Regional Anesthesia
Throughout their training, residents will have many opportunities to learn how and when to use regional techniques for anesthesia and analgesia in obstetrics, pain management, and thoracic surgery, but the regional rotation is used to specifically teach regional anesthesia. This rotation was actually brought about after residents expressed an interest in learning more regional techniques during their residency. The administration responded by starting a rotation dedicated to placing regional blocks for intra-operative anesthesia and post-operative pain management. The residents' hard work convinced many of surgeons in orthopedics and plastics to change their surgical management and request blocks for many of their important surgical procedures.
Resident Perspective
As a resident, you complete a required regional rotation as a CA-2 and are given the opportunity to do an elective rotation as a CA-3. If you are scheduled as the "Block Resident", you spend the day placing regional blocks for all the patients on the East campus. Most of these blocks are done under ultrasound guidance with one-on-one attending supervision. To offer the most time to establish your skills at regional anesthesia, you are not scheduled for any OR cases on your block days. This is one of the most popular senior rotations. Additional regional block experience is obtained on the West campus when residents rotate on the acute pain service. The busy orthopedic trauma service creates opportunity for catheter-based regional techniques.