Greetings from the swamp! There have been so many exciting things occurring since we last checked in. We recently said goodbye to the Class of 2023. Although they’ll be greatly missed, we are glad that a few familiar faces will remain, including Drs. Freiden and Dr. Zhou. It has also been refreshing to welcome back our former resident, Dr. Pompa, who has returned to UF as an attending after completing his EMS fellowship in New Jersey.

On the topic of new beginnings, we have welcomed 14 new interns to join our Gator family. These freshly hatched Gators selected through our holistic applicant review, come to us from a an extremely diverse set of training, experiential, and cultural backgrounds.They’ve been ‘cranking’ in the ED, under the guidance of their resident mentors and faculty.Their orientation month which included SIMs, procedure labs, and PGY-1 tailored lectures, helped them develop a skill set whichpreparedthem for our vibrant ED. All of us are super excited to see how the Class of 2026 develops, matures, and growsover the course of their training!

The residents have spoken, and our faculty have listened. Our conference structure has been shaken up at the behest of our residents and chiefs. In addition to the previous improvements including flipped classrooms, and interactive simulations, we are now in the process of transforming our conference to include asynchronous learning. Residents will gain conference credit by completing different educational activities such as board review questions, ITE-specific lectures, and volunteering to tailor their learning to the style that fits them best!

Speaking of a vibrant ED, we have exciting news! According to recent data from AAAMC compared to other Level 1 Academic trauma centers, our residency has the highest acuity in the nation! Although we are thrilled about this ranking, we are not surprised! There is no doubt we see the sickest, most complex patients and are honored to be part of their care.

Lastly, a shout out to our visiting students in the ED who’ve come through the department these past few months. We’ve enjoyed having you, and we’re excited for the virtual interview season that lies ahead. We are thrilled about meeting the wonderful candidates who will be applying to call our program home.

References: National AAAEM Benchmark Survey, 2022