Thank you for your interest in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine at the University of Washington.
One month clinical electives are available for visiting 4th year medical students, however, availability is limited. Medical students should apply through VSAS, the Visiting Student Application Service. For more information on VSAS, please visit www.aamc.org/vsas. The Visiting Student Office begins accepting applications on March 1st. Please be sure to review all Institution Requirements to ensure your applications are fully complete upon submission. This will avoid any delays in the reviewing and approval process. Placement in an elective in the Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine does not guarantee an interview for the Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program. All interviews for our program are a separate process and timeline than visiting students.
Please contact our Medical Education Program Manager, Plinette Sanchez at orthomsp@uw.edu with any questions or updates on upcoming events for this current cycle. Once your application is approved by the Visiting Student Office, the Department will be in contact with you. We do our very best to accommodate your schedule and course selection.
2024-2025 VSAS course catalog will be made viewable to prospective visiting students on February 1st, students can begin submitting applications March 1st and scheduling will begin sometime in April and will continue throughout the season. Space is limited. To increase chances of receiving an elective offer, students should apply for multiple ORTHP course electives in VSAS. Again, please contact orthomsp@uw.edu for any scheduling related questions or inquiries.
This page is current as of 1/25/24.
The Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine offers the following courses to visiting students:
ORTHP 676 – Pediatric Orthopaedics at Seattle Children's
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
This is a full-time, four-week clerkship at Seattle Children’s devoted exclusively to the evaluation and management of musculoskeletal problems of infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Comparison of children with fairly straightforward developmental variations to those with extensive, total body, multisystem deformities such as cerebral palsy and spinal bifida is the essence of this rotation. An appreciation of normal variations and natural history of structural deformities in children is stressed. This is particularly useful to students planning a career in pediatrics or family medicine in addition to those interested in orthopedic surgery as a career. An appreciation for timing of orthopaedic procedures in relationship to normal childhood development, and an appreciation of the effects of development and maturation on procedures carried out in childhood are developed. In addition to active participation in the many and varied outpatient clinics, students will participate in workup and care of the inpatients. Attendance at operative procedures is encouraged but not mandatory. Taking call is optional. Attendance at the many weekly didactic teaching sessions is required.
Enrollment: 1-2* students per 4 week rotation (*number can vary)
ORTHP 677 – Musculoskeletal Trauma at Harborview Medical Center
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
Instruction takes place at Harborview Medical Center and involves general orthopaedics but is weighted toward musculoskeletal trauma. It is geared to third- and fourth-year students. Students are assigned to one of the three orthopaedic teams with a one-in-three call schedule. When their team is on call, they will be expected to spend time seeing and treating patients in the emergency room, following them to the ward and possibly to the operating room. In this way, they will learn the basics of treating acute trauma. On the days when they are not on call, they will spend their time primarily in the various clinics where faculty subspecialty interests (hand, hip, spine, foot and knee) are reflected in the patient population present in the clinic. Here the emphasis will be placed on musculoskeletal examination and treatment. They will also attend cast clinics where instruction will be given in casting and splinting techniques. Attending rounds will be made separately each week with the students emphasizing the patients they are following. Presentations on various aspects of trauma care are given regularly.
Enrollment: 4-6* students per 4 week rotation (*number can vary)
ORTHP 678 – Musculoskeletal Oncology at Seattle Children's and UWMC
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
In-depth experience on musculoskeletal oncology service with primary involvement in initial evaluation, staging, treatment, and postoperative follow-up of patients with various musculoskeletal malignancies. The oncology rotation for medical students provides a basic understanding of the incidence of sarcomas and metatastic adenocarcinomas in adults and children.
Enrollment: 1 student per 4 week rotation
ORTHP 680 – General Orthopaedic Clerkship at VAMC
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
This is a full-time, four week clerkship at Seattle’s Veterans Administration Hospital. It is structured to provide a basic education in the fundamentals of the musculoskeletal system. Heavy emphasis is placed on the reconstructive alternatives in the treatment of degenerative joint diseases. Students must be registered 8-12 weeks before their rotation begins to apply for a VA badge/be fully credentialed. No students are allowed to rotate at the VA without a VA badge.
Enrollment: 1-2* students per 4 week rotation (*number can vary)
ORTHP 681 – Sports Medicine Orthopaedic at the Sports Medicine Clinic
Clerkship Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
When the clerkship is completed, the student will be able to perform and present a history and directed physical exam of patients presenting with sports-related musculoskeletal complaints. Recite a differential diagnosis for shoulder pain in the active patient (with and without a history of injury) and describe the differential diagnosis for patients presenting with post-traumatic hemarthosis of the knee. List the common treatment recommendations for patient with patellofemoral pain. Describe the expected history and physical findings in a patient with tendonitis, stress fracture, torn meniscus, ACL tear, rotator cuff tear, shoulder dislocation, AC separation and ankle sprain.
Enrollment: 1 student per 4 week rotation
ORTHP 684-Adult Reconstructive Spine Surgery at Harborview Medical Center
Clerkship Offered AWSpS - 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
This course is preceptor-based outpatient, inpatient, emergency and operative orthopaedic care. Students will work with the faculty in the Spine Service which specializes in adult reconstructive spine surgery, with a goal to maintain the highest standards of care in the evaluation and management of all patients with spinal disorders. This goal applies to education and research activities of the Spine Service in addition to providing state-of-the-art direct patient care. You will have an opportunity to participate in each aspect of this mission.
Enrollment: 1 student per 4 week rotation
ORTHP 685 -Adult Reconstruction Total Joint Service at Northwest Hospital
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
Preceptor-based outpatient, inpatient, emergency, and operative orthopaedic care. Students work with faculty in the Total Joint Service which specializes in lower extremity adult reconstructive surgery, including: complex primary hip/knee arthroplasty; less invasive approaches to hip/knee arthroplasty; revision hip/knee arthroplasty; periacetabular and proximal femoral osteotomy; osteotomy about the knee; and hip arthroscope.
Enrollment: 1-2* students per 4 week rotation (*number can vary)
ORTHP 687 P- Shoulder and Elbow at UWMC
Offered AWSpS – 4 Weeks
Prerequisites: Completion of third year required Surgery clerkship, third year medical student standing
Preceptor-based outpatient, inpatient, emergency, and operative orthopaedic care. Work with the faculty in the Shoulder and Elbow Service, which provides comprehensive evaluation and management for a wide range of shoulder and elbow problems, including: arthritis, dislocation or instability, fractures, rotator cuff/tendon tears, joint stiffness, and unsuccessful previous surgery.
Enrollment: 1 student per 4 week rotation