Experience
Jump to: Adult Orthopaedics | Pediatric Orthopaedics | Trauma | Spine | Hand
Foot and Ankle | Sports Medicine | Oncology | Rehabilitation
Adult Orthopaedics
Residents receive a diverse exposure to the diagnosis and management of adult orthopaedic pathology at several institutions. These rotations provide an overall balanced experience in areas including Sports, Adult reconstruction, Shoulder and Elbow surgery, Foot and Ankle surgery, and musculoskeletal infections. Residents work in a variety of different settings requiring flexibility and the ability to function efficiently in a variety of hospital systems. The diversity of settings provides residents with a unique opportunity to participate in a number of different cases as well as the opportunity to see alternative procedures, equipment systems, and techniques in managing musculoskeletal pathology. Furthermore, residents receive extensive training in the non-operative management of multiple conditions through comprehensive clinic exposure. The overall experience residents at the University of Illinois at Chicago receive provides an unparalleled development of well-rounded Orthopaedic surgeons.
At the University of Illinois Medical Center, resident training is primarily in adult reconstruction, sports, and shoulder and elbow surgery. While on the UIC Orange service residents attend an average of 2 full days of adult general clinic per week with the 4th year resident on the Sports service attending an additional two half day sports clinics. Clinics typically have approximately 30 to 60 patients per half day and are covered by 2 to 4 residents depending on the patient load. While in clinic, residents work with a master orthopaedic cast technician with more than 20 years of experience providing direct instruction in proper application of a wide variety of casts and splints. Operative experience includes all areas of adult orthopaedics with particular focus in sports including both knee and shoulder arthroscopy, as well as shoulder and elbow surgery, and joint arthroplasty. Residents on both University services attend two full days in the operating theater with an additional half day each week. Two staff members function in a general orthopaedic role providing a variety of adult operative experience. Three attending staff members comprise a busy total joint arthroplasty program at UIC. A fellowship-trained joints surgeon sees a large percentage of patients with severe deformity, previous surgery, and other co-morbidities. This exposes the residents to a large number of revision arthroplasties as well as total joint arthroplasty for more advanced disease and deformity.
Skokie Hospital allows residents to participate in a large volume community based adult reconstruction practice. The attending surgeon at this institution performs over 900 total joint replacements per year. That service also produces over 15 scientific abstracts for national meetings yearly in which residents may participate. This service uniquely exposes the resident to a large multi-specialty private practice setting, and is highly instructive in terms of practice management, operative organization and planning, resource management, and operative efficiency. This offers a major contrast in terms of Systems Based Practice to the aforementioned governmental hospitals. Residents also attend one full day of clinic per week during this rotation. In addition, residents have the option to operate with a number of fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons at the Illinois Bone and Joint Institute, which offers the senior resident the flexibility to experience additional procedures in a particular subspecialty of interest.
Advocate Christ Medical Center provides a large percentage of residents’ operative case volume in all areas of adult orthopaedics as well as trauma. Residents also work with fellowship trained sports, spine, shoulder, and foot and ankle surgeons. This primarily operative rotation allows senior residents to experience well-organized private practices with a relatively efficient operative setting and the ability to focus on honing technical skills. While at this institution residents experience additional adult reconstruction experience focused on primary joint arthroplasty in a community setting. Surgeons operating at this institution allow residents the unique opportunity to see and practice alternative surgical approaches to hip arthroplasty not seen at other hospitals. In addition, Christ Hospital will soon open an operating room dedicated to computer-navigation assisted total joint replacements. Residents on this rotation participate in one day of clinic per week focusing on adult orthopaedics and post-operative care.
At the Illinois Masonic Medical Center, residents work with several attendings in private practice focusing on general adult orthopaedics. Staff at this hospital also utilize computer navigation joint arthroplasty as well as perform unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and minimally invasive total joint replacements. The service consists of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year residents who obtain early exposure to a variety of adult procedures in a one-on-one attending setting prior to advancing to the larger volume centers. While on this rotation, residents rotate individual coverage of three half day clinics and one full day clinic consisting of primarily adult general orthopaedics and hand.
Weiss Memorial Hospital offers another venue where both basic and advanced adult reconstructive procedures take place. A fellowship-trained adult reconstruction surgeon treats both basic and advanced disorders of the lower extremity.
Pediatric Orthopaedics
Busy pediatric services are available at the Shriners Hospital and the University of Illinois Medical Center. Residents have a total of one year accumulative experience in caring for children.
At the Shriners Hospital, residents are exposed to children with severe deformity, neuromuscular disorders, and an overall comprehensive experience of pediatric orthopedic pathology. The education and clinical guidance is supported by four full-time fellowship-trained pediatric orthopedists (in addition to many other part-time physicians). A number of conferences are held for the benefit of resident education. Residents average two to three full operative days per week while on rotation and two full days of clinic per week. Each half day of clinic involves 1 to 2 residents with approximately 25 patients seen. Clinics include general pediatrics orthopaedics, myelodysplasia, osteogenesis imperfecta, spine deformity, prosthetics and hand.
University of Illinois at Chicago is a public institution supporting a large pediatric population. Residents see a wide variety of pediatric pathology including low energy (Level II) trauma, spine deformity, neuromuscular pathology, and foot deformity. Residents on the UIC Orthopaedics service have one half day of pediatric clinic per week under the supervision of a fellowship trained pediatric orthopaedist for two university rotations. One Chief and junior level resident operate with the pediatric specialist each week performing a variety of pediatric orthopaedic cases.
