RCPSC: Applying to our program? Great!

This residency program is for 5 year(s)

Program length of training does not exceed the Royal College or College of Family Physicians of Canada standard.

The Royal College has implemented Competence by Design (CBD) in Emergency Medicine (EM) in Canada and the University of Ottawa EM Program has embraced this new and exciting curriculum.  CBD is perfect for Ottawa EM because it ensures competence, but teaches for excellence - that’s our style.

One of our huge strengths is the diversity of talent within our faculty that includes over 90 physicians. Our group includes national and international experts in simulation, EMS, ultrasound, medical education, forensics, toxicology, quality improvement, journal editing; our teachers have been awarded in excellence and have been rated among the best in the Faculty of Medicine. Importantly, Dr. Ian Stiell, our research chair, is highly recognized internationally for his major research contributions to emergency medicine and leads a team of fantastic researchers in our department (if you are interested in doing research in emergency medicine, the University of Ottawa is definitely the place for you).  But remember - you don't have to want to be a researcher to come to Ottawa.

Our core training sites include the Ottawa Hospital General Campus, The Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus and the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO).

Curriculum

The Emergency Medicine program follows the Royal College designed Competence by Design Curriculum.

Throughout the four stages of CBD (Transition to Discipline, Foundations, Core and Transition to Practice), residents complete:

• 33 blocks of Adult Emergency Medicine
• 6 blocks of Paediatric Emergency Medicine
• 1 block of EMS/Prehospital
• 2 blocks of Internal Medecine
• 1 block of General Sugery
• 1 block of Orthopaedics
• 2 blocks of Anesthesia
• 1 block of Phychiatry
• 1 block of Obstetrics/Gynaecology
• 1 block of Neurology (Clinics/Consults)
• 3 blocks of Adult ICU
• 1 block of Paediatrics ICU
• 2 blocks of Cardiology / CCU
• 1 block of Trauma
• 3 blocks of Electives

In this new curriculum, residents are also required to complete six months in an area of clinical expertise (ACE), or previously known as an area of subspecialty.  Our residents have the opportunity to pursue any area of interest to them that relates to emergency medicine.  Historically our residents have completed fellowships in ultrasound, resuscitation, paediatric emergency  medicine, simulation, geriatrics, public health, quality improvement, critical care, and many, many others.

Our program has a protected Academic Day every Thursday from 08:00 to 1700.

Academic Day

There is a weekly, protected academic day for all Emergency Medicine residents. This consists of emergency medicine grand rounds, core rounds, case presentations, practice oral examinations and other activities. A core content seminar series (based on the Rosen's textbook and more) covers the required knowledge content, over the course of the residency. During the afternoon, Simulation session occur in our state-of-the-art Simulation Centre.

Other Rounds

Journal Club, Medical Education Journal Club, Point-of-Care Ultrasound Journal Club and Trauma Rounds are held monthly.

Academic Projects 

The Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Ottawa has a world renown program in emergency medicine research. All residents are expected to produce a research or educational project. Presentation at the Annual Academic Day regarding research/educational initiatives is required and must be submitted for publication.

Courses and Funding

The DEM covers the costs of ACLS, ATLS and PALS. All of our resident become ACLS instructors. Additional funding exists for books and courses and when our residents are presenting their work at national or international conference.

The program presently has 8 positions available to Canadian medical school graduates (CMG’s) and up to 2 positions available for international medical graduates (IMG’s).

At present time, we are not accepting externally funded foreign medical graduates for residency training..That is, all graduates from non-Canadian medical schools must apply through the IMG process.

Applications for both CMG and IMG residency positions must be submitted through CaRMS. For further information please contact:

Lise Levesque
Postgraduate Coordinator - RCPSC
Department of Emergency Medicine
University of Ottawa/Ottawa Hospital
1053 Carling Ave. Ottawa, Ontario K1Y 4E9
613-798-5555 ext 18649
lilevesque@toh.ca

It is our goal that our residents develop excellent teaching skills during their residency. Our residents take the ED STAR course that focuses on teaching skills in the emergency department and have been responsible for teaching medical student sessions; this year, our residents take a greater role in teaching in the University of Ottawa’s Medical Simulation Centre uOSSC

Competitive candidates will have demonstrated a strong interest in emergency medicine by way of elective training and rotations done in their own medical schools (this however does not necessarily mean that all your electives must be in emergency medicine). Furthermore, we are looking for people who possess the energy, enthusiasm and character to achieve great things during their residency training and beyond.

