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>> Welcome to Penn State Health, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, the flagship institution
of Penn State Health, central Pennsylvania's quaternary care academic medical center and
home to the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine.
Penn State Health is a multi-hospital health system serving patients and communities across
29 counties of Pennsylvania.
Here at Hershey Medical Center, we have more than 70 ACGME accredited residency and fellowship
programs.
Our home town, Hershey, Pennsylvania, offers an inclusive and welcoming environment toward
people from all walks of life.
While you're here, you are part of a community that is known for its natural beauty, plenty
of green space, low cost of living, stress-free commuting, top-notch schools, comfortable
and convenient shopping and sweet history.
The department of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine at Hershey Medical Center has a proud
tradition of growth, education, research, and outstanding clinical care.
Founded in 1970, our department has grown to boast more than 60 anesthesiologists, 60
certified registered nurse anesthetists, 68 residents, eight fellows, five basic science
researchers and nearly 50 administrative support staff all inspired together and committed
to our institution's core values of respect, integrity, teamwork and excellence.
Welcome to our home.
We are glad that you have chosen to consider becoming a part of our residency program.
We are a family.
We are Penn State.
As we take you inside the inner-workings of the day-to-day life here at Penn State, envision
yourself as a resident in our innovative, integrated four-year curriculum, one of the
few four-year programs in the country that integrates the clinical base rotations throughout
the first two years of residency training.
The program has selected rotations that will contribute to the experience and body of knowledge
necessary to maximize your education in becoming superior consultants of anesthesiology.
>> I think one of the biggest surprises was how quickly you start to get autonomy and
you start to get comfortable doing the job compared to a lot of other places I was looking.
This place gets you into the operating room doing anesthesia very quickly which was appealing
but to realize just how much freedom and autonomy you got very quickly was a little surprising.
>> Over the first 12 months of your residency training, you will have the opportunity to
spend approximately five to six months in the operating room, one month in our surgical
anesthesia intensive care unit, approximately one month each in both acute and chronic pain
services as well as spending time as the junior perioperative resident.
In addition to this time spent exclusively within the department of anesthesiology and
perioperative medicine, you will also gain experiences in inpatient medicine, the medical
intensive care unit, emergency medicine and trauma surgery as we are the only institution
in the state of Pennsylvania with both adult and pediatric level I trauma programs under
one roof.
>> I think Penn State is unique in that during our first year we get several months, up to
six months of anesthesiology experience which is different than most other programs.
A lot of other programs do that during their second year.
So by the end of my first year, I was able to do cases by myself in the operating room.
I was able to do a lot of procedures and feel comfortable doing those kinds of things and
that was something that a lot of other residents won't get to experience until their second
year of anesthesia residency.
>> For example, a resident may have one month of pediatric pulmonology service with the
following month in pediatric anesthesia.
The month of floor specialties also allows for a smooth adjustment in terms of understanding
preoperative and postoperative management of that specific patient population.
Throughout the year, residents rotate through cardiac and thoracic anesthesia, ENT and pediatric
anesthesia, neuroanesthesia, OB/GYN, surgical ICU and PACU and even have time for elective
and research work.
The early exposure to subspecialties can help residents recognize interest in other areas
of the field in which they may want to pursue fellowship.
>> With the second year, you also do six months of all service rotations but then they're
paired.
So if you're doing cardiothoracic anesthesia, you're also doing a cardiac like ICU month.
And then if you're doing like neurosurgery, then you're going to also have it paired with
a neurosurgery ICU month.
So things like that -- it's paired so that it reinforces your learning here, and it's
really great to grow as a resident when you have that continuity in care.
>> The third year of your residency training, also known as CA2 year is divided into month-long
rotations that continue to give residents exposure and practice within multiple subspecialties
in anesthesiology.
As senior residents, CA2 residents will begin to guide junior residents on the subspecialty
rotations for the first time and start taking on more of a leadership role.
In addition to the typical subspecialties in anesthesia, you will also have a dedicated
rotation on vascular and transplant anesthesia.
Penn State Health, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a heart, liver, and kidney transplant
center, and you will be integrally involved in taking care of the sickest patients from
around the region.
>> When you're looking at different residencies is you need to feel supported and you need
to feel like a member of the department.
And without a doubt, I know that I am supported by both the program directors as well as my
other colleagues.
I know that they will assist us in any way possible and they help take/shifts some of
the burden of residency off of us by always having things adequately prepared from a standpoint
-- academic standpoint, they always make sure that we have our lectures lined up well in
advance.
There is never issues with scheduling and things like that.
If you have a problem, you can undoubtedly take it to the administrative assistants and
they will help you find a solution quite easily.
>> The final year of your residency training, or CA3 year, is ultimately what each trainee
makes of it.
There are multiple months in which residents can choose their own flavor of anesthesia.
Each resident can request complex cases and/or additional cardiac, pediatric, pain medicine
and ICU rotations.
It is completely tailored to the trainees' interests.
In addition, residents start to learn how to be in attending and many residents start
building confidence toward independent practice as team leader and teacher to the junior residents.
Some unique rotations that are geared toward the senior trainee include an additional month
of acute pain medicine as well as ultrasound and TEE and time at the outpatient surgery
center on the medical center campus.
In addition, you have the option to spend nearly two months practicing cardiac and/or
obstetric anesthesia at a neighboring community hospital that is run by a private practice
anesthesia group.
>> One of the things that's hard to get a feel for when you're applying to programs,
this is even pre-COVID even when you're able to come and interview, is how good the faculty
are.
And I have to say I've worked with probably 95% of our faculty members, and there is not
a weak link amongst them.
I love working with all of them.
They all have something to bring to the table.
Every day you work in the OR with a new name next to yours, you learn something new.
You learn a different way of approaching a problem.
>> Over your four years here at Penn State, it will become very apparent to you that you
are part of something more than a residency training program.
You will be mentored, respected, and supported by an outstanding group of individuals and
will become family from day one of your time with us.
Longitudinally over the four years, in addition to your clinical rotations, you will participate
in simulation sessions, mock oral board exams, observed standardized clinical exams and have
the opportunity to participate in case conferences, journal club presentations, weekly didactic
lectures and grand rounds, board review sessions and even present at regional, national and
international academic conferences.
Overall, the department of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine at Penn State Health,
Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a fantastic place to train, and residents move on to their
respective jobs confident, skilled, knowledgeable and prepared thanks to a breadth of experiences
in and out of the operating room.
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