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Frequently Asked Questions

Interview/Application

  • How do I submit an application?

    • Applications are accepted through ERAS, administered by the AAMC.

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  • Do you need Step 2 CK and CS scores before applying?

    • Nice to have, but not necessary. We understand that not all applicants will be able to schedule and take Step 2 CK and CS in time for the scores to be available at the time of application.

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  • Do you accept COMLEX scores for DO candidates?

    • We encourage you to submit USMLE scores in addition to COMLEX scores, but we do accept applications with COMLEX scores only.

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  • Is training in the US essential? What types of visas do you offer?

    • We do require some degree of US training in your background, such as prior internships or rotations.

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  • How do you schedule interviews?

    • We use interview broker.

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  • Does interviewing early or later in the interview session affect your chances of matching?

    • Not at all. We want you to come check us out when it’s convenient for you.

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  • What’s interview day like? Is there a social event before the interview?

    • Interview day is awesome. Please refer to our interview info page for specifics.

    • There is absolutely a social event. Please check here for an updated draft list.

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  • Do you need to be from the East Coast/will it impact whether you match at Temple?

    • Nope. We train folks from all over the country and can put you in touch with current or former residents from your neck of the woods.

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  • How many residents do you accept each year?

    • 14

Schedule

  • What sort of schedule do you guys have?

    • “Circadian scheduling”–basically bumping the shift forward a bit each day. As an intern, you start at 7am-5pm for two days, then 1pm-11pm for two days, then 9pm-7am for two days, then get the rest of that day and all of the next off before coming back.

    • Pro tip, that day where you’re finishing at 11pm but not coming back in until 9pm is clutch.

    • While in the main ED, interns work 10-hour shifts and 2nd and 3rd year residents work 8-hour shifts. (So it’s 7am-3pm, 3pm-11pm, and 11pm-7am for upper years.)

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  • Isn’t that intern abuse?

    • Nah. We built it in so that the interns overlap during the busy points of the day, which lets your oncoming intern show up ready to rock while you get to ramp down, tidy up your cases, and get out on time. It’s great.

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  • How far in advance are shifts posted?

    • You get your annual schedule for ED months in July.

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  • Is it difficult to get time off for personal events?

    • Not really. With enough advance notice the chiefs can jujitsu most anything before the schedule is released, and since you have your schedule a year in advance it’s easy to arrange swaps thereafter. We have folks getting married, going abroad, having babies, attending conferences, going to Burning Man…normal people stuff.

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Clinical Experience

  • What are the demographics of the patients I will take care of at Temple?

    • We are passionate about the patients we serve. Temple is a large hospital with well-regarded specialty care, drawing many patients from the North Philadelphia and the Philadelphia suburbs that are diverse in their racial, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. We are proud that Temple University Hospital ranked #1 in PA and #13 in the nation for racial inclusivity by the Lown Institute in 2021. Episcopal Hospital, one of our satellite sites, treats a patient population that is primarily Latinx, and Jeanes hospital has large white, Russian and Asian communities

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  • How are traumas managed between trauma surgery and EM?

    • Trauma patients are treated jointly by the EM team working in the department and the trauma surgery team. The trauma surgery team consists of a mix of EM and general surgery residents. Due to the considerable amount of trauma seen in our department, all residents from both specialties have more than ample opportunity to become experts in the management and procedural aspects of trauma care.

    • We see an equal mix of blunt and penetrating trauma. We think our trauma experience provides an excellent framework for training you in the team based care of some of our most critically ill patients.

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  • Does anesthesia get involved with emergency department airways?

    • Temple residents get quite comfortable with difficult medical and trauma airways. The EM senior residents manage trauma airways, and the EM junior residents manage medical airways. The EM attending serves as the “back-up” for both trauma and medical airways if needed by the residents. In-house anesthesia is available and rarely will be called at the discretion of the ED team, but they are not notified and do not respond unless we call them.

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  • What ancillary resources are available for managing patients?

    • We have social work, case management, and outpatient follow-up scheduling in the ED from early morning to late night to assist in acquiring equipment, medications, disposition and follow up to best meet our patient population’s needs and improve their health outcomes. Our transport team is also charged with telephone follow-up to check on patients improvement, medication acquisition, and follow up appointments. We have a dedicated ED pharmacist who is a wonderful asset for everything from finding inexpensive treatment options for patients without insurance to complex resuscitation of crashing patients.

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  • What EMR do we use?

    • The inpatient, outpatient, and ED settings are all on EPIC.

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  • What is our pediatric exposure?

