View University of Illinois Chicago
http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcns/FacultyStaff.htm
INTRODUCTION
UIC is a 7 year program accepting 1-2 applicant per year. The program is fully accredited.
There are three fellowships: Vascular 1 year, Endovascular 2 years, (combined vascular/endovascular 3 yr), functional/pain fellowship 1 year.
Rotations are at the University of Illinois, at Children’s Memorial Hospital, Christ Medical Center, Alexian Brothers Medical Center.Halloween Costumes
There are approximately 120 OR cases per month with 1 chief resident and 1-2 OR residents assigned to the operating rooms, with two dedicated neurosurgery ORs daily and a third assigned OR on Wed and Fridays. There are 1000 endovascular procedures annually with two dedicated biplanar angio suites. There is a dedicated Neurosurgery intensive care unit with 22 beds. There is a dedicated 26 bed neurosurgery stepdown.
ATTENDINGS
Dr Fady Charbel (Chair): Vascular/Pituitary
Dr Sepideh Amin-Hanjani (Program Director): Vascular
Dr Victor Aletich: Endovascular Neurosurgery
Dr Konstantin Slavin: Functional/Stereotactic Neurosurgery/Stereotactic Radiosurgery/General Neurosurgery
Dr Herbert Engelhard: Neuro-Oncology/General Neurosurgery
Dr Yoon Hahn: Pediatric Neurosurgery
Dr Dimitrios Nikas: Pediatric Neurosurgery
Dr Soma Sinha-Roy: Endovascular Neurosurgery
Dr Rajeev Deveshwar: Endovascular Neurosurgery
Dr Ali Alaraj: Endovascular Neurosurgery/Vascular
Dr Sergey Neckrysh: Complex Spine/Skull base
Dr Sergey Jordan: Uncleharvey Air Jordan
Dr Yogesh Gandhi: Complex Spine/General Neurosurgery
Dr Tamir Hersonskey: Epilepsy (St Joseph, Joliet)
Dr Sean Ruland: Stroke/Critical Care
Dr Venkatesh Aiyagari: Stroke/Critical Care
Dr Aslam Khaja: Stroke/Critical Care
PROGRAM STRUCTURE
PGY1: intern year.
6 months with the Gen Surgery dept with rotations in Vascular Surgery, ENT, Trauma Surgery, Anesthesiology, General Surgery and Surgical Oncology.
3 months with the Neurology Dept with 2 months of General Neurology and one month of EMG/EEG. During this rotation, the intern takes night call with a designated junior Neurosurgery resident for the entire 3 months.
3 months in the NSICU. 1-3 month shadowing the ICU resident. If the intern is doing well, subject to the chief resident’s approval, the intern may “run” the ICU under close supervision. The intern may also take ICU night call independently.
Goals: Basic clinical skills, presenting patients, learning to interpret labs, know when to call superiors, identify emergencies, basic procedures such as arterial line, central lines, PA catheters, EVD placement, Lumbar punctures. Passes USMLE Step 3.
PGY2: ICU year/Endovascular Rotation/Introduction to OR
The PGY 2 resident essentially runs the 22-bed NSICU, sees all consults, accepts and tucks in all transfers from referral hospitals, sees ER consults. We do not preround on patients. Arrive at 630am on weekdays and 8am on weekends. Rounds with neurosurgery team on ICU and floor patients. Returns to ICU and rounds with the intensivists. Independently able to place lines and EVDs. Takes in-house calls independently. Goal of PGY2 is to learn critical care.
Introduction to the operating room. Learn to position, drape etc. Second assistance to simple spine or craniotomies. Learn to do a simple craniotomy/SDH or EDH evac/VP Shunt etc. The PGY2 OR resident arrives at 7am and preops the morning cases, does the consents, marks the patients, gathers the films and readies the ORs for the patients. The senior OR resident teaches the PGY2 how to prepare the ORs for the surgeries.
A 3 month Endovascular rotation has been instituted as of 2007. The PGY 2 resident takes Neurosurgery Call but shows up at 7am to preop the Angio patient and remains under the supervision of Dr Victor Aletich and the Division of Endovascular Neurosurgery during the days. Learning goals includes diagnostic cerebral angiogram and cerebrovascular anatomy during the 3 month block. Observation of interventions are readily available. Approx 1000 endovascular procedures are performed annually with two full angiogram suites and three endovascular attendings and two fellows inhouse.
