an account? Log in now or Create an account
UF Orthopedic Surgery Residency Gainesville 2016 Update
Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
The University of Florida Department of Orthopaedics Residency has an established tradition of providing orthopaedic surgical residents with outstanding educational opportunities in a collegial environment. Since the last review, the Department continues to grow, and likewise, the resident experience adapts to better meet the needs of today’s trainees. We welcome the opportunity for you to get to know us.
Dr. Scarborough (Oncology) became Chair in 2011. He continues to be a strong advocate for the resident and is always interested in improving the resident experience. The surgical faculty involved in our training now stands at 26, with 10 new faculty joining the Department over the last 5 years. Their training and backgrounds are diverse, which broadens our exposure to operative technique from outside our institution. New faculty additions include Jennifer Hagen, fellowship trained at Shock Trauma, and Sarah Molinari, fellowship trained at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. The arthroplasty division has doubled in size in the last 2 years with the addition of three new attendings: Hernan Prieto, Chancellor Gray and Dane Iams.
Seasoned faculty still form the cornerstone of our institution. Parker Gibbs (Oncology) and Thomas Wright (Hand and Upper Extremity), have maintained a culture where the faculty understand their role as educators and mentors. Rotators who became residents often state that the familial interaction between attendings and residents is one of the key reasons they wanted to be a part of our institution. This culture extends into all learning environments. In the clinic, attendings take the time to deliver educational pearls from patient encounters. In the operating room, they are committed to develop your surgical acumen and technical skill.
Dr. Scarborough (Oncology) became Chair in 2011. He continues to be a strong advocate for the resident and is always interested in improving the resident experience. The surgical faculty involved in our training now stands at 26, with 10 new faculty joining the Department over the last 5 years. Their training and backgrounds are diverse, which broadens our exposure to operative technique from outside our institution. New faculty additions include Jennifer Hagen, fellowship trained at Shock Trauma, and Sarah Molinari, fellowship trained at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. The arthroplasty division has doubled in size in the last 2 years with the addition of three new attendings: Hernan Prieto, Chancellor Gray and Dane Iams.
Seasoned faculty still form the cornerstone of our institution. Parker Gibbs (Oncology) and Thomas Wright (Hand and Upper Extremity), have maintained a culture where the faculty understand their role as educators and mentors. Rotators who became residents often state that the familial interaction between attendings and residents is one of the key reasons they wanted to be a part of our institution. This culture extends into all learning environments. In the clinic, attendings take the time to deliver educational pearls from patient encounters. In the operating room, they are committed to develop your surgical acumen and technical skill.
Didactics / Teaching
The academic experience outside the clinical arena starts with morning conference, held daily at 7AM. This is protected time for resident education, The curriculum is modeled off a core curriculum with rotating sub-specialty topics on each day of the week. Conferences are a mix of didactic lectures and case-based discussions. Over 50% of the lectures are given by the faculty. All of the lectures are attended by faculty of the presenting sub-specialty. Anatomy and operative technique cadaver labs held in our surgical skills are also an essential component of the curriculum, and occur on a monthly basis. The surgical skills laboratory is a state of the art facility located within our clinic building. There are surgical instruments as well as arthroscopic models and tools. It is great having this facility. This laboratory also permits focused independent study by residents on their own time. Grand Rounds (visiting professor) also takes place monthly in the evenings. We hold a resident journal club every other month.
Operating Experience
The operative experience continues to be the strongest asset of our program. Residents are now exposed to all sub-specialties once by the end of the PGY-3 year, and again as senior residents. Time spent in the OR versus clinic is well-balanced, averaging 3-4 operative days and 1-2 clinic days per week. Each Division has both outpatient and inpatient physician extenders, who work closely with the resident teams to offload the administrative and clinical work. Each division also has sufficient surgical volume and case exposure. Aside from trauma, where resident to resident teaching is an integral component of the education and operative experience, residents or fellows are rarely double scrubbed on cases. For the majority of cases, residents are treated as primary surgeon with the attending, fellow or senior resident guiding you through the technical aspects of the case. The volume of cases is high yet not overwhelming. The diversity of cases is excellent ranging from general orthopedics to complex tertiary orthopedics. We get to see and scrub on not just the ordinary cases, but also complex specialized cases in most of the subspecialties.
The VA, which provides an excellent training ground, also comprises a junior rotation and a senior, transition to practice rotation. The VA experience is high volume with a good deal of autonomy under appropriate levels of supervision.
The Advanced Clinical Elective (ACE) rotation is a 12-week senior resident block, which allows the resident to craft an experience specific to their own interests. This is supported by Department funding. Residents have traveled to Australia and Taiwan to operate. Others have spent time with local community practices, who welcome our presence.
The VA, which provides an excellent training ground, also comprises a junior rotation and a senior, transition to practice rotation. The VA experience is high volume with a good deal of autonomy under appropriate levels of supervision.
The Advanced Clinical Elective (ACE) rotation is a 12-week senior resident block, which allows the resident to craft an experience specific to their own interests. This is supported by Department funding. Residents have traveled to Australia and Taiwan to operate. Others have spent time with local community practices, who welcome our presence.
Clinic Experience
On average, 1-2 days per week is spent in clinic. There is frequently a physician extender (PA or ARNP) who also assists in each clinic, which reduces the patient load, and allows more educational time with the attending. That said, the clinics are run very efficiently by the department permitting the evaluation and management hundreds of patients each day. The entire UF Health system operates within the EPIC EMR. Most clinics are held in our clinic facility, the Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Institute (OSMI). This building is excellent and is due for further expansion to be completed by about mid 2018.
Sports team coverage is available. The PGY-4 on Sports typically covers UF athletics, including Gator Football home games. Residents may also elect to cover high school football games for $300 in compensation for each game.
There are a few ACGME-approved moonlighting opportunities available:
OrthoCare After-Hours: A 4 hour evening and weekend urgent care clinic.
