Fifth-year residents in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have a unique perspective as they are almost done with this phase of their career. Two of them shared their experiences.
Lauren Gardiner, who got her MD from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, pointed out that her class started residency during the height of the COVID pandemic, “when our world felt especially small and uncertain.” During a week of quarantine, she and her co-resident had big dreams of building a global health experience for the residency. They pitched their idea to their then program director. The response was overwhelmingly positive. “Fast forward 2.5 years later, we are boots on the ground in Cape Town, South Africa, to start building a collaborative, research-focused rotation with the Division of Otorhinolaryngology at the University of Cape Town under the leadership of Professor Johan Fagan,” Dr. Gardiner said. “I think this highlights the openness to new ideas within the residency program, and the willingness to make these big dreams happen.”
Indeed, she chose UPMC for her residency because of its commitment to both clinical excellence and innovation. She said the program’s emphasis on training future leaders in a collaborative and supportive setting made for an easy choice. Her experience has exceeded expectations. “Becoming a surgeon within five years is no small task for both the learner and educator,” she said. “The mentorship within the program makes all the difference – we are assigned a faculty mentor starting day one of intern year, which is instrumental in navigating early residency. As a senior resident, my faculty within facial plastics have been my biggest advocates and were invaluable in my match into my dream fellowship program. My program director and chairman have been exceedingly supportive of my aspirations to become a leader in academic facial plastics/ENT and have provided numerous opportunities for me to reach these goals.”
When asked about the highlights of her experience, Dr. Gardiner referred to her co-residents, and said she cannot overstate how much they mean to her. “We experience so much life throughout residency – marriages, growing families, passing of loved ones,” she said. “These are truly friends for life, and it has been a joy to experience life, in and outside of work, with them.”
The “very welcoming and tight-knit residency culture” was actually one of the Department’s attributes that attracted Terral Patel, who received his MD from the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine. He also cited the strong and varied surgical training and attractive location, which all make the perfect combination. He, too, listed his relationships with co-residents and mentors as among the most prominent highlights of his experience. “Working together in this high-functioning and high-stress environment brings people very close together,” he said. “I have had the pleasure to learn about and be involved in the lives of my co-workers outside of medicine. I think growing this personal bond between each other has only supported our teamwork and added to our desire to see everyone grow and thrive.”
Coming to Pitt has opened many doors for Dr. Patel and given him the skills and knowledge to pursue any career path he desires. A moment that helped define how he interacts with patients and how he wants to steer his career path came from a lecture the residents received from Dr. Jonas Johnson, Emeritus Distinguished Professor and Chairman. “He has spent his life taking care of patients with head and neck cancer, and even after he stopped operating, continued seeing them in his Head and Neck Cancer Survivorship Clinic,” Dr. Patel said. “He had the insight that many patients who come to you want you to ‘make them normal again.’ This is often impossible. As physicians, we are unable to rewind the clock and undo whatever illness has led them to walk into our office. What we can do is acknowledge this and help them come to terms with their new reality and provide them with options for how to move forward.”
When asked what they would like prospective residents to know, Dr. Gardiner said she would encourage them to value the program’s global health connections, as the Department has an international reputation and offers multiple opportunities for global health rotations that will only continue to grow. “In addition, we have a strong Women in Otolaryngology presence with annual retreats and events throughout the year!” she added. For people interested in community engagement on a local scale, Dr. Gardiner pointed out that the residents coordinate ENT free clinics throughout the year. She has been the resident coordinator for the last four years and called it immensely fulfilling. The Department is also involved with Mission of Mercy, an annual free, two-day dental, vision, and hearing clinic that serves patients in need.
In response to the question, Dr. Patel said it is very easy to forget that what they do every day as physicians and surgeons is extraordinary. “We become surrounded by high-functioning achievers and normalize to the life-changing things we do every day. I’ve been amazed at the small interactions that I’ve had with patients that they remember for a long time afterwards. It’s always a delight to see patients in clinic who I haven’t seen for a while and even more comforting to know that they remembered me and were hoping to see me again. I want incoming residents to know that just by doing the work as a resident, you are impacting people’s lives in significant ways.”
Dr. Patel has taken a job as a comprehensive otolaryngologist in a county hospital in Minnesota next year. He is looking forward to working with an underserved and underinsured population in addition to having exposure to trainees.
Next year, Dr. Gardiner will be joining the University of North Carolina Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery for a facial plastics and reconstructive surgery fellowship. She is excited to bring the strong clinical foundation she has built in Pittsburgh to her next phase of training.