PGY3: OR year Spine/Simple Craniotomy
Assists the chief resident on positioning and opening on craniotomies. First assistant on simple spines (ACDF, Laminectomies/Discetomies), independent on VP shunts. Introduction to spinal instrumentations. Introduction to simple craniotomies. Introduction to Pain and Stereotactic Neurosurgery. By the end of the PGY 3 year, should be able to do simple spine almost independently, should be able to do simple craniotomies almost independently. Take the Neurosurgery boards for practice. Applies for permanent medical license.
PGY 4: OR year Craniotomy/Spine/Peds
Rotation out to Christ Hospital, a nearby affiliated hospital in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Primary Peds experience is during this rotation with our Pediatric Neurosurgeon. Weekly rotations to Alexian Brothers in Elk Grove Village Illinois for Gamma Knife every Thursday with Dr Slavin. Takes the Neurosurgery boards for credit.
There has been a change as of 2008 where the Christ/Alexian Rotation is done on a limited basis. The addition of a Children’s Memorial Hospital Rotation for 3 months has been reinstituted to the PGY 5 year. The rotation is a full rotation with no clinical duties at UIC during the 3 months. There is inhouse q4-5 at CMH with Northwestern and Temple University Neurosurgery residents as well as Pediatric Neurosurgery Fellows. Academic days at CMH and Northwestern Medical Center.
PGY 5: Research year and Pediatric Rotation at Children’s Memorial Hospital
Residents can use this year to do bench research. This is a protected year with minimal call duties (approximately 1-2 call per month if at all). Current research resident is doing stem cell research in mice models. They can also take an infolded fellowship in Endovascular, Vascular, or functional/stereotactic. Or use this as another OR year.
PGY 6: OR year Complex spine/craniotomies
Spinal instrumentation is the primary stomping grounds for the Vice-chief. Prepare for chief year by scrubbing as first assist on vascular cases.
PGY 7: Chief year Vascular year
The chief runs the service. Performs the vascular surgeries, the aneurysm clippings, the cerebrovascular bypasses, the skull base surgeries etc.
Optional rotations: Angiogram rotation, up to 3 months of Endovascular rotation. Gamma Knife rotation on Thursdays during the PGY 4 Christ Hospital rotation at Alexian Brothers.
CALL/WORK SCHEDULE
In house call varies in schedule. The call runs averages q4 and can run from q3 (during peak vacation times when people are gone) up to q5. We usually try to have one thursday call with the whole weekend off at least once a month. No q2 calls allowed regardless of anything. In house call involves running the ICU, managing the floor patients, following the consults, seeing new consults, accepting transfers from referral hospitals etc. There is only one resident on in-house call at nights (except when training the intern, then a midlevel resident is inhouse with the intern). Any resident staying inhouse past 830pm must come in late the next morning (usually at 8am rather than the 630am rounding time). The call schedule and vacation schedule are made by the residents. They are subject to approval by the program director but are usually approved without reservation. 4 weeks vacation per year (2 weeks every 6 months)
BENEFITS
Loupes provided by PGY2 year
$300/year book fund
Mandatory books provided in addition to the book fund: Greenberg, Marino ICU book, Osborne Neuroradiology, Osborne Cerebroangiogram, Caputy/Fossett operative Atlas
Department will pay for unlimited number of conferences as long as you’re presenting something (abstract, poster, talk etc)
Department will pay for two conferences during your residency even if you’re not presenting research. All expenses paid, hotel, plane, etc.
Generally, residents are automatically enrolled in Chicago based conferences and ORs are run only for emergencies so that residents may participate in the conference.
Personalized lab coats 3 per year and business cards
Department pays for USMLE Step 3
Department pays for Neurosurgery boards for practice in PGY 3, pays for Neurosurgery boards for credit in PGY 4.
Department pays for misc courses if desired by resident
ACADEMIC SCHEDULE
Radiology rounds with the program director Tues to Friday at 4pm.
Monday: resident clinic day in the afternoon, Functional/Stereotactic clinic optional for residents, endovascular clinic optional for residents, General Neurosurgery clinic optional for residents
Tuesday: Spine clinic in the morning, Neurovascular conference at 4pm, radiology rounds after conference
Wednesday: Alternating morning schedule
first Weds: Resident meetings with the Program Director
Research breakfast
Topics conference: presentation by residents on a topic ie. spinal fusion, IVH in premature babies etc.