Joints and Trauma OR coverage: Elective ORs are run on Saturday for both arthroplasty and trauma cases. Residents may volunteer and are compensated to staff these weekend ORs.
Sports team coverage is available. The PGY-4 on Sports typically covers UF athletics, including Gator Football home games. Residents may also elect to cover high school football games for $300 in compensation for each game.
There are a few ACGME-approved moonlighting opportunities available:
OrthoCare After-Hours: A 4 hour evening and weekend urgent care clinic.
Joints and Trauma OR coverage: Elective ORs are run on Saturday for both arthroplasty and trauma cases. Residents may volunteer and are compensated to staff these weekend ORs.
Research Opportunities
Resident research is well supported by the department. Clinical research coordinators assist the residents throughout the process, from proposal to manuscript. The research focus of the department continues to improved. The department is one of the top research producers for an orthopedic department in the USA. Based on NIH funding the department has ranked from top 11-30 over the past decade. The department is currently seeking to grow the resident and fellow productivity with project development earlier in residency and more regular instructional conferences and workshops. Recent faculty hires with strong research interests have also provided more mentors for resident projects. A dedicated research rotation will likely be built into our schedule in the near future. Funding for research is plentiful. Financial support for travel is available for residents with accepted conference presentations. Residents have presented their projects on a local and international stage, as far as Hawaii and Japan.
Residents
Each resident class comprises 4 residents, with 20 total. The residents are a dedicated and driven group, who enjoy being in each other’s company even outside of work. More than half are married. Spouses find an instant support system and form strong friendships with each other. Despite a busy work schedule, we have also managed to grow our families, with several newborns delivered in the last year, and more on the way.
Resident morale events are arranged regularly and the department provides financial support for these activities. Past events have included tailgating, bar-b-ques, and kayaking trips. Families are encouraged to attend.
Most residents choose to pursue fellowship training. However, residents interested in a career in general orthopaedics will be well-prepared. Our residents have pursued sub-specialty training in all fields, and at institutions throughout the US. The graduating PGY-5 class will be training at Indiana Hand to Shoulder Center, Andrews Sports Medicine, and Emory University for adult reconstruction. Graduating residents have joined our faculty as well as faculty of other institutions. We have also developed a reputation as producing well-respected and successful private-practice surgeons.
Resident morale events are arranged regularly and the department provides financial support for these activities. Past events have included tailgating, bar-b-ques, and kayaking trips. Families are encouraged to attend.
Most residents choose to pursue fellowship training. However, residents interested in a career in general orthopaedics will be well-prepared. Our residents have pursued sub-specialty training in all fields, and at institutions throughout the US. The graduating PGY-5 class will be training at Indiana Hand to Shoulder Center, Andrews Sports Medicine, and Emory University for adult reconstruction. Graduating residents have joined our faculty as well as faculty of other institutions. We have also developed a reputation as producing well-respected and successful private-practice surgeons.
Lifestyle
Call responsibilities are more lifestyle friendly than most programs. With the trauma service on a night float schedule, call responsibilities are limited to the weekends as a junior resident. For this reason, abiding by duty hour restrictions have not been a problem for our program. Senior residents average 1:8 weekday call and 1:4 weekend call, which is divided into a Friday/Sunday block and a Saturday block. Senior call is home call. Our institution is a Level I trauma center, with the majority of patient being victims of blunt trauma. All of our coverage hospitals are located on the same campus.
Location / Housing
Historically, Gainesville has been regarded as a medium sized college town, but it is emerging into a growing city. An emerging young professional scene has developed for recent recruitment of tech and start-up companies. Gainesville is now the home of numerous tech and software companies. The university and hospital system has also shown tremendous growth in the last decade.
Despite this recent growth, Gainesville remains relaxed, quiet (except on game day) and very livable city. Housing options are plentiful and very affordable, whether you choose to rent or buy a home. Traffic is minimal, making commutes to and from work very manageable regardless of how far residents choose to live from the hospital.
Despite this recent growth, Gainesville remains relaxed, quiet (except on game day) and very livable city. Housing options are plentiful and very affordable, whether you choose to rent or buy a home. Traffic is minimal, making commutes to and from work very manageable regardless of how far residents choose to live from the hospital.
Limitations
In general, residents would agree that UF is a very well rounded program with great operative experience, excellent mentorship with a well-balanced lifestyle. Previous reviews have noted the following weaknesses of our program. While some still exist, the department is actively making an effort to address each of the concerns.
Foot/Ankle Experience: Currently (as of August 2016) only one faculty member within this division. Clinical (1.5 days/week) and operative (1-2 days/week) remains limited. However, the attending (Dr. Vander Griend) is one of the most dedicated in our department to resident education and makes considerable effort outside of these days to further our education. Dr. Reb will be joining our Department in September 2016 to further bolster the service.
Spine Experience: Our department continues to not take trauma call, which may or may not be a weakness depending on one’s clinical interest. Our spine experience is led by Dr. Decker, our program director. Dr. Molinari will be joining our department in September 2016 as the second adult spine surgeon. Our spine experience is currently supplemented by our Pediatrics rotation during which we see a considerable amount of pediatric spinal deformity due to Dr. Blakemore’s expertise.
Peds Experience: Is now a strength of the department. We currently have two pediatric orthopaedic faculty and the department is actively recruiting a 3rd. Both the junior and senior on service have 2-3 OR and 2-3 clinical days per week during which they work one-on-one with an attending.
Research: Has been a variable experience for residents. Some divisions are well staffed and organized with numerous ongoing projects and available databases to facilitate resident involvement in research. Faculty interest and mentorship of resident research is quite variable. Dedicated time for research is currently limited in the early years of residency. However, based on the recent research-focused initiatives by our leadership, we expect many of these issues to be addressed in the near future.
