Tri-city ED

Please contact the Rotation Director (Dr. Oh) and Rotation Coordinator (Teresa Verpooten) at least 6-8 weeks prior to the start of the rotation. Dr. Oh makes the schedule several months in advance and you need to request leave early. **No leave the first week of the rotation is allowed. 

Please also complete the rotation paperwork below NLT 8 weeks in advance and submit to Castor.

Great rotation with sick patients providing opportunities for resuscitations and procedures.  Long commute to south Oceanside, just south of Camp Pendleton.  Dr Oh is the POC.  He will set up your schedule prior to your rotation, and pair you up with staff who like to work with residents (there are some who prefer not to).  Dr. Oh will have your badge and computer log in ready for you for yor first day. 

The ER is divided into different “pods”.  A and D are less sick patients, typically you will not be scheduled to work these pods.  The B or C side have acute patients, and you are paired with one staff.  For your third year, they only expect you to carry 4-5 patients at a time, at most.  During your chief year, they will expect you to carry a side.  If you are working the C side, you cover the resus room, and you will tend to get resuscitations regularly.  The last hour of your shift is for cleanup of patients and finishing dictations.  Elderly population and lots of nursing homes, Hispanic population, and some jail patients.

Whole system is computerized for discharge, orders, order sets and takes time to get used to but can create favorites and would recommend doing this as it makes things easier.  Everything moves very fast including radiology studies so be prepared to move patients quickly.  The system is set up for the physician there, and everyone is working to make you more productive.

Physicians do all procedures there, including NG tubes, for billing purposes.  There are PA’s who do procedures as well, and they are usually happy to let you do whatever procedures you want to do.  You can get a lot of lines and tubes.  Keep an ear out for certain overhead calls that indicate a procedure occurring somewhere in the ED, e.g. “Code Sepsis = central line opportunity”.