How many residents are in the program currently?

There are approximately 60 residents in total.

How many spots for next year?

22 spots + 2 in Regina

What type of fellowships are offered?

Fellowships are offered in GIM, Respirology, Cardiology, Rheumatology and Nephrology. The Nephrology fellowship is a recent addition.

How do residents typically do in the R3 CaRMS match?

Since its introduction two years ago over 90% of R3 CARMS applicants were matched to their program of choice in the first round.

What is the structure of the content of academic half days (e.g., systems based)

Academic half days follow a 2 year repeating curriculum based on Royal College competencies for Internal Medicine. This curriculum is reviewed periodically and available to all residents. Our protected half days are split into a mini 2-hour session on Tuesdays and a longer 3 hour session on Thursday. Tuesday sessions are presented by staff, and residents present the Thursday session.

There are weekly grand rounds and biweekly resident-organized Journal Clubs, as well as a variety of scheduled teaching that is rotation dependent.

What are the distributive learning sites?

Saskatoon has three hospitals. The majority of rotations are at the main teaching hospital, Royal University Hospital, in Saskatoon. There are also some rotations at St. Paul’s Hospital, another teaching hospital with more of an inner city population. City Hospital is typically for outpatient clinics and rehabilitation, and not much time is spent there for Internal Medicine.

Rotations on MTU at Regina General Hospital are mandatory in both first and third years (approx. 2-6 weeks/year). Housing is provided by the University. Optional sub specialty rotations in Regina are also available, and can sometimes provide greater learning opportunities as there are fewer residents around. Swift Current and Prince Albert are also possible options for rotations.

What are strengths of this program?

Residents have consistently cited collegiality as the main strength of this program. In addition to a close community developed among the residents, the staff are all very approachable. Many of the staff are quite invested in helping us succeed whether it be in research, CaRMS R3 match, or Royal College preparation. As well, the smaller number of fellows makes for greater procedural opportunities and staff interaction. Our program’s hidden gem however, is our wonderful admin staff, who generally improve our quality of life (making us feel welcome, accommodating requests for schedules/vacation/emergencies, reminding us of important stuff, etc).

Call schedule questions - how many call? Do you have to do cross coverage?

The maximum amount of call is 1:4, but typically residents have approximately 4-6 calls / 4 week block in the first year. Call in first year is largely in house CTU call. Other rotations with call include CCU, Neurology, Nephrology and ICU. Call in second year is mostly sub-specialty home call (coverage for all sub-specialties except the ones listed above that have separate call). Third year call is senior CTU call coverage for weekends, as a night float senior rotation is in place.

As of the last contract, there is a 26 hour cap on working hours for in house call. This generally respected and residents consistently go home before 10am post call.

Are there any benefits of being a resident in Saskatchewan?

Residents at the U of S are part of the PAIRS union. We have recently negotiated a pay increase, placing residents on par with the prairie provinces. The current contract will be up for re-negotiation in 2013.

Also available in Saskatchewan is the Graduate Retention Program, an income tax tuition rebate for those who come to Saskatchewan after graduating. You receive $2000/year initially and this amount increases with the number of years spent in Saskatchewan, to a maximum of $16,000-20,000.

Student loan interest payments (both federal and provincial) for the first 18 months are covered. PAIRS is currently working with the government to cover interest payments for the entire length of residency.

What is there to do in Saskatoon?

Saskatoon is a vibrant city in the heart of the river valley, where oodles of trail can be found for running, hiking, cross country skiing, snowshoeing - you name it! There is close access to Prince Albert National Park, as well as a number of lakes for summertime camping.

For those wanting less exertion, Saskatoon has a thriving arts and jazz scene, with the summer months providing an almost constant rotation of festivals (Fringe festival, Folkfest, Jazz festival, Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan, etc). Downtown is home to an excellent traditional farmer’s market, with many eateries that can be found nearby and along Broadway. We also have a $2 movie theatre as well as one of only six digital AVX equipped cinemas in the country!

For those interested in expanding their social circle beyond medicine, there are ample community activities including sports (soccer, badminton, ultimate frisbee), the arts (photography classes, pottery workshops), and volunteering (drop in and walk dogs at the SPCA for example).

What is housing affordability like?

Housing is always variable, but as a rough estimate: renting one bedroom apartments can range from $750-1600 depending on location, and purchasing 1-2 bedroom condos can range from $180-260K. Because of the size of the city, daily commute is approximately 20 minutes or less from most places in the city, depending on morning traffic etc. Parking at the hospital is typically less than $100/month, and parking downtown generally ranges from $2/hour to $15 for full day parking.

General happiness of residents

Happy!