Foot/Ankle Experience: Currently (as of August 2016) only one faculty member within this division. Clinical (1.5 days/week) and operative (1-2 days/week) remains limited. However, the attending (Dr. Vander Griend) is one of the most dedicated in our department to resident education and makes considerable effort outside of these days to further our education. Dr. Reb will be joining our Department in September 2016 to further bolster the service.
Spine Experience: Our department continues to not take trauma call, which may or may not be a weakness depending on one’s clinical interest. Our spine experience is led by Dr. Decker, our program director. Dr. Molinari will be joining our department in September 2016 as the second adult spine surgeon. Our spine experience is currently supplemented by our Pediatrics rotation during which we see a considerable amount of pediatric spinal deformity due to Dr. Blakemore’s expertise.
Peds Experience: Is now a strength of the department. We currently have two pediatric orthopaedic faculty and the department is actively recruiting a 3rd. Both the junior and senior on service have 2-3 OR and 2-3 clinical days per week during which they work one-on-one with an attending.
Research: Has been a variable experience for residents. Some divisions are well staffed and organized with numerous ongoing projects and available databases to facilitate resident involvement in research. Faculty interest and mentorship of resident research is quite variable. Dedicated time for research is currently limited in the early years of residency. However, based on the recent research-focused initiatives by our leadership, we expect many of these issues to be addressed in the near future.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
Given the opportunity again, I would rank this program first without hesitation. I’ve formed lifelong relationships with faculty mentors and future colleagues. I’ve received an outstanding surgical education. I’ve developed into an orthopaedic leader. And most importantly, through the example set by those around me, I’ve learned to keep the patient central to everything we do.
Qualification
I am a current resident of this program.
Date of Rotation
2012-2017
CM
Christopher Matthews
Top 100 Reviewer
UF Health Gainesville Orthopaedic Residency
(Updated: November 30, 2013)
Overall rating
9.2
Staff Surgeons
10.0
Didactics/Teaching
9.0
Operating Experience
10.0
Clinical Experience
9.0
Research
9.0
Residents
10.0
Lifestyle
9.0
Location
8.0
Overall Experience
9.0
Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
Since the last update Dr. Scarborough has continued to add faculty.
Dr. Parvataneni has become a very busy joint surgeon who is a tremendous asset to the program. He has taken a very active role in our adult reconstruction educational curriculum.
Dr. McFadden has joined the trauma team giving us a total of 3 surgeons on the trauma service. This allows us to have 1-4 trauma rooms running every day during the week.
Dr Spiguel has joined as faculty and divides his surgical time between oncology and trauma.
Dr Blakemore has been hired to pediatric orthopaedic faculty, and will be starting January 2014. The department is also in the process of hiring at least one more pediatric orthopaedist within the next year. In the interim, the junior residents will continue to work with Dr.’s Frick and Stanton from Nemours Children’s Hospital.
Dr King (Shoulder and Elbow) has also joined faculty and divides his time between the VA and UF. At UF, he has a relatively general orthopaedic practice in which he does pediatric and adult trauma, knee and shoulder arthroscopy, and shoulder trauma and arthroplasty. At the VA, his practice will be focused on sports, shoulder (including arthroplasty), and elbow surgery.
Dr. Parvataneni has become a very busy joint surgeon who is a tremendous asset to the program. He has taken a very active role in our adult reconstruction educational curriculum.
Dr. McFadden has joined the trauma team giving us a total of 3 surgeons on the trauma service. This allows us to have 1-4 trauma rooms running every day during the week.
Dr Spiguel has joined as faculty and divides his surgical time between oncology and trauma.
Dr Blakemore has been hired to pediatric orthopaedic faculty, and will be starting January 2014. The department is also in the process of hiring at least one more pediatric orthopaedist within the next year. In the interim, the junior residents will continue to work with Dr.’s Frick and Stanton from Nemours Children’s Hospital.
Dr King (Shoulder and Elbow) has also joined faculty and divides his time between the VA and UF. At UF, he has a relatively general orthopaedic practice in which he does pediatric and adult trauma, knee and shoulder arthroscopy, and shoulder trauma and arthroplasty. At the VA, his practice will be focused on sports, shoulder (including arthroplasty), and elbow surgery.
Didactics / Teaching
We continue to have conference every morning from 6:45- 7:50. Conference starts with a review of the overnight trauma and then proceeds to a resident or attending led lecture/discussion. We are attempting to move away from teleconferencing and have recently been given a new lecture hall that can accommodate the entire department. We still receive an iPAD which is very helpful for journal clubs and reading for cases. The majority of conferences now have at least one attending from the specialty giving conference present to assist in discussion.
Outside of the month of November, we have ensured to have a monthly journal club dedicated to one subspecialty. In addition, the shoulder and elbow faculty hold bimonthly meetings on Monday afternoons where they review landmark articles. Within the last year, the adult reconstruction faculty has also started an arthroplasty journal club that is held every other month. Their journal club is composed of reviewing recent and landmark articles as well as the presentation of specific cases from each attending relevant to the topics.
Outside of the month of November, we have ensured to have a monthly journal club dedicated to one subspecialty. In addition, the shoulder and elbow faculty hold bimonthly meetings on Monday afternoons where they review landmark articles. Within the last year, the adult reconstruction faculty has also started an arthroplasty journal club that is held every other month. Their journal club is composed of reviewing recent and landmark articles as well as the presentation of specific cases from each attending relevant to the topics.
Operating Experience
Without question, this is the strongest part of our program. Our rotations remain the same as from the previous posts. From the beginning of the residency we are encouraged to participate in the operating room. Interns are expected to be present for cases and assist. Beginning second year you begin to act as the primary surgeon on cases. On trauma, you are expected to take the lead role on most nails and ankle fractures with a chief resident or fellow assisting you. On our VA service as a second year you split the case load with the chief and are expected to be able to get through a simple TKA by the end of your rotation. You also continue to do trauma and some scopes.
