Explore UAB

Medical School: Tulane University
Class: CA-3 
Hometown: Kuna, Idaho
#WhyIChoseUAB: I did a an away rotation here for a month as a medical student and loved it. The co-residents are fun to be around and the moonlighting opportunities are wonderful.
Fun Fact: I used to ride sheeps in rodeos
Favorite part of UAB: My co-residents
Favorite rotation and why: CV - very hands on, lots of practice with lines, giving high doses of drugs, exciting environment.
Favorite spots for a date night: Concerts, Baseball and Hockey games, Kayaking, Sushi and B-dubs
Favorite places to take guests: Birmingham Zoo, Steakhouses, Aquarium, Caves, Water Park
My neighborhood and why I like it: Vestavia Hills / Cahaba Heights. Close easy drive into the hospital, super safe, in the suburbs, close to a lot of parks and restaurants, wonderful schools.
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Rodeos, Parks, Restaurants, Concerts, Baseball games, Hot Air Balloon events
Why I like Birmingham: I met my now wife here during my intern year.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: The Vulcan where I got married
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Buy a bigger house 
What I’ll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: Co-residents and how green it is.
Plans for after graduation: General Anesthesia

Medical School: Mercer University
Class: CA-2
Hometown: Augusta, GA
#WhyIChoseUAB: I did an away rotation and fell in love with the program. It was clear from my time here that the residents were close and the faculty were dedicated to teaching. I also wanted to go to a program where I would get the best clinical training possible by being exposed to a wide variety of complex cases. UAB will prepare you for just about anything which is why I am happy to be here.
Fun Fact: I've met two current supreme court justices.
Favorite part of UAB: Definitely the people. From my fellow residents, to the attendings, to the hospital staff, they make my job more enjoyable. 
Favorite rotation and why: The VA because of the wide variety of cases you get to do, the autonomy you have, and the attendings who staff the rooms.
Favorite spots for a date night: Automatic Seafood, Amore, Slice, and El Barrio 
Favorite places to take guests: I'll take them out for drinks and BBQ. My favorite places to show them are Good People, Back 40, Ghost Train, Avondale, and top it off with Saws BBQ.
My neighborhood and why I like it: Crestwood. It's a healthy distance away from the hospital with a lot of restaurants nearby to enjoy. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Any bar/restaurant on Saturday during college football season.
Why I like Birmingham: I love Birmingham because it's the perfect sized city. It has a lot to do without all the traffic of a city like Atlanta. 
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain State Park 
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Some of the best tacos in town are right down the street at University Tacos.
What I’ll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: The people and relationships I've made.

Medical School: University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Residency Class: CA-3
Hometown: Columbus, MS
#WhyIChoseUAB: Strong residency program and couples match friendly
Fun Fact: If I hadn't gone into medicine, I would have been an archaeologist. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The people
My neighborhood and why I like it: Brook Highland- quiet area with nearby amenities and restaurants
Best places for soaking up the local culture: The Summit
Favorite rotation and why: Pain clinic- early access to hands on procedures and working with some of the best attendings in the hospital
Favorite spots for a date night: Bellini's 
Favorite places to take guests: Perry's Steakhouse and Automatic Seafood
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain State Park
Why I like Birmingham: Fun place to live and work in a growing midsized city 
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: The traffic around rush hour can be pretty heavy, so allow extra time if you are going to/leaving the hospital during these times. 
What I'll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: The people 
Plans after graduation: Pain Management Fellowship

Medical School: Morehouse School of Medicine
Residency Class: CA-1
Hometown: Lawrenceville, GA
#WhyIChoseUAB: I chose UAB because it provides great training, opportunities, and a good environment for me to develop as a physician and person.
Fun fact: I lived with 15 family members in one house during medical school
Favorite part of UAB: My favorite part about UAB is the fact that you have access to many different departments and buildings (VA, Children’s hospital, etc) from one area.
Favorite rotation and why: My favorite rotation so far is PMB because it is one of your first interactions with anesthesia, your co-residents in other classes, and anesthesia faculty.
Favorite spot for a date night: Civil Axe throwing, Jeni’s ice cream, Avondale Brewery
Favorite places to take guests: Uptown, the Summit, Avondale Brewery
My neighborhood and why I like it: I live in Highland/Forest park and it is close to the hospital and many restaurants.
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Avondale, Pepper place
Why I like Birmignham: I like Birmingham because it has some elements of a big city without the congestion or traffic.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain State Park
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Take time to explore the city if you are able to before residency starts.
What I'll miss most about UAB/Birmingham: I'll miss the proximity of resources at UAB

