The University of Chicago Medicine Orthopaedic Trauma Fellowship is a new, one-year, Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA)-approved fellowship designed to prepare fellows for independent practice as orthopaedic trauma surgeons and future leaders in the field. The program will welcome its inaugural fellow in August 2027 and is the only OTA-approved orthopaedic trauma fellowship in Chicago.
The fellowship is based at one of the busiest Level I Adult Trauma Centers in Chicago, with an affiliated Level I Pediatric Trauma Center. UChicago Medicine established its current adult Level I Trauma Center in 2018, and its rapid growth has created a high-volume, complex clinical environment for orthopaedic trauma training. Fellows gain extensive experience treating pelvic and acetabular fractures, periarticular and long bone fractures, major polytrauma, complex foot and ankle injuries, fracture-dislocations, nonunions, malunions, complex soft tissue injuries, and patients requiring limb salvage or arthroplasty for fracture. The unique volume of ballistic trauma further broadens the clinical and operative experience.
Education is the foundation of the fellowship. The program is intentionally structured around fellow learning, with progressive operative autonomy under the mentorship of four fellowship-trained orthopaedic traumatologists. Fellows develop advanced surgical judgment and technical expertise through extensive operative experience, structured outpatient clinics, multidisciplinary trauma care, and graduated responsibility throughout the year.
Faculty
Lisa Taitsman, MD, MPH, Program Director
Mary Kate Erdman, MD
Brianna Fram, MD
Greg Schimizzi, MD, PhD
Clinical Responsibilities
All clinical activities occur at the University of Chicago Medical Center in Hyde Park. The orthopaedic trauma team includes attending surgeons, residents, advanced practice providers, and medical students. The fellow is an integral member of the team and participates in all aspects of patient care and education.
Clinical responsibilities include operative care, outpatient clinics, inpatient rounds, consultation, and call. The fellow takes call approximately one night per week and one weekend per month, initially in partnership with an orthopaedic trauma faculty member. As the year progresses, the fellow assumes increasing responsibility and autonomy, including independent call with faculty backup available as needed.
The fellow works closely with residents and medical students and is expected to take an active role in their clinical and operative education. Progressive responsibility throughout the year allows the fellow to develop the surgical judgment, technical skills, and leadership necessary for independent practice.
Didactics
Education extends beyond the operating room through a structured program of weekly and monthly conferences. Fellows participate in orthopaedic trauma conferences, departmental educational conferences, journal clubs, case-based discussions, and multidisciplinary conferences with other services involved in the care of injured patients.
The fellow is expected to contribute actively to these conferences through case presentations, literature review, and teaching. Opportunities are also available to participate in multidisciplinary quality improvement and trauma systems initiatives based on the fellow’s interests.
Research
The Orthopaedic Trauma Division is actively engaged in clinical and translational research, quality improvement, and collaborative research initiatives. Fellows are expected to participate in research throughout the fellowship year, with dedicated time and resources provided to support scholarly activity.
Each fellow will develop and complete a scholarly project under faculty mentorship, with the goal of producing work suitable for presentation at a national meeting and submission to a peer-reviewed journal. Fellows are encouraged to pursue projects aligned with their individual academic and clinical interests.
How To Apply
Our Orthpaedic Trauma fellowship participates in the SF Match. To register for the SF Match and apply to our fellowship program, please visit https://www.sfmatch.org/.
All applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis as of the program start date. If sponsorship is needed, J-1 visas are preferred.