The operative experience continues to grow throughout residency and by the time you are a chief on trauma as a PGY-4 you are frequently doing complex periarticular cases as the primary surgeon. During your chief rotation at the VA, you are expected to be able to perform complex revision arthroplasty cases.
We do have Trauma, Oncology, Hand, and Shoulder/Elbow fellows. Fortunately, these fellows historically have been knowledgeable, advanced technically, excellent instructors, and great to work with. They have served to only enhance the residents experience. I have found that the fellows will often actively take the role of attending in the OR and clinic, serving as an instructor, rather than interfering with our education. I have never had a fellow take a case from me that I was very interested in.
The operative experience continues to grow throughout residency and by the time you are a chief on trauma as a PGY-4 you are frequently doing complex periarticular cases as the primary surgeon. During your chief rotation at the VA, you are expected to be able to perform complex revision arthroplasty cases.
We do have Trauma, Oncology, Hand, and Shoulder/Elbow fellows. Fortunately, these fellows historically have been knowledgeable, advanced technically, excellent instructors, and great to work with. They have served to only enhance the residents experience. I have found that the fellows will often actively take the role of attending in the OR and clinic, serving as an instructor, rather than interfering with our education. I have never had a fellow take a case from me that I was very interested in.
Clinic Experience
This experience is relatively unchanged from previous posts. We have become more accustomed to EPIC, but continue to find it less efficient than dictating notes. On most services you spend 1-2 days in clinic. Most services have PA’s or ARNP’s that assist in clinic and with answering patient phone calls. We continue to be able to cover games for UF athletics including running out of the tunnel with the team and being on the sidelines for football games.
Two years ago, our department started an Orthopaedic After-Hours clinic that is voluntarily staffed by PGY-3’s and older who are in good standing with the Clinical Competence Committee. This clinic is an ACGME-approved moonlighting experience in which residents receive $300 per week night and $400 for Friday night and Saturday afternoon clinics. The clinics are usually about 4 hours long.
Two years ago, our department started an Orthopaedic After-Hours clinic that is voluntarily staffed by PGY-3’s and older who are in good standing with the Clinical Competence Committee. This clinic is an ACGME-approved moonlighting experience in which residents receive $300 per week night and $400 for Friday night and Saturday afternoon clinics. The clinics are usually about 4 hours long.
Research Opportunities
There are many research opportunities available. The challenge is getting involved in the midst of one’s busy schedule of clinical activities, but most residents manage to do this. Each division with an associated fellowship has enough research activity for residents to get involved, and among the other divisions there is a wealth of clinical material and guidance to get a project started. The electronic medical record system has made data gathering for projects more straight forward as well. There has been a push for residents to get involved at an earlier stage, and there have been efforts to try and involve junior residents with active projects at an earlier stage. The department’s research division has research staff assigned to each division and this helps with the paperwork associated with IRBs and the like.
Residents
Each resident class comprises four residents, making up a total of 20 residents in the current batch of residents; a great group of people from diverse backgrounds and different parts of the country/world. The daily conferences and the fact that most of the residents are in one location translates to frequent interactions that encourage camaraderie. All the residents help each other when help is needed such as call exchanges are needed. This includes exchanging calls, covering OR and clinic days, or assisting with life outside of work. During the summer, fall, and winter, we all attempt to get together at least bi-weekly as a group to get to know the rotating medical students. We also tend to get together around the holidays. The residents who are on-call over Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years will usually get together. Residents with swimming pools will have cook-outs during the spring and summer. Saturday’s in the fall are frequently occupied by tailgating and watching college and professional football games together.
Lifestyle
Call: The night float system is used for night time in-house ER/Floor coverage from Sunday through Thursday night. It has been in place for 7+ years within the residency program and works very well. Two PGY 2s rotate on the trauma service together, and alternate amongst themselves to cover day time duties and night float. It works out to a total of 3 months of night float in their PGY 2 year. While this can occasionally be rather busy, these 2 trauma residents do not take weekend call while on the trauma service. It provides good continuity of care for the often challenging (medically and socially) trauma patients, permits duty hour compliance, and also frees up the other PGY 2s and the PGY3s to concentrate on the rotations that they are on during the week. The night float system is seen as “taking one for the team”, and is uniformly seen as a good solution where one’s good will is paid back by the succeeding class of residents. Chief resident call is home call. Considering that attending surgeon presence is mandatory in the OR for operative cases, the chief residents are called in to the hospital for appropriate indications.
ACE rotation: One of the strengths of the chief year is still a fixture in the rotation schedule for the PGY5 class. This time has been used by residents to rotate at other centers outside of the UF hospital system (up to four weeks) and otherwise to allow the residents to participate in activities of their choosing. Often there are surgical cases that welcome the participation of a senior resident and this most often where the PGY5 residents will end up.
Moonlighting opportunities: As mentioned in the previous post, there are 3 opportunities available to residents; OrthoCare clinic, VA Compensation and Pension clinic, and covering High School Football games. Some of the fee schedules have been adjusted since.
Healthcare: The implementation of the PPACA likely played a large role in the new health insurance plan (GatorCare Self insurance plan for UF and the UF College of Medicine). The new plan is still reasonable (there are now co-pays and deductibles which have to be met) but is not as good as the previous “Cadillac” plan the residents were given. Eye and dental plans are not a part of the insurance plan.
ACE rotation: One of the strengths of the chief year is still a fixture in the rotation schedule for the PGY5 class. This time has been used by residents to rotate at other centers outside of the UF hospital system (up to four weeks) and otherwise to allow the residents to participate in activities of their choosing. Often there are surgical cases that welcome the participation of a senior resident and this most often where the PGY5 residents will end up.
Moonlighting opportunities: As mentioned in the previous post, there are 3 opportunities available to residents; OrthoCare clinic, VA Compensation and Pension clinic, and covering High School Football games. Some of the fee schedules have been adjusted since.
