What does your program offer that residents can’t get anywhere else?

Resurrection Medical Center is situated on the northwest side of Chicago, about 6.5 miles east of O’Hare International Airport, one of the busiest airports in the world. We are the catchment hospital for O’Hare, so anyone who is ill from the airport comes to our emergency department. As such, we see many conditions among patient populations that are rare or unheard of in the Midwest, including malaria, African sleeping sickness, drug mules, and SARS, among others. We are also uniquely located in the Chicagoland area, where a large percentage of our patient population is elderly Eastern European immigrants.

Our medical residents diagnose and treat some of the sickest patients in Chicago, admitting roughly 30 percent of their patients to the hospital and 15 percent to the intensive care unit.

Further, our residents are unopposed and perform all their own procedures, including central lines, orthopedic reductions, intubations, chest tubes, and paracenteses. We admit our patients to primary care physicians or hospitalists, not resident-run services, so our residents are adept and comfortable talking to attending admitting physicians and consultants. Lastly, our sister hospital, St. Francis Medical Center, located in Evanston, is a Level I trauma center that also serves a large underserved and pediatric population. Our residents spend a quarter of their residency at St. Francis, in addition to numerous other academic and community hospitals in the Chicagoland area.

Another unique opportunity that is offered to our residents is to provide medical control for numerous events across the Chicagoland region, including Lollapalooza, the Chicago Marathon, as well as events held at the nearby Allstate Arena.

What is the work-life balance like? What are some fun activities that residents enjoy when they’re not working?

Our residents are very good at practicing the adage “work hard, play hard.” We have a tight-knit social group that regularly schedules events together, such as playing in a co-ed soccer league, sitting in the bleachers and basking in the summer sun at a Chicago Cubs game, or planning a social outing to enjoy some famous Chicago-style deep dish pizza. Residents also enjoy running, biking, or rollerblading down the Lakefront Trail, which runs right along the beaches of beautiful Lake Michigan.

We have wellness protected time during our didactic conference time where our resident-run wellness committee plans lectures, yoga classes, meditation sessions, or simply enjoys a breakfast burrito! We also have journal clubs that are run and hosted by faculty at their homes. These clubs allow both our faculty members and residents time to relax, eat, and drink in a casual environment while discussing the latest research in emergency medicine. Lastly, our residents all have the opportunity to attend regional and national conferences.

How should potential applicants learn more about your program?

Check us out at: https://www.resurrectionem.com or on Instagram at @resurrection_em. circle-plus