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

Carolinas Medical Center (CMC) is a large quaternary hospital that is the center hub of one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health care systems, Atrium Health. The emergency department (ED) has always been an integral and well-respected component of this very busy system and is afforded all the resources of traditional large academic facilities. While having the distinct honor of being able to provide care for the medically and surgically complex patients that large academic institutions do, CMC has also always been regarded as our county’s regional community facility. This allows our learners to experience the diverse educational benefits of a large academic institution, a busy county ED, and a facility dedicated to caring for the local community all under one roof. In addition, our residents become comfortable caring for the vast spectrum of pediatric presentations, from the common to the critical, also within the same facility. The collection of all the pathology within one facility allows residents to become comfortable with managing the care of all critically ill and injured adults and children. CMC does not have many non-emergency medicine fellowships, so when our residents are in the ICUs as 2nd and 3rd years, they are functioning at a similar level to that of fellows, working in concert with those services’ attendings. Being able to have such a profound and thorough educational experience at the same location has numerous benefits, but the most important is that it affords every one of the emergency medicine team to become very close to each other, creating our tightly knit emergency medicine family. This collegiality is also present across the various specialties within the hospital. All the residents in the hospital work well together, contributing to a high level of collaboration across departments. Without a doubt, we have the most collaborative and supportive relationship with our trauma surgery team, something very unique for emergency medicine residency training programs.

What are some fun activities residents like to partake in or recently participated in?

Since our residents all work so closely with each other and the entire emergency medicine family, it is only natural that they also enjoy spending time together outside of the ED. Charlotte is a wonderful city in a very welcoming region, and our CMC emergency medicine family takes full advantage of all the area has to offer. There are many traditions that our residents enjoy, including a local “cards round” (i.e., the intern on cardiology rotation picks a local brewery, restaurant, or park where everyone can meet at after work), holiday costume parties, dog park parties, and the float trip down the Catawba River at the end/beginning of the academic year. Additionally, there is easy access to professional sporting events and concerts that many take full advantage of. The U.S. National Whitewater Center is also a fantastic playground, filled with numerous activities for the adventurous (and for those who like to watch the adventurous). One of the most appealing aspects of CMC emergency medicine is the completely inclusive approach to both working and playing. For all events, not only are significant others part of the group, but nurses, ED techs, and our pharmacy colleagues are included. The relationships built at CMC go beyond the hospital walls and extend well beyond the final day of residency.