Healthcare: The implementation of the PPACA likely played a large role in the new health insurance plan (GatorCare Self insurance plan for UF and the UF College of Medicine). The new plan is still reasonable (there are now co-pays and deductibles which have to be met) but is not as good as the previous “Cadillac” plan the residents were given. Eye and dental plans are not a part of the insurance plan.
Location / Housing
Gainesville is a college town with a very reasonable cost of living.
A regional airport is within a 15 minute drive from the ‘downtown’ Gainesville, and within 30 minutes of most other major parts of town. Delta, US Air, United, American Airlines all have regional carriers that fly out of Gainesville. 3 other major airports with much better connectivity are within a 2 hour drive (Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa). Natural sights are close by, and beaches are under 2 hours away (east and west).
Some residents own their houses, while others rent; either way housing is affordable. Traffic is not much of a problem most of the time. Around the late afternoon, traffic can be slightly backed up on a couple of the main arteries running away from the hospital, but this is only noticeable as one compares this to the light traffic everywhere else.
Gainesville is the size of a larger college town. This area is known for the accessibility to outdoor activities. The city is very biker and runner friendly. There are a number of trails that are excellent for exploration with beautiful views. There are several running and biking events held every year that attract a decent number of people. In addition, there are a number of natural springs with crystal clear water that provide opportunities to either cool-off in the summer or cave-dive. The area also has a number of areas with excellent fishing opportunities including streams, rivers, lakes, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic Ocean. Another popular activity in the summer is to go scalloping in the Gulf of Mexico off of Steinhatchee.
The area also has several golf courses, and as a resident, you can golf at the Mark Bostick Golf Course at the University of Florida. Some UF faculty and residents also enjoy hunting and using the skeet and target ranges around Gainesville. For those who have an interest in horses, Ocala (40 minutes south of Gainesville) is considered one of the horse breeding capitals of the country.
Obviously, University of Florida dominates the sporting events in Gainesville. It is very to survive without being a Gator fan, as we have recently had residents from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Louisville, Clemson, South Carolina, Colorado, Louisiana State University, Miami, and Baylor. Many of the faculty have season tickets, and at times are willing to give them away to the residents. All-in-all, obtaining tickets to the games is not difficult. For professional sports, the closest teams are the: Jacksonville Jaguars (about 1 ½ hours away), Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Lightning, and Rays (about 2 hours and change), and the Orlando Magic (about 2 hours and change).
A regional airport is within a 15 minute drive from the ‘downtown’ Gainesville, and within 30 minutes of most other major parts of town. Delta, US Air, United, American Airlines all have regional carriers that fly out of Gainesville. 3 other major airports with much better connectivity are within a 2 hour drive (Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa). Natural sights are close by, and beaches are under 2 hours away (east and west).
Some residents own their houses, while others rent; either way housing is affordable. Traffic is not much of a problem most of the time. Around the late afternoon, traffic can be slightly backed up on a couple of the main arteries running away from the hospital, but this is only noticeable as one compares this to the light traffic everywhere else.
Gainesville is the size of a larger college town. This area is known for the accessibility to outdoor activities. The city is very biker and runner friendly. There are a number of trails that are excellent for exploration with beautiful views. There are several running and biking events held every year that attract a decent number of people. In addition, there are a number of natural springs with crystal clear water that provide opportunities to either cool-off in the summer or cave-dive. The area also has a number of areas with excellent fishing opportunities including streams, rivers, lakes, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic Ocean. Another popular activity in the summer is to go scalloping in the Gulf of Mexico off of Steinhatchee.
The area also has several golf courses, and as a resident, you can golf at the Mark Bostick Golf Course at the University of Florida. Some UF faculty and residents also enjoy hunting and using the skeet and target ranges around Gainesville. For those who have an interest in horses, Ocala (40 minutes south of Gainesville) is considered one of the horse breeding capitals of the country.
Obviously, University of Florida dominates the sporting events in Gainesville. It is very to survive without being a Gator fan, as we have recently had residents from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Louisville, Clemson, South Carolina, Colorado, Louisiana State University, Miami, and Baylor. Many of the faculty have season tickets, and at times are willing to give them away to the residents. All-in-all, obtaining tickets to the games is not difficult. For professional sports, the closest teams are the: Jacksonville Jaguars (about 1 ½ hours away), Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Lightning, and Rays (about 2 hours and change), and the Orlando Magic (about 2 hours and change).
Limitations
Foot/Ankle experience – 1-2 OR and 1.5 clinic day per week when on the dedicated Foot and Ankle Service.
Spine experience – Currently, there is only one operative spine faculty member. We have no spine trauma call
Peds experience – Currently involves PGY2 residents rotating in Orlando 4 days per week for a total of 13 weeks in their 2nd year. This will probably change after Dr. Blakemore becomes more established and the second pediatric faculty member is hired.
Research – Getting projects off the ground can be difficult; a combination of IRB roadblocks and the difficulty inherent to coordinating meetings with various staff members in the midst of a busy schedule. That said, with recent emphasis from faculty, junior residents are getting involved at an earlier stage and are further on in research that recently graduating residents were at a comparable PGY level.
Spine experience – Currently, there is only one operative spine faculty member. We have no spine trauma call
Peds experience – Currently involves PGY2 residents rotating in Orlando 4 days per week for a total of 13 weeks in their 2nd year. This will probably change after Dr. Blakemore becomes more established and the second pediatric faculty member is hired.
Research – Getting projects off the ground can be difficult; a combination of IRB roadblocks and the difficulty inherent to coordinating meetings with various staff members in the midst of a busy schedule. That said, with recent emphasis from faculty, junior residents are getting involved at an earlier stage and are further on in research that recently graduating residents were at a comparable PGY level.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
At the University of Florida, we have a relatively laid-back program. The attending physicians are all very approachable. Although we treat them with the utmost respect, the traditional hierarchy seen at other programs is not present. Previous residents have worked hard to earn the reputation of being one of the hardest working and most reliable groups in the hospital. The general surgery services have traditionally enjoyed having our interns on their services because of our work ethic, diligence, and commitment to patient care. A co-resident exemplifying anything less than this is considered to be unacceptable.
