We pride ourselves in having protected education time for our residents at all stages of their training. During didactics, residents are relieved from their clinical duties, irrespective of the timing of lecture. The core curriculum consists of weekly didactic sessions that are geared toward the individual year of training and revolve around core educational themes as identified by the ABA. These lectures are dynamic and routinely improved based on the evolving nature of medicine. Our residents are provided additional lectures on their subspecialty rotations. Lastly, residents have protected time to attend weekly morning reports, Grand Rounds, and Morbidity and and Mortality conferences.

View a sample of the resident lecture schedule

As part of our dedication to exam preparedness, we administer the ABA in-training exam (ITE) yearly in February here on campus. We also administer several stages of the anesthesia knowledge test (AKT). Mock oral exams are given multiple times a year, including a mock OSCE for our CA-3 residents. To promote self-directed study, the program provides complimentary access to the widely used question bank, TrueLearn, as well as several textbooks. Other notable resources provided include an iPad, anesthesia toolbox, and coverage of society membership fees as well as exam fees.

Our residents spend significant time in the Clinical Skills and Education and Assessment Center where they undergo a tailored curriculum created and taught by department faculty. The state-of-the-art simulation lab provides the ability to gain exposure to both common and uncommon real-life scenarios in a safe environment. We believe that active learning is a key component to becoming a successful anesthesiologist.

Our residents are encouraged and supported to pursue a wide range of research activities, ranging from basic science to clinical research, journal publications, case reports, and local / national conference presentations. It is common to see residents actively involved in such projects and many go on to publication. Our residents have published in many top anesthesiology journals including Anesthesiology, Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Anesthesia, and Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia.

As a part of our commitment to educational growth within the field of anesthesiology, each resident is expected to do an academic project, which may include special training assignments, grand rounds presentations, preparation and publication of a research article, book chapters, manuals for teaching or clinical practice, or similar academic activities. For this, each resident is assigned to a faculty mentor with whom they have the opportunity to work closely alongside until project completion. At the discretion of the program director, the project may occur prior to the CA-3 year. Each resident is also required (and provided funding) to present at the Midwest Anesthesia Residents' Conference (MARC).

• Faculty are dedicated to high-quality intra-operative, hands-on teaching
• Quality Improvement: residents work in teams along with a faculty mentor to complete robust QI projects. These projects have meaningful impacts on patient care, as well as serve as an opportunity for residents to confidently learn the QI process.
• Journal club: department journal clubs are organized four to five times per year and are hosted at the homes of our faculty. The chosen articles are curated by faculty in different specialties
• For those residents who are especially interested in education, our program offers a unique educational/quality improvement elective where a project can be taken to completion.