    • Balanced. There are four dedicated pediatric months, with a Pediatric ICU experience at St.Christopher’s Hospital for Children as an intern, and one Pediatric EM block each year at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In addition, we provide a longitudinal pediatric EM experience throughout the residency program with intermittent shifts at St. Christopher’s throughout the three years of training. We do this to provide complete exposure to the seasonal variations in pediatric presentations and to avoid the degradation of pediatric knowledge and skills during adult EM months. Additionally, our residents care for a mixed adult/pediatric population during EM months at Jeanes and Episcopal, and care for both adult and pediatric patients in our main ED during the night-time hours after our pediatric ED closes. Our residents are routinely sought out to take an active role in the management of sick pediatric patients at our outside rotation sites.

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  • What other clinical sites are incorporated into your program?

    • Refer to our Facilities page for extended info on all our residency sites.

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  • How many ICU months are integrated into our residency?

    • There are a total of 5 ICU months. 1st year: Pediatric ICU and Medical ICU; 2nd year: Burn ICU and Surgical/Trauma ICU; 3rd year: Medical ICU. As a bonus, in the Medical ICU, the third year EM resident and the EM intern make up their own team.

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  • But seriously. Ask any resident about the variety of pathology we see, the severity of illness we treat, and the quantity and variety of procedures we perform. We’re confident the strength of the clinical experience at Temple will be evident when you get to know us.

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Curriculum

  • What are our conference times/hours? Journal clubs?

    • Every Thursday, we have protected conference time from 8:00AM-12:00PM. Journal club is once a month and it is also protected time (held outside of the hospital). Protected time means attendings staff the ED while you learn.

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  • How is the clinical curriculum structured?

    • Refer to our curriculum page for all the detailed information on clinical blocks.

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  • How are residents evaluated?

    • Residents receive verbal feedback during every shift. In addition, there is a written daily evaluation that residents can access online. Finally residents also receive a semi-annual global evaluation to help track progress and provide suggestions for improvement. Meetings are scheduled twice annually with the program leadership to review evaluations with the resident and provide suggestions for growth and career enhancement.

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  • How do residents evaluate and improve the faculty and the program?

    • Resident input matters, and the program leadership is quite open to it. Faculty and program evaluations completed by the residents are anonymous. Residents do an in-depth program overview with our vice-chair semi-annually to discuss areas for improvement. The program leaders have an open-door policy, and are available night and day to discuss any issues.

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  • What mentorship opportunities does Temple provide?

    • Every intern is paired with an attending mentor in July. As residents progress through the program, they often “graduate” to a new mentor whose interests & expertise match the budding career interests of the resident. We are also a close knit community of residents, and senior residents play a large role in the education and mentoring of junior residents.

    • Our residency program also offers a Women’s Mentoring Group for all of the female residents and attendings at Temple.  Once every few months, the group gets together, over a fabulous dinner at one of the attendings homes, to discuss issues unique to women in medicine or sometimes just to hang out together. It’s a nice opportunity to get to know faculty outside of the clinical setting.

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  • How does Temple facilitate work-life balance within the curriculum schedule?

    • Axe throwing, most recently. Our program takes resident wellness seriously. Our schedule on ED months is designed to improve sleep patterns, and assure that when residents have time off they are well-rested enough to enjoy it. In addition, the block scheduling allows for easy shift switches to accommodate a resident’s personal schedule. Our journal clubs and conferences are protected time so that all residents may attend, and shifts on these educational days are shortened.

    • Once a month we schedule a Residents Night Out (RNO) after our journal club, to spend time together as a large group. In the past, we’ve organized trips to a haunted prison, the local axe throwing club, and dragon boat racing on the Schuylkill (no experience required). During this time the ED is covered solely by attendings so that the residents in the ED may have the evening off.

    • This year one of our senior residents felt that the program would benefit from an intern retreat. She put together a proposal, and the department funded a house in the Poconos and provided attending coverage for the ED. We hope to make this an annual event.

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Bonus

  • Where do residents live?

    • While this writer feels that East Falls is the best neighborhood in the city for a plethora of reasons that she would be happy to discuss further, the residents live all over. Philly is a nice balance; it’s a major city with tons of activities and amenities that doesn’t break the bank. Residents drive, take the subway, and bike to work (garage parking across the street from the hospital is free).

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  • Do the residents hang out outside of work?

    • Yes! Some of our favorite activities are hiking in the Wissahickon with our dogs, visiting the rock gym to climb, playing in recreational kick ball/dodge ball/flag football leagues, and (beer) gardening. We are a nice mix of singles, couples, and families with kids.

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  • But what if I need to nap in the hammock for a bit?

    • We have a great resident lounge right down the hall from the ED. This is where we come after shift to decompress and finish up charts. It’s also a popular place to hang out on call, and is equipped with a flat screen TV, video games, Megan’s prized portable hammock, and the world’s best couch.

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  • Who stocks the Keurig?

    • The chiefs ensure a well-stocked Keurig funded by the department. For fancy-pants coffee, Earth Cup is our hospital’s coffee shop and is located close to the ED for quick coffee runs. There’s a Starbucks across the street. You will not want for caffeine.

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