This program has followed the trend of most other programs in the country in that a majority of the graduates will perform a fellowship after graduation. The following is a breakdown of post-residency plans: 1 private practice general orthopaedist, 3 hand fellowships, 3 spine fellowships, 5 sports fellowships, 3 trauma fellowships, 1 oncology fellowship, and 2 adult reconstruction fellowships. All of the graduates note that the only reason they went on to do fellowships was to obtain advanced training to improve marketability.
The graduates of this program have a reputation for working in the community as very successful and well-respected private-practice surgeons. Former residents practice not only in all parts of Florida but also throughout the United States.
This program has followed the trend of most other programs in the country in that a majority of the graduates will perform a fellowship after graduation. The following is a breakdown of post-residency plans: 1 private practice general orthopaedist, 3 hand fellowships, 3 spine fellowships, 5 sports fellowships, 3 trauma fellowships, 1 oncology fellowship, and 2 adult reconstruction fellowships. All of the graduates note that the only reason they went on to do fellowships was to obtain advanced training to improve marketability.
The graduates of this program have a reputation for working in the community as very successful and well-respected private-practice surgeons. Former residents practice not only in all parts of Florida but also throughout the United States.
Qualification
I am a current resident of this program.
Date of Rotation
2009-2014
CM
Chung Ming Chan
Top 500 Reviewer
Final update
(Updated: January 01, 2012)
Overall rating
9.3
Staff Surgeons
10.0
Didactics/Teaching
8.0
Operating Experience
10.0
Clinical Experience
9.0
Research
9.0
Residents
10.0
Lifestyle
10.0
Location
9.0
Overall Experience
9.0
Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
As noted previously, Dr. Gearen has stepped down from the chair position. Dr. Scarborough has been formally made the chair after a national search and interview process. He has certainly hit the ground running, with a continued increase in focus on producing higher quality research while not neglecting the clinical education. He has also been heavily involved in quality initiatives that are being rolled out within the hospital system. We have two new faculty, Dr. Parvataneni, who joins us from prior positions in Boston and Miami. He was fellowship trained in joints at MGH in Boston and received teacher of the year honors while at the University of Miami. Dr. Matthias returns to us after several years in private practice in the Little Rock area. He completed his hand fellowship at the University of Florida prior to entering private practice. Pediatrics is currently being fulfilled by the Arnold Palmer pediatric group in Orlando. They drive up for one day of clinic and one day of OR each week. The attending rotates on a weekly basis. This is a temporary solution as we are actively searching for permanent faculty. There is tremendous room for continued growth in several areas and we are also looking to add to our current faculty in several subspecialties.
Didactics / Teaching
To correct the poster below, didactics are 7-7:50 and are teleconferenced for convenience. All residents now receive iPads (FREE!) upon entering the program and can connect via iPad or from either the hospital or clinic. Microphones are set up in each location to allow for interaction. We are continuing to get improved interaction from faculty, and now have a faculty member present for most lectures. Lectures are shifting to more attending provided lectures, but many are still given by residents. This is neither good, nor bad, as both resident and faculty lectures have benefits.
Operating Experience
Essentially unchanged. We still operate early and often. The 5th year operative experience could be improved, which is still being discussed. That being said, our operative numbers are in the top 25% in the country. You will see a wide variety of pathology and will feel comfortable going directly into practice without a fellowship, if you so choose. The new trauma fellowship is now 1 1/2 years old and has not changed the operative experience of the residents (may have even improved it).
Clinic Experience
No change. Good clinical space. Great nurses that are helpful. We have switched to Epic for inpatient and outpatient. This caused a lot of growing pains and has changed the clinical staff's responsibilities. I expect that this will revert back to nurses preordering xrays and being more helpful, in general, during clinic to speed up the process of seeing a patient. As of right now, we still are somewhat less efficient in clinic than we were when I started. If you are interested, during the sports rotation, you will have the opportunity to interact with the various sports teams and athletes. You will attend athlete clinics and be on the sidelines and locker room for football games. There are other opportunities throughout the year if you are interested.
Research Opportunities
In addition to the standard 1 publishable research project, all residents will do a yearly quality project. These do not need to be overly complex, but is in line with the hospital's push to focus on quality.
Residents
In general, work hard, enjoy hanging out after work together, and pretty laid back. We continue to get essentially the same type of residents year in and year out. The applicant pool is becoming increasingly stronger, pushing our average step scores ever higher. The faculty have made it well known that they are looking nationally for applicants, not just applicants from the southeast, so apply. In my time here, the bar has certainly continued to be raised with regards to quality of people we interview and ultimately accept.
Lifestyle
More flexible time than any other program I interviewed at. There is an ACE rotation your 5th year where you can leave the program (or country) to rotate elsewhere for up to 4 weeks. Many services will have days without a specific clinic or OR to cover, allowing you to see cases on another service and supplement the standard rotations. Healthcare is 100% covered without any cost to you (except in rare situations) as long as you stay in the Shands system. You don't even pay a premium every month in your paycheck. This includes your spouse and children. We receive $8 per night of call including every night you are on night float. The 2nd years frequently have more money than they can use in a year. The upper levels will spend more money than they are given in a year. We do have three "moonlighting" opportunities. The first is our new OrthoCare, which is a minor care after hours orthopedic clinic. The pay is $300 for a 4 hour clinic. Clinics are held 6 days per week (5-9 PM M-F and 9-1 Saturday). The other opportunity that a few people take advantage of is the VA compensation and pension clinic. This pays per veteran seen, so the pay varies based on size of clinic and number of veterans that come to clinic. Finally, you can earn $100 per high school football game covered. Each resident that wants to participate is assigned a high school to cover in conjunction with an athletic trainer. Most teams will have 5-6 home games in one year, most of which are on Friday nights.
