Residency Overview

The Department of Orthopedic Surgery's residency program is committed to providing you with excellent clinical and academic training. Throughout your residency, you will work closely with our faculty, who will serve as your mentors as you learn to manage a complete range of orthopedic problems. Our goal is to help you attain appropriate levels of independence at each stage of your residency; as your expertise grows progressively, so will your responsibilities.

Your first postgraduate year has been specifically designed by our faculty to meet your needs as an orthopedic surgeon. During this broad-based, preparatory year, you'll rotate through orthopedics, general surgery, and several elective disciplines.

The subsequent four years expose you to all subspecialty areas of orthopedics, including adult reconstructive surgery, hand surgery, foot and ankle surgery, oncology, pediatric orthopedics, spine surgery, sports medicine, and trauma.

Your residency is centered at UW Hospital and the adjacent VA Hospital, with rotations at Meriter Hospital and Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital. You'll perform outpatient procedures at most of these locations.

UW Clinics-Research Park contains both the Sports Medicine Center and the Spine Center. Available at Research Park are ambulatory clinics, an imaging laboratory, a therapeutic pool, a complete fitness center, and a wide variety of rehabilitation and exercise programs.

Throughout your residency, you will participate in the latest surgical procedures to treat a broad spectrum of orthopedic problems. You'll receive extensive experience in adult reconstructive surgery, including standard joint replacement and complex revision surgery. In addition, you'll learn multidisciplinary approaches for treating individuals with malignancies, as well as the surgical aspects of limb salvage after tumor excision. You will be involved in innovative treatments for congenital, traumatic, degenerative, and neoplastic spine problems; hand and upper extremity deformities and injuries; and foot and ankle conditions. You will also take part in the treatment of patients with multiple system trauma with extremely complex injuries.

In your pediatric orthopedic surgery rotation, you will participate in general and specialty clinics, including myelomeningocele, cerebral palsy, scoliosis, and hemophilia. You will perform a wide variety of operations, treating congenital, developmental, and traumatic pediatric problems.

While rotating with the sports medicine faculty, you will be involved in the evaluation and treatment of intercollegiate athletes. Surgical procedures include shoulder and knee reconstructions and arthroscopic evaluation and repair of knee, shoulder, elbow, and ankle injuries.

Part of your residency also will focus on clinical and laboratory research. During your three-month PGY-4 research rotation, you will be expected to work on a research project and write a paper for publication. You may collaborate with a faculty member or undertake a project of your own. The fully staffed biomechanics and spine laboratories are available to you through the duration of your residency.

Current research in the Department investigates the development, maturation and aging of musculoskeletal tissues, with a particular emphasis on understanding and treating orthopedic diseases and injuries. These issues are addressed on a molecular level (cell biology, biochemistry) as well as a macroscopic (biomechanics) level. An active group of surgeons and scientists in the spine research laboratory are investigating fusion techniques and biomechanics of spine instrumentation. Department faculty members hold patents on prostheses, spinal instrumentation systems, and surgical implants. The Department is involved in numerous clinical research follow-ups.

You will be supported by services and facilities that ensure that your time is productive, spent in learning and doing. The Department maintains its own library to provide you with a private, fully equipped facility to study, discuss cases, and relax. You will also receive travel and book allowances each year.

A comprehensive, faculty-directed education program includes four weekly conferences, monthly journal clubs, and weekly resident-led basic science sessions. The annual visiting professor programs add opportunities for learning from experts from around the country.

The residency program accepts five applicants per year to our five-year program. Selection of residents is through the NRMP. One fellowship in Sports Medicine and one fellowship in Spine Surgery also are offered each year.

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Administration - University of Wisconsin Department of Orthopedics & Rehabilitation
First published: 07/15/02 Last updated: 07/04/08 webmaster@surgery.wisc.edu
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