Patient Volume

Pediatric residency training centers have varying numbers of patients -- some have very high volumes of patients and some have fewer patients. Studies have shown that residents in high volume programs actually care for patients with a lower diversity of diagnosis, because they are taking care of many patients with similar diseases. In lower volume programs, however, residents are caring for fewer patients but see more variety in diseases. The ACGME recommends that interns care for an average inpatient load of about 5 patients. So, for instance, residents who care for only 5 patients, may have five patients with a different diagnosis; residents who care for 10 patients may be caring for multiple patients with the same diagnosis. Patient volume may dictate the size of a training program, but not the variety of patients an individual intern will care for.

How many children with acute gastroenteritis does a resident need to care for before they have mastered the admission routine and treatment criteria? In our program you will master the basics, but you will also learn about the complex, such as when the patient has sickle cell disease in addition to gastroenteritis, or cystic fibrosis and gastroenteritis, or gastroenteritis, sickle cell disease, and cystic fibrosis! You will learn how to handle these complicated patients (in addition to the straight-forward issues), and you will become a more competent and confident physician.

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