Regional Anesthesia & Acute Pain Fellowship

Message from the Program Director

Welcome! Thank you for visiting our Regional Anesthesiology and Acute Pain Medicine (RAAPM) Fellowship Page. The University of Utah Department of Anesthesiology has a rich tradition of training outstanding regional anesthesiologists, acute pain medicine experts. We offer a one-year, ACGME-accredited fellowship program with unparalleled exposure to regional anesthesia, acute pain medicine, chronic and cancer pain, addiction medicine and experiences in trauma and pediatric regional anesthesia. We also think it is important for fellows to maintain and perpetuate their clinical anesthesia experience by practicing inside the operating room. We currently offer four (4) ACGME-accredited positions per year. During the first part of the academic year, fellows are focused on building medical knowledge and technical skill as they are exposed to neuraxial procedures, peripheral nerve blocks/catheters, truncal nerve blocks/catheters and the management of challenging surgical and nonsurgical acute pain patients. As the year progresses, fellows gain valuable experience managing our clinical services, teaching residents and students with appropriate faculty supervision. RAAPM Fellows are family. There is no training facility in the United States that offers better and more convenient exposure to the outdoors. World-class skiing, hiking, mountain biking and other outdoor activities are literally at your doorstep. Most of our faculty come to Utah with the intention of staying long enough to complete their training but end up staying their entire career! There are no in-hospital call responsibilities and telephone/weekend duties are minimal. Optional moonlighting opportunities are readily available and can substantially increase your income. We hope you will consider applying to our RAAPM fellowship! Please contact me directly with any questions. -Best Wishes
Jacob Pollard, MD Program Director

Fellowship Rotations

Regional Anesthesia

This rotation will be based primarily at the University of Utah Hospital (UH), the University of Utah Orthopedic Center (UUOC), and the Huntsman Cancer Hospital (HCH).
Fellows will have the opportunity to become experts in the placement of epidurals, upper and lower extremity nerve blocks, and continuous catheters, as well as truncal block procedures.

Acute Pain Medicine

This rotation will be based primarily at UH, HCH, and the Salt Lake VA Hospital (VA).
Fellows will have the opportunity to manage challenging surgical and nonsurgical acute pain patients. Exposure will include the management of patients on buprenorphine, naltrexone, extended-release opioids, along with the management of epidurals, continuous nerve catheters, ketamine infusions, patient controlled analgesia infusion, among others.

Operating Room (OR)

This rotation will be based primarily at the UUOC, UH, and HCH.
Continued exposure to the operating room and maintaining a practice in anesthesiology is a priority. We assign fellows to surgical cases that provide opportunities keep up their anesthesiology skills with a special emphasis on managing a perioperative pain plan.
One week of this rotation will be dedicated to the goals/objectives of the ACGME trauma exposure requirement.

Pediatric Regional Anesthesia

This rotation will be based primarily at the Primary Children’s Medical Center (PCMC).
Fellows will have the opportunity to gain experience with assessment and treatment of acute pain in children and participate in acute pain management and regional anesthesia for pediatric surgical patients.

Chronic Pain Medicine

This rotation will be based primarily at HCH and the Chronic Pain Clinic (CPC).
Fellows will have the opportunity to work with board-certified Pain Medicine specialists to provide interdisciplinary management of chronic pain patients including patients with a special emphasis on understanding and treating cancer pain.

Other educational activities include

Daily instruction and individualized attention with RAAPM faculty
Scheduled weekly didactic lectures.
Scheduled monthly anatomy lab sessions.
Special lectures in addiction medicine
Special lectures in nerve conduction/EMG
Monthly Department lectures and Grand Rounds
Scheduled quarterly special case conferences.
Regional Anesthesia Journal Club

Benefits

Annual Salary: $80,XXX
Medical/Dental/Vision insurance
Life insurance
Transportation – all University employees in benefit-eligible positions have a UTA pass tied to their University ID card.
3 weeks of vacation time
1 week of personal/professional days to be used for sick days, board exams, job interviews, etc.
1 week of conference time (ASRA, ASA, SAMBA or IARS meetings)
Education and conference stipends
Internet reimbursement
Option to purchase a heavily discounted iPhone with paid cellular service during the year included.
Moonlighting: Fellows have voluntary, lucrative moonlighting opportunities that are readily available within the University Hospital after training hours, weekends or on holidays. Moonlighting is compensated at the same rate as faculty and can substantially increase income.

How to Apply

Applicants must register and apply to our program through the SF Match website. https://www.sfmatch.org/

CAS Application via the online SF Match portal.
- Complete Personal info Form
- Required Supplemental Form
Three letters of recommendation (LORs)
- 1 letter should be from residency PD or department Chair.
- Other letters should be from physicians who have directly observed your clinical work and can attest to your medical knowledge, technical skill, ability to work collaboratively and communicate professionally with colleagues and patients.
Personal Statement
Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Medical School Transcripts
Medical Diploma
USMLE transcripts (Steps 1, 2, 3 and/or COMLEX 1, 2 and 3)
ECFMG certification (if applicable)