Trauma and Spine
Residents receive a comprehensive training experience in trauma. All Orthopaedic Interns are required to rotate on the Trauma Surgery service at Christ Hospital and receive training in the management of trauma patients under Advanced Trauma Life Support protocol as directed by the trauma surgeons at that institution. This experience includes direct management of patients in the trauma bay, in-patient management of trauma patients, as well as a weekly outpatient post-trauma clinic.
Illinois Masonic Hospital is a Level I Trauma center and functions as the Orthopaedic junior residents’ introduction to managing Orthopaedic trauma. Orthopaedic traumatologists are on staff to allow for early experience in managing a wide variety of adult trauma. 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year residents receive one-on-one interaction with these attendings early in their training experience. This training also functions as preparation for the larger volume trauma center rotations at a more senior level.
Advocate Christ Medical Center is a high volume Level I trauma center and functions as the primary adult trauma experience for Orthopaedic residents in the program. Senior level residents (3rd, 4th, and 5th years) receive the bulk of their operative trauma experience at this hospital including a mix of blunt and penetrating trauma involving long bones, peri-articular fractures, pelvis and acetabulum, spine, and foot and ankle trauma. The program’s primary operative spine experience is obtained at Christ including spine trauma and elective adult spine surgery with two Fellowship trained Orthopaedic spine surgeons.
Hand Surgery
The University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center also includes three fellowship trained hand surgeons, and residents alternate hand call with the Plastic surgery department. The hand surgery experience at this hospital is comprehensive including low energy trauma, advanced soft tissue and bony reconstruction, microvascular and peripheral neurologic procedures. Two full days of hand clinic are split by the Blue and Orange UIC services under their respective attending staff and average approximately 30 patients per half day of clinic.
Weiss Memorial Hospital is another location where two fellowship-trained hand surgeons and one fellowship-trained shoulder and elbow surgeon provide a vast amount of exposure to upper extremity disorders. Both open and arthroscopic shoulder and elbow procedures are performed at this institution.
The Shriners Hospital rotation includes a congenital hand clinic that residents participate in. This is under the direction of a highly experienced hand surgeon specializing in congenital deformity. Residents receive both operative and non-operative training in this area.
Foot and Ankle Surgery in Adults and Children
Adult foot and ankle surgery is our earliest experience at the University of Illinois Hospital. There is a fellowship trained foot and ankle orthopaedics surgeon on staff. Clinical and operative exposure includes management of the diabetic foot, forefoot and hindfoot reconstruction, foot and ankle fractures, tendon disorders, neurologic disorders and arthritic disease.
Advocate Christ Medical Center provides the bulk of our adult foot and ankle experience. There we work intimately with a fellowship trained foot and ankle orthopaedic surgeon. Operative and clinical exposure includes forefoot and hindfoot reconstruction, deformity, fusion, trauma, and a variety of foot and ankle related sports and elective procedures. Focus is on management of adult foot and ankle pathology.
The Shriners Hospital provides our main pediatric foot and ankle surgical experience. There we work with a fellowship trained pediatric orthopaedic surgeon with an interest in foot and ankle surgery. Focus of the experience includes clinical and operative management of the forefoot, hindfoot, and ankle with respect to congenital deformity, acquired deformity, and reconstruction.
Skokie Hospital allows residents to participate in a large volume community based Adult reconstruction practice. The attending surgeon at this institution performs over 900 total joint replacements per year. That service also produces over 15 scientific abstracts for national meetings yearly which residents may participate in. This service uniquely exposes the resident to a large multi-specialty private practice setting, and is highly instructive in terms of practice management, operative organization and planning, resource management, and operative efficiency. This offers a major contrast in terms of Systems Based Practice to the aforementioned governmental hospitals. Residents also attend one full day of clinic per week during this rotation. In addition, residents have the option to operate with a number of fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons at the Illinois Bone and Joint Institute, which offers the senior resident the flexibility to experience additional procedures in a particular subspecialty of interest.
Sports Medicine and Athletic Injuries
The University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center provides our dedicated sports training. There we rotate with a fellowship-trained sports orthopaedic surgeon, and a 4th year resident functions as his primary trainee. All aspects of sports medicine and surgery are addressed in this experience. This includes outpatient clinics, pre-season physicals, UIC sports team trainer’s room, sideline physician coverage for college games, as well as operative management, including arthroscopy of both upper and lower extremities. Focus is placed on not only the management of the medical issues at hand, but also decision making of the physician in maximizing athletic potential for the athlete and team. While on this rotation, the 4th year resident operates one full day exclusively with the sports attending and attends two half day clinics per week in addition to the other Orange service clinics. Each clinic includes approximately 20 patients. Additional arthrscopic and sports related experience is obtained through the satellite hospitals mentioned previously under the adult orthopaedics section. The Women National Basketball Association (WNBA) Chicago Sky team is covered by our sports center staff.
Orthopaedic Rehabilitation, Amputations and Post-Amputation Care
The University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center rehabilitation floor is located directly adjacent to the Orthopaedic floor and the Orthopaedic residents work directly with the rehab staff in managing postoperative patients. This hospital, as well as the Advocate hospitals, offer operative exposure to adult amputations.
The Shriners Hospital provides direct postoperative exposure to the management of amputees with a weekly prosthetics clinic. This is a multidisciplinary clinic involving surgeons, prosthetists, as well as both occupational and physical therapists. This is one half day per week for rotating residents and typically includes 15 to 20 patients. Two physiatry attendings are employed by the orthopaedic department to administer rehabilitation related services and resident education.