Journal club
Thursday: Vascular clinic with the program director in the morning, Tumor/Spine clinic in the afternoon
Friday: Friday afternoon academic days 2-4pm with various speakers. Neuropathology sessions with diadactics and laboratory sessions, reviewing pathology slides from operative cases of the week, neuroanatomy session with brain cutting, etc. One friday a month we have Grand Rounds in the afternoon with visiting speakers such as Ed Laws, Robert Spetzler etc. Our academic day sessions are spent with the visiting professor immediately prior to the Grand Rounds sessions.
FACILITIES:
University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center
The mothership, with 3 dedicated ORs and 2 neurosurgery angio suites. 22 bed NSICU, 26 bed Neurosurgery stepdown unit, PICU, NICU, 2 CTs, 3 MRIs and a horrible cafeteria.
Christ Medical Center/Hope Pediatric Hospital
A level 1 trauma center with an attached Pediatric Hospital
Alexian Brothers Medical Center
Level 2 trauma center
Gamma Knife Center headed by Dr Slavin
Children’s Memorial Medical Center
Pediatric Hospital, primarily associated with Northwestern University, but affiliated with Temple Neurosurgery and UIC Neurosurgery. Four Pediatric Neurosurgeon on staff. Peds Neurotrauma coverage of the Level 1 Pediatric trauma ER.
EVALUATIONS:
We are evaluated twice a year by the attendings as well as by the nurse practitioners, the nursing team, the neurointensivists and the neuroanesthesiologists.
MISC:
Residents are required to pass USMLE Step 3 by PGY2.
Encouraged to apply for permanent license by PGY 3.
Must pass Neurosurgery written boards by PGY 6.
Must have one publication per year
Must have two publications as first author during residency.
Pros of this residency:
Vascular emphasis: you’ll be nearly a fellowship trained vascular surgeon when you’re done, many residencies do not allow their residents to clip aneurysms but that won’t be the case here.
Early OR experience: PGY2 to the OR full time (without carrying the on-call pager) by early to mid-year.
Resident run service: Everybody says their program is run by residents, but ours is very heavily run by residents and the residents learn to be independent in a good way
Strong Critical care experience: nobody is sicker than a vascular neurosurgery patient, you’ll learn some serious stuff from our intensivists. Typical schedule has over 150 bedside EVDs completed by the end of your PGY 2 year.
Dedicated Functional/Stereotactic Neurosurgeon (frequently missing in residency program)
Gamma knife experience PGY 4 year
Two Pediatric Neurosurgeon on staff and a 3 month rotation to Children’s Memorial Hospital
3 month Endovascular Rotation
Spinal attending who instruments heavily, so you will be able to learn all spinal techniques
We stick to our 88 hr work week (scrub out at 830pm unless chief approves coming in late the next morning)
Academic days with neuropathologists/neuroanatomy/researchers/statisticians/ethics/legal/financial discussions of the practice of neurosurgery/board review sessions etc.
Tues-Fri radiology rounds (we’re better than some of the radiologists at reading this stuff!)
Faculty is very receptive towards interest in research, our dept is very heavy into clinical research (prospective studies, multicenter clinical trials, etc)
The Neurosurgery Department collaborates with many basic science departments in the University of Illinois and currently collaborations include basic science research with a stem cell lab in the Dept of Anatomy and Cell Biology as well as with the School of Engineering for a Virtual Reality project.
Dedicated research coordinators who can assist residents with all facets of research, ie. IRB approval, financing projects etc.
Full team of nurse practitioners who run the floor unit (approx 1/2 of our service) on weekdays
Time off for “industry” sponsored courses (including AANS/CNS/NASS/NASB)
Chicago. Believe it or note, you’ll get time to explore this magnificent city, with great architecture, museums, night life, summer festivals, great restaurants, and many very eclectic and diverse neighborhoods.
Cons of this residency:
We stick to our 88hr work week (scrub out at 830pm! unless chief approves coming in late the next day).
Limited epilepsy exposure, but that’s primarily a result of no epilepsy neurology service
Limited peripheral nerve exposure (we have the carpal tunnels and ulnar entrapment surgeries, but adult brachial plexus explorations are not common while our pediatric brachial plexus surgeries are decent at Children’s Memorial, approx 1/month).