Why WBUH?

Cole Gleason, Class of 2024

My residency training at Beaumont University Hospital has simply been a wonderful experience.

Beaumont was first put on my radar by my advising dean, who also completed residency here. I remember leaving my interview day with a gut feeling that this was the exact program for me. I was impressed by the large volume of patients seen in their ED, the diverse pathology that comes through the door, and the amount of critical care experience offered during training. The leadership team also demonstrated a high level of professionalism, kindness, and overall commitment to resident wellness.

I ranked Beaumont as my number one choice and was fortunate to match here. I was certainly nervous about moving to Michigan after spending my entire life in upstate New York. I moved out here sight unseen and from the beginning I was supported by the program. One of my new attendings even offered the realtor services of their family member, who was able to help me secure a nearby apartment and made the move out here seamless.

For my first month in the department, I was paired with a senior resident who walked me through the department and guided me through the flow of patient care. Quickly, I became comfortable with emergency procedures, safely balancing multiple patients, and building strong relationships with our various consultants throughout the hospital.

Over the past three years, I have been immersed in a culture of learning. Each one of the attendings at Beaumont is dedicated to resident education and exemplifies patient-centered care. I have always felt comfortable asking questions, whether it is about a clinical situation, career advice, or, more recently, balancing my personal life as a new attending. Our simulation program is second to none and has allowed me a safe space to practice new skills, challenge myself, and grow as a leader in the department.  Our weekly grand rounds are constantly evolving and have expanded tremendously, even in just my three years here. For example, a typical morning of grand rounds will include presentations from expert physicians, peer-lead reviews of high-yield EM topics, reflections on morbidity and mortality cases, and time to practice rare procedures in the skills lab.

Lastly, our residency has tons of fun. Our attendings are endlessly generous and creative when it comes to organizing monthly journal club meetings, book clubs, volunteer events, and residency retreats. Some of my most fond memories from residency-sponsored events were playing fowling, bocce ball, and laser tag, taking a kick-boxing class, learning to jet-ski, and going out to countless dinners, just to name a few.

In summary, Michigan feels like a second home to me. Beaumont University Hospital and the people within this residency program will always hold a special place in my heart. I look back on these past three years with great joy and admiration. I feel grateful to have received the highest level of medical training from extraordinary educators while also being afforded time to grow personally, make life-long friends, and have countless laughs along the way. I have built strong relationships with my attendings and mentors and I know that they are only a phone call away at any time that I am in need.  I feel confident and motivated as I move into my own independent practice and could not recommend this program enough to future emergency medicine residents.

Dema Fawaz, Chief Resident 2022-2023, Class of 2023

From the moment I interviewed at Beaumont, I knew that we would be a perfect match. I was blown away by the dedicated leadership, the way other residents spoke so highly of their mentors and education, and the overall sense of comradery and kindness. Training at Beaumont these last 3 years has truly surpassed my expectations and more.

Our program allows you to start seeing critical patients day one of residency. This hands-on experience not only strengthened my clinical acumen but also instilled in me the ability to remain calm and composed in high-pressure situations. My first C shift, or critical area shift, was filled with excitement and procedures. My attendings and more senior residents were at bedside, ready to help me learn and grow as an emergency medicine physician. Very soon, work became a fun, albeit challenging, experience. Having built strong relationships with all members of the ER staff, I genuinely felt part of a team. The faculty, attendings, and fellow residents were not only exceptional mentors but also became an extended family, sharing a collective commitment to the highest standards of patient care and clinical expertise.

Our emergency department is filled with a broad array of pathology, and one of the most diverse patient populations. With hundreds of thousands of patients seen per academic year, we were certainly prepared once graduation came not only to see any medical case that walked through our doors, but also how to approach the diverse patient. Our program has a strong emphasis on diversity, and our curriculum is embedded throughout the year with DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) teachings, volunteer opportunities, and various community projects. I was even able to help launch a community wide CPR class to help educate our community. Our department also prioritized ongoing learning, and I actively engaged in weekly academic conferences, journal clubs, and case discussions. This environment of continuous learning broadened my knowledge base and kept me updated on the latest advancements in emergency medicine.

