Residency Program

Anesthesiology is a dynamic and challenging specialty, and anesthesiologists are among the specialists most appreciated by patients. Though anesthesiologists often say they induce sleep, no individual who is simply sleeping would allow a surgical assault on their body and yet remain motionless and unaware. Indeed, anesthesia is a much more complex state than sleep and therefore must be induced by a expert in human physiology and pharmacology who fully knows the many diverse effects disease states may have on the human body. Regional anesthesia is also much more than simply giving a shot. It requires understanding of three-dimensional anatomy, neurotransmission, and pathology and is aided by a dexterity that can be learned only through expert instruction and clinical application. As a practicing anesthesiologist, you will respond with expertise and confidence when you have a strong academic foundation and extensive clinical experience. Such is the experience of a resident at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita Anesthesiology Residency Program.

When you join our ACGME fully-accredited anesthesiology program, you will need to be ready for the rigors of postgraduate education. You will rapidly be introduced to an intensive academic preparation that will be accompanied by a strong clinical experience in all areas of anesthesiology except liver and lung transplantation. The Wichita Anesthesiology Residency is based at two large regional medical centers (Via Christi and Wesley), both of which offer state of the art surgical and intensive care services and learning resources. In addition, the core program of the integrated hospitals is supported by rotations in several outpatient surgery centers, as well as the Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice and the Robert J. Dole Veterans’ Administration Regional Medical Center.

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The typical resident joining the Wichita Anesthesiology Residency Program already will have demonstrated strong leadership skills and proven scholarly ability. PGY-1 anesthesiology residents will rotate in other clinical departments, including internal medicine and surgery with optional rotations in emergency medicine, family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, anesthesiology, etc. Wichita anesthesiology residents have proven themselves to be excellent house officers in these other disciplines and to benefit significantly from the strong internship year. PGY-2 (CA-1) residents will begin with a six-week long mini-review course of anesthesiology. During this period, the more junior residents are paired with senior residents as they learn the basics of anesthesia care and call responsibilities. In addition to demonstating competency in the basics of anesthesiology practice, PGY-2 residents must pass learning modules in substance abuse and airway management before beginning their third month of formal clinical anesthesiology training. They additionally must pass learning modules on pediatric anesthesia, the physiology of cardiovascular bypass, the anatomy of regional anesthetic blocks, obstetric physiology, and pain management before beginning advanced PGY-2 rotations in those areas. The PGY-3 year consists primarily of subspecialty rotations, each of which has a required learning module which must be completed before beginning the rotation. All learning modules are in addition to the 16-month long formal didactic program which is given twice during each residents 3-year anesthesiology training period. The PGY-4 year allows the resident to choose between a research tract and an advanced clinical tract. Please see the section entitled “Academic Program” for more details.

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A requirement for research without sufficient support of that research will embitter the resident to the entire research process and stifle scholarly activity. The Wichita Residency Program has significant funding and research scientist support for its research program. This support includes project selection and development, statistical analysis, assistance with hurdling the Institutional Review Board and HIPPA requirements, data collection assistance, and mentoring in the writing and submission of final papers. Aside from departmental support, both the University of Kansas and the Wesley Medical Research Institutes are available to provide additional resources. Finally, both Wichita State University and Newman University are available for collaborative research efforts.

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Via Christi Regional Medical Center – St. Francis Campus is the base teaching hospital for our residency and houses the administrative offices of the program. It also provides space for the anesthesiology resident library, classroom, chief resident’s office, research office, etc. Via Christi - St. Francis is a Level I trauma center and operates both a regional burn center and an organ transplantation center (heart, kidney, pancreas). The Neuro Critical Care Unit (NCCU) and Neuro Epilepsy Center provide new management strategies for patients with neurologic diseases. The NCCU is directed by a fellowship-trained neurointensivist and staffed by a multidisciplinary team of specially trained nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, respiratory therapists and dieticians. Via Christi’s 20 Neurocritical Care beds are represent a full 10 percent of all such highly specialized beds in the nation. Conditions treated in the NCCU and the Neuro Epilepsy Center include acute stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, brain tumors, multiple seizures, and infections such as meningitis or encephalitis, including those caused by West Nile virus. Highly specialized procedures such as epilepsy surgery, aneurysm surgery, surgery for brain tumors or endovascular procedures all provide challenges the anesthesia resident. Video EEG monitoring capabilities are available for evaluation of epilepsy surgery patients. Four negative pressure rooms protect patients, clinical staff and the public from contagious or dangerous diseases. Via Christi’s SICU cares for a multitude of significantly ill patients following trauma and surgery. Residents rotating in the SICU work directly with critical care fellowship trained surgeons and anesthesiologists.

Wesley Medical Center is the residency program’s second major teaching hospital. Wesley has twice been named one of the United States’ top 100 hospitals for cardiovascular care by Solucient health-data corporation and twice named one of America’s best hospitals for urology care by U.S. News and World Report. Wesley has 29 operating rooms wherein the whole gamut of cases, excepting transplants and burns, are performed. Over 5000 newborn deliveries occur each year in the Wesley Birthrooms and Birthcare Center. The perinatal team also includes specialists in maternal-fetal medicine, neonatology, and obstetric anesthesiology in addition to obstetricians and family medicine physicians. Anesthesiology residents at Wesley also rotate in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

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WCGME is a not-for-profit consortium consisting of Via Christi Regional Medical Center, Wesley Medical Center and the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita. WCGME employs all residents, providing a most competitive salary range and extensive fringe benefit package including health, dental, life, disability and professional liability insurance, registration fees, on-call meals and a professional development allowance. See http://wichita.kumc.edu/wcgme for more information. Additional educational benefits are also provided to the residents by the anesthesiology faculty.

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Anesthesiology residents in Wichita can expect to be evaluated in both a formulative and summary fashion. Residents are expected to become competent in all six of the general competencies defined by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), i.e., patient care, medical knowledge, interpersonal and communication skills, practice-based learning and improvement, professionalism, and systems-based practice. (See www.acgme.org) Continuous evaluations will ensure the residents attain that goal. Evaluations are done on-line.

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Resident perspectives coming soon