College of Medicine

Why choose us

Well, let’s start with the obvious. You get to live where everyone else vacations. Sarasota is home to some of the top beaches in the country and even the world. No grey or dark winter days to get you down; you can continue to enjoy your outdoor hobbies all year long. Emergency Medicine is a career that asks a lot of you, and when you go home from a busy day it should be to somewhere you love.

Now for what really makes this the best residency program for aspiring emergency physicians. Here at SMH, you will have no shortage of critically ill patients. We are a high-volume, large community/county hospital with high acuity and we are a level 2 trauma center. In Florida, the only difference between a level 1 and 2 trauma center is that the level 1 centers participate in research. Our residents see more than enough trauma to become very well-equipped in the care of the trauma patient.

While SMH is a county hospital, the people of Sarasota know the value of a high-quality public healthcare system. We are a well-funded and supported hospital system that is a pillar of this community. We are continually rated amongst the top hospitals in the state and even the country. We are very fortunate to work with nurses at a magnet-designated hospital and we have no shortage of ancillary staff. What does this mean for you? When you are at work, you get to focus entirely on learning to be an EM physician.

Another reason to choose this program is that we have the academic backing of Florida State University College of Medicine which is a well-established institution that has residency programs across the state. We may not be on campus, but the support and academic background is there all the same. You get to work with medical students from FSU College of Medicine as well as visiting students and have access to the library and other resources through the FSU College of Medicine.

What does an EM physician really need to know? How about… everything? You need to be prepared for ANYTHING to walk through that door- and that is EXACTLY what our program provides. With our volume and acuity, you’d expect us to have every residency there is, from orthopedic surgery to ophthalmology. Well, the good news is that we just have EM and IM here at SMH. What does this mean for you? It means that when you’re in the emergency department you are doing ALL the sedations, reductions, intubations, emergent deliveries, lateral canthotomies, central lines and dialysis catheters, temporary pacemakers, pericardiocentesis, lumbar punctures etc. The list goes on and on. You also are the one making the major decisions about each patient that you care for-not a team of residents and fellows from each consult service. While we are not a “resident” run program, in that your attendings see patients on their own, you will have the opportunity to grow and push yourself as a third year resident where you can learn to “run the pod,” and even how to utilize scribes. This means you are more prepared to go out and practice independently.

This page could go on for much longer listing all the amazing things about our program, but if you’re truly seeking emergency medicine, you probably don’t have the attention span for much more. There is one more advantage that must be mentioned, however. Here at SMH, you get to learn from EM physicians that believe in the future of emergency medicine, and take pride in their independence and in physician ownership. The EM physicians that staff SMH’s emergency departments and make up your faculty are a part of a small, physician-owned, private group. Our residents get to learn firsthand the value in this, with business and administration integrated into our curriculum in a meaningful way.

About the Program

The FSU-COM Emergency Medicine Residency Program at Sarasota Memorial Hospital is a community-based three-year training program that prepares graduates to go on to practice emergency medicine in multiple settings, including academics/fellowship, urban, rural, and community ED’s. The program offers exposure to a diverse patient population, with high acuity and a wide range of disease processes. Here at SMH, our residents have ample opportunity for research, teaching, and leadership development. 

Program Highlights

• The program believes EM residents learn best when most of their training happens in the ED under the guidance of a diverse group of board-certified emergency medicine physicians. This means no superfluous off service rotations. 
• The program expects our residents to be involved in the care of the highest acuity patients on day one. There are no graduated responsibilities here that limit the resident’s experience. 
• The program understands that there are many niches within emergency medicine and encourages the residents to explore their interests. Because of this our curriculum includes a selective month each year where the resident can focus on what they want more exposure to.  
• The program has a strong emphasis on resident wellness and understands the importance of ensuring our residents are supported in every way. Wellness lectures, organized social events, and mental health services are only some of the pieces of our wellness curriculum. 
• The program provides our residents with ample opportunities for procedures. This is in large part due to the lack of competition from other learners as well as the volume and acuity that we see in our EDs. Another focus in our program is on emergency ultrasound. Our residents complete a robust POCUS training program here at SMH and graduate as masters of this very important skill. 
   

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