One of my favorite aspects of our program is the commitment to resident well-being and work-life balance. The structured schedule, including well-planned rotations and predictable time off, allowed me to maintain a healthy balance between my professional and personal life. Resident wellness was continually supported through initiatives such as mental health support, outdoor activities, group picnics and gatherings, and “Wellness Tokens” to those in need of a pick me up. Friendsgiving, Ugly Christmas sweater parties, and Halloween costume competitions were some of our highlights.

I am confident that the skills and values I have acquired during my residency at Beaumont Royal Oak will serve as the foundation for a successful and compassionate career in Emergency Medicine. Now as an attending at Beaumont Troy, I am truly grateful for my residency experience and have been able to apply my knowledge and clinical skills during every shift. I would highly recommend our program to any medical student in search of a fantastic residency experience.

John Corcoran, Class of 2022

From day one at Beaumont, I was utterly blown away by the care and support that I received by the faculty and staff at this residency. As a medical student, I felt a constant pressure to prove to my superiors what I know and stand on the sidelines of patient care. This dynamic was completely flipped here at Beaumont. The attendings here truly welcome the opportunity to teach or assist you and I felt completely comfortable asking questions or admitting when I did not know something. I often felt that I did not have this luxury as a medical student, and it truly allowed me to work hard and grow as a physician knowing that moments of uncertainty were opportunities to ask questions and improve.

One of the most significant strengths of this program is the autonomy and access to critical patients from the moment you arrive at the residency. As an intern, my attending and I received sign out on a patient who was awaiting surgery on a large pericardial effusion. My attending briefed me on some of the indications and techniques of an emergent pericardiocentesis should we need to intervene in the ED. Unfortunately, shortly after signing out the patient became unstable. Having just reviewed the procedure my attending allowed me to perform an US guided pericardiocentesis. I drew out a large syringe full of fluid and the patient’s vitals immediately improved. I was so excited and humbled to be given the opportunity to perform such a rare and critical procedure so early in my training.

My residency was significantly impacted by COVID with the pandemic starting in February of my intern year. Through this time, I really felt the faculty and residents’ band together to support each other and get to know each other on shift as outside gatherings were not an option. As restrictions relaxed later in the pandemic, I truly felt program leadership invested heavily in ensuring wellness by organizing social events (including a formal social at a museum or catered journal clubs at attendings houses).

I am now an attending in a community ED and, while I am only several weeks into my new job, I feel that my training was excellent and have been very pleasantly surprised by how natural my shift into independent practice has felt. I would not have chosen any other residency than Beaumont and would recommend it to any medical student who wants to experience a training program with high volume, high acuity, while also getting to learn and interact from faculty and colleagues who care about you and will support you throughout.

Dr. Renzhong Ran, Chief Resident 2019-2020, Class of 2020

I still remember my first morning C shift as an intern in September 2017 in ourbrand-new emergency department. It was my first true ED shift since the July orientation month. C shifts are our critical care shifts where we manage 7 critical care beds along with a medium acuity area with a dozen beds along with an additional 4 trauma beds/critical care overflow. It was me and TWO attendings (don’t worry there’s an additional resident there in the morning now). The morning started slow as always until the 10am-2pm rush of patients came in. And what a rush it was. Those few hours passed by so quickly. I only had enough time to type a few orders in before rushing off to the next critical patient arrival. I saw 15 that morning as an intern with 12 being Category 1 bed critical patients in a mix of trauma and medical patients. When the adrenaline wore off, I think I fell asleep at my desk while dictating my notes. Obviously not all shifts are like that but our interns are seeing very sick patients from the very first shift. You’re not intubating or lining up a patient because you’re a 2nd or 3rd year, you’re doing that because it’s what needs to be done for your patient. There’s no graded responsibility, just graded expectations as you advance through your training. While it may seem like I was thrown in the deep end, I was never alone. I had attendings with me every step of the way that morning to guide me through the critical management steps and even get me out on time. At the end of that first month of EM, I already felt more confident and knowledgeable and that was just the first of a series. That’s what the training at Beaumont was like. It is a place with high volumes and acuity but where I had supportive faculty and co-residents who helped each other every step of the way. It is a place where program leadership listened and made changes quickly for the better of resident education and wellness. It’s a historic, well-established and well-resourced program that has a long history of training capable future EM physicians.