Location / Housing
College town of about 100,000. 3 major airports within 2 hour drive of Gainesville and a regional airport in Gainesville (20-30 minute drive depending on where you live). Delta and US Air fly out of Gainesville, with several convenient flights throughout the day on each airline. The beaches are accessible, as is Disney if you have kids. Parking has improved. We now park in a garage for $150 or so for the entire year. It is a 3-5 minute walk to the conference room in the hospital (which is essentially in the operating room).
Limitations
1) Operative experience in 5th year - could be improved. Not bad, just not as good as the early operative experience.
2) Foot/Ankle experience - 1 OR and 1 clinic day per week
3) Peds experience - 1 OR and 1 clinic day per week most weeks, and faculty are adjunct
4) Research - lots of it going on, mostly basic science (top 10 orthopedic NIH program). Many clinical faculty simply not interested in research, making the projects less interesting and more difficult to get started. Typical university IRB roadblocks. You may end up doing research in a field that you are not going into in order to complete your project.
2) Foot/Ankle experience - 1 OR and 1 clinic day per week
3) Peds experience - 1 OR and 1 clinic day per week most weeks, and faculty are adjunct
4) Research - lots of it going on, mostly basic science (top 10 orthopedic NIH program). Many clinical faculty simply not interested in research, making the projects less interesting and more difficult to get started. Typical university IRB roadblocks. You may end up doing research in a field that you are not going into in order to complete your project.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
I encourage you to compare this program to all of the big name programs across the country with regards to breadth of operative and clinical exposure. I will leave the program fully comfortable with performing nearly any surgery you will see in private practice. I will need to improve my scoping ability, which I think is true of nearly all training programs. I feel comfortable going into every surgery with a plan A, B, and C in case things are different than I expect, if I don't have a particular instrument available, etc... I think that is the ultimate measure of a program. Our attendings are easy to work with and available almost any time of day for questions. I leave without any regrets of coming to this program.
There are lots of great programs out there, and you will become a good orthopedic surgeon no matter where you end up (the ACGME does everything they can to ensure this). Find a place you want to work (both personnel and location), and you will be happy. This will be my final update as I am finishing this year. Good luck to all!
There are lots of great programs out there, and you will become a good orthopedic surgeon no matter where you end up (the ACGME does everything they can to ensure this). Find a place you want to work (both personnel and location), and you will be happy. This will be my final update as I am finishing this year. Good luck to all!
Qualification
I am a current resident of this program.
Date of Rotation
7/2007-7/2012
AB
Adam Bruggeman
UF-Gainesville
(Updated: January 30, 2013)
Overall rating
8.7
Staff Surgeons
10.0
Didactics/Teaching
7.0
Operating Experience
8.0
Clinical Experience
9.0
Research
9.0
Residents
9.0
Lifestyle
9.0
Location
7.0
Overall Experience
10.0
Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
One of the highlights of the program...the faculty are an excellent mix of older surgeons who have been perfecting their trade for many years and younger guys who bring a sense of excitement to the program. The program is stable and has been for quite some time. Dr. Gearen, the former chairman stepped down this summer and Dr. Scarborough has taken over as interim chair. Personally, I hope he this will be permanent, as he is a great person and really cares about the program (he has been the PD for years).
Didactics / Teaching
If I had to pick a weakness it would be didactics. However, for me personally (and most others I've talked to), it is not a real weakness because I learn best on my own. Conference is daily (6:30-7:30). It is resident-led and most of the residents take it seriously and do a good job. When I rotated, they were reviewing for OITE and an attending was present to answer questions. Bottom line: these guys do well on OITE and boards, so why would you want to spend any more than an hour in a dark classroom at 6:30 in the morning?
Operating Experience
One of the most pleasant surprises about the program. I was shocked at how much these guys operate. Most of all, I am amazed at what a well-balanced operative experience they get. Shands has just become a Level 1 Trauma Center so trauma exposure has greatly increased. Residents spend a month on trauma as a 1, six total months as a 2, and 3 months as a 5. They are busy the whole time and see every type of trauma imaginable (and some you can't imagine). Three of the remaining six months of their PGY-2 year is spent at the VA where they do tons of joints. I stayed with a 2 while I rotated and he came in daily talking about getting to do total knees with only minimal assistance from the attending. In addition - it's UF...their sports experience is second to none. Most of the chiefs seemed competent with shoulder and knee scopes and doing bread and butter sports (like ACLs). Again, I don't think you can find a better overall operative experience anywhere in the country.
Clinic Experience
As good as a clinic experience could be. All of the clinics are housed at the Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Institute (the brand new, unbelievably nice building a few minutes from the hospital). On most services clinic is 1-2 days a week and how busy you are mirrors how busy you are in the OR for that service (i.e. trauma clinic may last until 9pm while sports clinic often finishes at noon).
Research Opportunities
Again, it's UF...lots of money if research is your thing. They have an entire department in place to assist those who wish to research. The only requirement is for one project which is presented during the 5th year. However, the resources are their and a whole team of people is standing by to help if you want to be more involved.
Residents
Overall one of the greatest group of residents I have come across. These guys are intelligent, they come from all over, and they all love being at UF. They work hard but love what they do and do it with a good attitude. Often, they will help each other out if someone has a conflict with call or another responsibility. These guys hang out with each other and some get closer than others but they all seem to have a lot of respect for one another. That being said, one thing I really liked about them is the lack of a fraternity feel. At some programs you get the impression within about 2 minutes that you would not fit in their "club". At UF, the residents come from all backgrounds and interests which was a huge plus.
