06/17/2020

Medical residents step up to care for patients, reach out to community during pandemic

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As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, medical residents — physicians who have completed medical school and are training in a specialized area — have been dedicated to caring for COVID patients. This includes medicine and anesthesiology residents spending long hours in intensive care units, and emergency medicine residents treating patients who come into the Emergency Department. Residents in specialties from surgery to psychiatry to pediatrics are also stepping up to provide expertise.

“Residents are right there on the frontlines with the nurses and other physicians,” said Anita Blanchard, MD, Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education at the University of Chicago. “They’re completing their training, while also contributing to this effort. Many are sacrificing other educational opportunities to help cover the COVID units.”

As residents gain new skills and see patients across the hospital, they’ve offered valuable insights and identified new opportunities for reaching those in the community who are disproportionately affected by the virus.

“Residents are bringing innovative solutions to address community problems,” Blanchard said. “This is such a unique and devastating crisis, and healthcare providers recognize that we have to do things differently to ensure that we can continue to provide the safest care possible to our patients.”

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