I didn’t go into it here but you should also ask about the fun things the residents do outside of work

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Covid-19

When you go on the interview trail you should ask how the residency and the program leadership handled the situation during the peak months of March – May? How many residents got sick? Did residents feel safe? This was a time when I was regularly seeing 6-8 COVID patients on each shift in one of the hardest hit counties in Michigan. I’m proud to have worked with fellow residents, from interns to seniors who stepped up for each other gathering PPE and switching shifts to protect the higher risk residents in the program. I’m grateful for the attendings who stepped up to advocate for our safety and education in these times of duress and of course to the program leadership who stayed up late to hear resident concerns and make real changes quickly in the face of uncertain times.

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Where am I now?

I am currently a brand-new attending physician in Minneapolis, MN. I spend the majority of my time in the metropolitan area at the largest private hospital in the Twin Cities while spending some time each month at a free-standing Emergency Department/Urgent Care in a white-collar suburb as well as working single coverage area in a blue-collar rural town down south. Was I scared when I started these jobs in a new place? You bet, but also excited to take on the new role as an attending. After a few shifts to adjust mainly to the logistics, I realized I felt fairly confident to handle the variety of patients, adult and pediatrics. I was capable because of the last three years of training. You’re never going to learn everything in residency but I know I have a strong foundation established to handle the challenges I have and will continue to face.

Dr. Amanda Jurvis, Chief Resident 2018-2019, Class of 2019

I knew Beaumont was the right place for me from my first rotation there as a medical student. The environment that has been created truly feels like a family, from faculty, PA’s, and residents all the way to ED techs and social workers. I found myself so excited to go into a shift every single day. As a resident at Beaumont, I felt like I was given the perfect amount of autonomy and support, with great teaching and feedback every shift. There is good diversity in faculty in terms of practice and teaching style, so I felt really prepared to work in many different environments with different people and patient populations. I felt extremely supported in my post-residency aspirations through an amazing program leadership and program coordinators. 

The resident group is so down to earth and easy to get along with, and it’s a big enough group that everyone finds people to fit in with. I am so grateful to have trained at Beaumont and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a warm and friendly residency with big volumes and a great location!

Steff Traylor, PGY-1

I chose Beaumont because I wanted to be at a place with great training and where I would be treated like family. This place has more than met those requirements. We have the biggest volume in the state and very high acuity, so there are always interesting patients to see. The attendings treat us like colleagues and friends and really care about our education. My co-residents are an awesome group of people, and we have fun both at work and getting together on our days off. I also love the fact that we have all the resources of both a community hospital and a large academic tertiary referral center. I’m almost a third of the way through; my time here so far has flown by and I feel that I have learned a ton. I would definitely recommend Beaumont to any one looking for a fun place to work with top-notch training.

Nana Sefa, PGY-2

It’s been 1 year, 11 months at Beaumont – I have enjoyed every minute – no, I am not exaggerating, and yes, even the moments when the waiting room is overflowing. I may be biased, but I can confidently say that Beaumont is one of the best places to train in emergency medicine! I started the interview trail looking for a 3-year program that had a good volume, but where the residents were not over worked. On my interview day, the residents and attendings made me feel so at home that I described the interview day to my wife as PERFECT. And that was what it was. I felt like I was chatting with old friends. Over the past 23 months, I have gotten to know the team a whole lot more, and become friends with many. With a little over a year to go before graduating, I am confident that I can practice in any ED upon leaving Beaumont.

Fadi Kasyouhana, Attending

Ranking Beaumont EM #1 was frankly pretty easy for me. Where else could I have had the opportunity to return home from Ohio and still be trained to be an excellent physician? We have lots of options in the Southeastern Michigan region, but Beaumont stood out to me! I remember living about 10 minutes away in Southfield as a youth and passing by the big hospital on 13 Mile Road. From the first time I met the leadership during my interview, to the time I shadowed Dr. Susan Bork during Second Look, I took away a few things: 1) how easy going the attendings were even with the high volume Beaumont sees, and 2) the high acuity of the patient population presenting to Beaumont. The positive feelings of matching to my #1 ranked ER program only continued during my time here. I’ve loved my time as a resident and then in a leadership role as a Chief Resident. I will continue contributing to the residency as an attending at Royal Oak later this year. So come say hi to us during our ER shifts!