Lifestyle
Probably the best I've ever seen anywhere. I was always skeptical of night-float...until I rotated at UF. Night float occurs during the second year. There are two PGY-2s on trauma and one takes call from 7am-7pm while the other takes call from 7pm-7am...this occurs Sunday night through Friday. The residents trade off every two weeks. While on trauma these two residents have no weekend call. The other two PGY-2s who are not on trauma have no call during the week but take some weekend call. PGY-3s only take call on weekends (about 15 weekends throughout the year) but it is primary call. PGY-4 and 5s take back-up call from home which ends up being about Q8. One other note about lifestyle: 100% of health care is covered by Shands for both you and your family. You don't even pay a copay.
Location / Housing
Gainesville is everything you'd expect from a college town. Cheap, safe housing with reliable, albeit slow, public transportation. Gainesville is far from a big city which can be good or bad. There is really no airport to speak of. However, Orlando is only two hours away and Tampa isn't much further. The town comes alive in the fall due to college football. Paradoxically, the slackest time of year on trauma is summer (all the UF kids leave)...it picks up during the fall and winter. Housing close to the hospital is very expensive and utilities are pretty high.
Limitations
PARKING!!! Shands is on the UF campus and parking is already limited. It's truly a nightmare. You have to pay to park and its not like it buys you a place close by. Most of the parking is in garages which are a 5-10 minutes walk from the hospital. Another limitation is the lack of any kind of meal allowance. Call is in-house as PGY-1,2,3 and all the residents expressed how nice it would be if they were given some type of allowance.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
Greatest program I have experienced. Attendings, operative experience, lifestyle, resources, facilities, etc were all second to none. This will certainly be my number 1 choice!
Qualification
I rotated as a medical student at this program
Date of Rotation
Oct 2010
AL
Adam Land
Top 10 Reviewer
An Update
(Updated: October 23, 2007)
Overall rating
9.3
Staff Surgeons
10.0
Didactics/Teaching
8.0
Operating Experience
10.0
Clinical Experience
9.0
Research
9.0
Residents
10.0
Lifestyle
10.0
Location
9.0
Overall Experience
9.0
Program Review
Staff / Faculty / Chairman
This is an update to my review 1 year ago. Dr. Sahajpal has significantly increased his caseload in the shoulder/elbow department. We have also added Dr. Decker, a recent graduate of Emory's residency program as well as the well-known spine fellowship at University of California San Diego. The department is still actively seeking surgeons in other areas.
Didactics / Teaching
The morning conference schedule has remained the same with the exception of the format. We have now moved to defined topics on an attempted 2-year schedule to ensure that all major topics are covered. There has been a significant positive increase in faculty involvement over the last year in morning didactics as well. We have also been fortunate to have several visiting professors over the last year, many of whom are well-known leaders in their individual fields of orthopedics.
Operating Experience
This is essentially unchanged from before. We have added a shoulder/elbow fellow and will be adding a trauma fellow next year. The fellows have remained as a compliment to the residents, maintaining the high caseload each resident sees during their 5 years. The foot ankle rotation has solidified and is now a dedicated rotation. Also, joints has moved from being a chief-only rotation to a chief and junior rotation. Residents will now see 6 months of dedicated joints plus another 6 months on the VA rotation, which is primarily total joint replacement. A junior-level sports rotation has also been worked in to provide additional experience with arthroscopy. The new hospital tower will be opening in late fall of this year. Most orthopedic services, with the exception of pediatrics and spine, will be relocated to the new facilities.
Clinic Experience
The clinic experience is unchanged over the last year.
Research Opportunities
Research is still widely available. The research requirements for the program have now changed with only a requirement for one research project during the entire residency. This does not need to be published to satisfy the criteria. With access to a full cadaver lab, arthroscopy lab, biomechanical lab, and the many ideas of our faculty, there is no shortage of research available. The department also employs staff who will help you complete IRB approval, edit documents, and create a publishable paper.
Residents
We are still taking 4 residents per year and will be at the full 20 residents in the program in one year. The residency program still has a very collegial atmosphere. There are many instances of residents picking up each other's call for family emergencies or unexpected changes in schedule. In the last year, we have had a program fishing trip and golf outing in addition to yearly get-togethers (Christmas party, beginning of the year party, etc...).
Lifestyle
Night float continues to be a big positive for the program. No one is on primary call for their service at night, and call is approximately one 24-hour weekend call per month for juniors and one overnight in-home call every 1 1/2 weeks for chiefs. Chiefs continue to only get called into the hospital less than 1/2 the time on call.
Location / Housing
With the recent change in economy, housing has dropped in price significantly, making cost of living even more affordable. Beaches are still nearby, and drives into work are short compared to many big cities.
Limitations
The program director has been very receptive to the needs of the program, as you can see above. In one year, we have addressed many of the shortcomings noted in the previous review. While this program, like all, has areas that can be improved, it is obvious that the administration behind the University of Florida program is committed to addressing those deficiencies quickly.
Overall Rotation Experience / Conclusion
The program continues to improve on an already excellent foundation for learning. Residents will feel fully qualified to be general orthopedists, should they choose. If you are interested in a fellowship, we continue to place our residents in top fellowships across the country. This is an outstanding program that should be considered near the top of your list.
Qualification
I am a current resident of this program.
Date of Rotation
7/2007-6/2012
AB
Adam Bruggeman
{{#ratings}}
{{title}}
{{#ownerCreatedBlock}}
{{/ownerCreatedBlock}}
{{#category}}
{{#editor}}
{{/editor}}
{{#user}}
{{/user}}
{{/ratings}}
-
{{#owner}}
-
{{#url}}
{{#avatarSrc}}
{{name}} {{/url}} {{^url}} {{#avatar}} {{& avatar}} {{/avatar}} {{name}} {{/url}} - {{/owner}} {{#created}}
- {{created}} {{/created}}
Category: {{category.title}}
{{/category}}
{{#fields}}
{{#showLabel}}
{{/fields}}
{{label}}:
{{/showLabel}}
{{& text}}