We have a cohesive and supportive group of residents here in the Ottawa EM programs with a variety of interests. Here are some of our resident’s thoughts on our program;

My experience to date in this residency has been nothing but positive. Our program provides a rigorous yet supportive environment where expectations are high and residents are encouraged to achieve success in both clinical and academic pursuits. Ottawa is a great place to live and all those interested should join us for an elective to see what we’re all about. Jeff Landreville PGY2 RCPSC

We are training world-class academic emergentologists here in Ottawa. The teaching, the clinical experience, and the support for your academic interests (research, medical education, SIM, EMS, ultrasound, etc.) truly set us apart. I have no regrets in pursuing my training here in Ottawa and I’m certain you won’t either. Brandon Ritcey PGY5 RCPSC

The camaraderie within the residency group is remarkable given the size of our program. I truly feel that any resident won’t go out on a limb to help and support one of their colleagues. It’s a great feeling to know that you are part of this incredible team. Michael Ho PGY4 RCPSC

I came to Ottawa to become the best, well-rounded, academic emergency physician that I could be. I want to be the staff physician others lean on when things get out of control. I want to be on the cutting edge of this relatively young specialty. As I near the end of my training, I can confidently say that this program has provided me with the tools and the opportunities to work towards this goal. Michael O'Brien PGY5 RCPSC

Not only is the program awesome, Ottawa is a great place to live. There is a vibrant night life, loads of cultural activities and festivals, access to any outdoor activity you can think of and it’s still affordable enough to live here! If you have a growing family or are thinking about starting one in the years to come, Ottawa is a pretty ideal place to set up shop. Lauren Lacroix PGY3 RCPSC

Excellent teaching environment, a great epidemiology program , and peds fellowship program. T. Al Hamdan FRCPC- Graduate

It’s well structured, the staff are keen to teach, there is a good relationship with colleagues, and having PGY4 to do either electives or start a fellowship is great. M. Al Shamsi FRCPC- Graduate

I have really been impressed with the academic program here since starting in July ’05. Our half-day lectures have great variety of and taught by strong lecturers from the local academic hospitals and from visiting professors from around Canada. Moreover, our half-days are supplemented by full-day hands on courses like ED ultrasound, ultrasound guided central line insertion, and chest tube insertion just to name a few. C. Brulotte PGY5 FRPC - Graduate

The program is of course located in Ottawa, our nation's capital, and as such enjoys many of its benefits. Ottawa is a safe, medium sized city of 1,000,000 inhabitants metropolitan. Besides the many museums and cultural attractions the city has to offer, Ottawa is an outdoor lover's paradise. The city has extensive bike paths, jogging trails, the longest skating rink in the world (the Rideau Canal), world class rapids for kayaking, nearby downhill skiing as well as hundreds of kilometers of cross-country trails.  Ottawa is also one of the most reasonably priced cities to live in North America.

• Ottawa is an exceptionally easy place to live- no traffic woes, you can probably afford to live somewhere fairly nice, 10 min to get to work, chilly winter but great summer, lots of green, lots of patios, great activities minutes away, people are friendly but it’s still big enough so you can spend five years exploring. N. Wolpert FRCPC Graduate
• Ottawa is a great sports town and has a great nightlife. You’re also not too far from Toronto, Montreal, New York, and Boston for a weekend road trip (if you’re not on-call or in the ED).If you like the outdoors there are 3 ski hills within 20 minutes of the downtown and you’re within 3 hours of the best skiing in eastern North America. The summer offers arguably the best whitewater paddling in the world as well as great cottage country. C. Brulotte FRCPC Graduate