What Does Your Program Offer That Residents Can’t Get Anywhere Else?

Our residency has three very unique characteristics. First, we have a graduated responsibility model at our primary academic site designed to consolidate learning procedural (R2), resuscitation (R3), and supervisory skills (R4), so that residents get a lot of reps of each in a defined period so as to build muscle memory and to allow residents to incorporate recent feedback. Residents still get procedural and resuscitative experiences through all four years at our community sites, but the graduated responsibility model really reinforces the learning of those critical skill sets. Alumni feedback routinely states, “whatever you do, do not get rid of the graduated responsibility model.”

R3 Class.

Second, we also incorporate leadership development into our curriculum as this is one of our core values as a training program. We believe leadership development is critical to being a well-trained emergency physician and all residents get some element of intentional leadership development no matter what their potential career path may be.

Lastly, our residency program is well integrated into our Helicopter EMS (HEMS) transport program Air Care. Unlike many other residency programs with HEMS experience and exposure, all of our residents serve as members of the flight team and the majority of air care flights in the greater Cincinnati region carry a resident-nurse flight team.

What Are Some Fun Activities Residents Like to Partake in Or Recently Participated in?

R2 Class.

Like many programs, our residents appreciate being outdoors and do a lot of hiking and climbing. We have a lot of great hiking within a day’s drive of Cincinnati, including Red River Gorge, which is also one of the best climbing spots in the country. Many of our residents also enjoy running and biking in Cincinnati’s nationally recognized park system or along its extensive bike trails. Our Wellness Committee also organizes a lot of social events to include “Wellness Wednesdays” (typically post-Grand Rounds workouts), group trivia nights, canoeing/paddle boarding, helipad yoga, faculty-resident kickball, and various theme parties. The Wellness Committee also sponsors various interest groups, with topics such as running, book club, “The Batchelor,” Peloton, new restaurants, events and concerts, and even dog walking or dog sitting.

How Should Potential Applicants Learn More About Your Program?

We would highly encourage applicants to follow us on social media, but they can also check out our department’s website at https://med.uc.edu/depart/emergency-medicine/home (you can find more residency-specific links in the drop-down menu on the left side of the page).

Erin McDonough, MD, FACEP, Residency Program Director and Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.