Curriculum

Our three-year curriculum provides an exciting, effective and logical pathway for emergency medicine training. The curriculum is composed of 13 four-week blocks per year. We also have 3 weeks of vacation each year, divided into 1 week increments during specific blocks.

A conference series covering the core content of emergency medicine, journal clubs, grand rounds, and other didactic presentations round out the curriculum.

PGY-1

The first year begins with orientation, including PALS and ATLS courses as well as a hospital-wide orientation, electronic medical record (EMR) training, and other EM-specific training. We have recently revised our curriculum to enhance critical care experience in the intern year and beyond. Blocks in the Parkland ED, Children's ED, and off-service rotations are carefully designed to furnish important clinical background pertinent to the practice of emergency medicine. A monthly EM intern conference provides didactic and hands-on workshops to assist interns in gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to practice emergency medicine at the resident level. Monthly topics include management of common EM complaints (chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, HTN, headache, etc), wound care, EM procedures, ophthalmologic evaluation including use of the slit lamp, resuscitation skills, EKG interpretation, radiography, orthopedics, surviving journal club, developing a scholarly project, transitioning to second year, and more.

Parkland EM (4 blocks)
Pediatric EM at Children's (2 blocks)
Ultrasound/Resuscitation (1 block)
Adult and Pediatric Anesthesia (1 block)
ICU at VA (1 block)
Neuro ICU (0.5 block)
Burn ICU (0.5 block)
Trauma (1 block)
Labor & Delivery (0.5 block)
Toxicology (0.5 block)
UTSW EM at Clements (0.5 block)

Ob-Gyn Urgent Care (aka Women's Intermediate Care Center or OB-ICC) (0.5 block)

PGY-2

The focus of the second year is on refining emergency medicine skills and critical care. As the year progresses, so do the residents' responsibilities for patient care. Residents also have opportunities to provide radio medical direction for the EMS system in the second and third years and an optional aeromedical experience is offered.

Parkland EM and Pediatric EM at Children's (7 blocks)
UTSW EM at Clements (0.5 block)
Toxicology (0.5 block)

Trauma EM at Harris Methodist (1 block)
Pediatric ICU (0.5 block)
Plastics/Hand ED Consults (0.5 block)
Surgical ICU (0.5 block)
Neonatal Resuscitation Team (0.5 block)
Medical ICU (1 block)
Selective (0.5 block)
CVICU (0.5 block)

PGY-3

During the third year, residents assume administrative responsibility for the ED. Patient care, ED flow, and management skills are maximized during this year. Residents present their research or scholarly project at the completion of the residency.

Parkland EM with longitudinal Pediatric EM and Community EM shifts (7 blocks)
Teaching Resident for Parkland EM (1 block)
Community EM (3 blocks)
- Dallas Methodist ED
- Presbyterian ED
- Medical City Dallas ED
- Hunt Regional ED
- Harris Methodist Fort Worth ED
- ED at Clements UH
Electives/New Zealand (2 blocks)

Electives

The elective months can be completed almost anywhere. PGY-3 residents in the past have arranged a variety of electives including research, advanced airway techniques, EMS, intensive care, or medical mission trips/international medical experience.

New Zealand Elective
As part of the Parkland EM Program, each PGY-3 resident has the opportunity to use their elective time to spend two months in New Zealand, all expenses paid. In New Zealand, residents work in the ED at Hawkes Bay Hospital and act as senior residents performing resuscitations, sedations, orthopedic reductions, and supervising other residents. Some residents say this rotation was the deciding factor on their residency match list!

Emergency Medicine: Blocks, Shifts, & Hours

The EM curriculum is divided into 39 blocks (each 4 weeks long) and includes rotations in the Emergency Department as well as other locations. The ED months include approximately 19 shifts during the PGY-1 year, 18 shifts during PGY-2 year, and 16 shifts during PGY-3 year. As a senior resident (PGY-2 and PGY-3 years), Parkland ED shifts are 10 hours with 2 hours of overlap with the oncoming resident at the end of each shift. The overlap allows time to work on the disposition of patients while the next resident sees new patients. As an intern, PGY-1 shifts are 10 hour shifts with 1 hour of overlap.

The Pediatric EM experience starts with 6 weeks Children's Medical Center (CMC) ED. Each intern works an average of 16 shifts per 4 weeks. During the PGY-2 and PGY-3 years, approximately 3-4 shifts during each ED month are spent at CMC (10 hour and 8 hour shifts, respectively).

More Residency Highlights

Each year, residents are excused from clinical duties to spend time together on a class-specific retreat:
- PGY-1's attend a paid trip to the SAEM conference (2018 Indianapolis, 2019 Las Vegas, 2020 Denver)
- PGY-2's attend a getaway to a Texan ranch owned by one of our very own attendings
- PGY-3's attend a paid trip to ACEP conference (2018 San Diego, 2019 Denver, 2020 Dallas)
We have a robust ultrasound curriculum and boast three fellowship-trained ultrasound faculty, as well as an ultrasound fellowship program
Our weekly EM conference is 4 hours long and utilizes frequent small group interactive learning opportunities. The additional hour of required learning each week is completed as asynchronous learning, allowing residents to choose their educational experience based on individual needs and interests.
Our intern-specific curriculum includes a monthly lunch conference to address the educational needs and challenges of the first year of residency.
Journal clubs are held the night before our monthly Grand Rounds. We meet at a local restaurant and discuss articles over dinner in the company of the Grand Rounds speaker of the month -- typically a nationally recognized figure in Emergency Medicine.
Did we mention our elective in New Zealand?!