Medical School: UAB School of Medicine
Residency Class: CA-1
Hometown: Alabaster, AL
#WhyIChoseUAB: I loved the culture of the program. Everyone was so welcoming on my rotations as a medical student, and I wanted to be a part of a program where residents looked out for one another like they do here.
Fun Fact: My family was almost arrested for landing a hot air balloon in a trailer park when on vacation in Arizona. 0/5 stars, do not recommend booking a hot air balloon guide on Craigslist.
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The complexity and diversity of the patient population. Being one of the largest medical centers is great for our training because we can see everything from the bread-and-butter to the ultra-rare cases.
My neighborhood and why I like it: I live in a condo in Highland Park. It's only 5-10 min from the parking deck by car but it feels much more secluded from the city with lots of trees, parks, and sidewalks to run and walk my dog.
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Avondale Brewing for a concert, Crestwood Pickle Ball courts, Pepper Place Farmer's Market
Favorite rotation and why: SICU. I haven't done all of the anesthesia rotations yet, but I enjoyed my time in the SICU during intern year. I loved learning to take care of the complex patients and getting to do procedures, but most of all I loved making it through one presentation without disappointing Dr. Windham.
Favorite spots for a date night: It's not a "night" spot, but the brunch at ZaZa is my favorite in Birmingham. It's only served on the weekends from 10a-2p, but it's incredible!
Favorite places to take guests: Brunch at Zaza or Back Forty Brewing Co.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Highland Park golf course is a nice course with good city views only 5 minutes from the hospital.
Why I like Birmingham: There are plenty of restaurants, bars, and things to do in the city, but it doesn't feel crowded and is still relatively a low cost of living city.

Medical School: University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
Residency Class: Ca-1
Hometown: Cedar Falls, IO
#WhyIChoseUAB:  Excellent clinical training with very sick patients, great culture among residents and the department.
Fun Fact: I have a few hidden talents. The dancin' shoes don't come out often these days, but senior year of high school I was captain for our state champion dance team. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The people! But also chicken quesadillas. 
Favorite rotation and why: After intern year, my favorite was IPS. It was really cool to get procedural experience early-on, hang out in the lounge with the other anesthesia residents, and can't forget about IPS team breakfast!
My neighborhood and why I like it: 5 Points South: Centrally located with a short commute to the hospital, several good routes for running close to the hospital, relatively cheap rent. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Grab barbacue at Dreamland. Turn on the Paul Finebaum radio show and listen to people argue about Alabama football. Watch James Spann do the weather forecast. Grab a cheese grits bowl "all-the-way" in the cafeteria. 
Favorite spots for a date night: Crestwood Parl pickleball courts. Game on!
Favorite places to take guests:  The Birmingham Zoo, Jemison Trail, El Barrio, Collin's Bar, Bourbon Street
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Vulcan Park at night has a great view of downtown. 
Why I like Birmingham: Tons of restaurants to explore, coffee shops all over town, a few good trails in town with three very large parks within 15-30 minutes, pretty views with the "mountain", as an Ioan, the winters are pretty nice.
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Look into Panera Sips Club (*unsponsered ad) for your caffeine needs on medicine rotations.

Medical School: UAB School of Medicine
Residency Class: Ca-3
Hometown: Auburn, AL 
#WhyIChoseUAB: Excellent, challenging experience with great work life balance. 
Fun Fact: I am a Boston Celtics fan. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The family culture while pursuing excellence in all we do. No place will prepare you better professionally and personally to be an elite anesthesiologist like UAB will. 
Favorite rotation and why: Any of the ASD rotations because you're in the OR and the day usually flies by.  
My neighborhood and why I like it: Homewood- it's close to UAB and there's lots of great restaurants close by. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Oak Mountain State Park, RTJ golf course, the many great restaurants in downtown and the surrounding suburbs.  
Favorite spots for a date night: North Italia 
Favorite places to take guests: Ahbi Sushi  
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain State Park - it has trails and gold 
Why I like Birmingham: It's got great outdoor activities, awesome food, and it's close to my hometown in Auburn. I also have a lot of family that lives here. 

Medical School: Ohio State University
Residency Class: Ca-2 
Hometown: Centerville, UT
#WhyIChoseUAB: UAB is the perfect combination between excellent case variety with top tier training, unmatched moonlighting, and an awesome resident culture.   
Fun Fact: I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: My resident buds. 
Favorite rotation and why: I just love being in the general ORs. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Fultondale (chapel hill neighborhood). Cheap, newish housing, safe neighborhoods, north of Birmingham (avoids traffic).
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Homewood, Mountain Brook.  
Favorite spots for date night: Botanical gardens with dinner at Brick and Tin.
Favorite places to take guests: Back40, Red Mountain Park, Moss Rock, Oak Mountain State Park.  
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain.  
Why I like Birmingham: The warmth, the food, great training, good people.
Plans for after graduation: Cardiac fellowship. 

Medical School: Texas Tech SOM
Residency Class: Ca-2
Hometown: Grapevine, TX
#WhyIChoseUAB: Everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy the program and moonlighting is a nice touch too.  
Fun Fact: I'm a quidditch World Cup champion. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: Case variety. We do everything. 
Favorite rotation and why: Highlands regional has been my favorite rotation because I think doing ultrasound guided blocks are really fun and that's what you do all day. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: I live in Parkside near Regions field and Railroad Park. I like it because there are baseball games at Regions Field and there are also two breweries nearby and I'm under a mile from the hospital. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Avondale area is fun for concerts/food/drinks all in a couple blocks. 
Favorite spots for date night: Back40 brewery for a more casual date, automatic seafood for a more special occasion type date. 
Favorite places to take guests: Sloss Furnace as a tourist thing to do, Flying Biscuits/Ruby Sunshine/Maple Street Biscuit Company for breakfast/brunch. Jim 'N Nick's BBQ. 
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: There are great views up at the Vulcan statue. 
Why I like Birmingham: The breakfast food is astounding. 
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Rains a bit more than I expected. 

Medical School: University of Iowa Carver School of Medicine
Residency Class: Ca-1
Hometown: Salt Lake City, UT
#WhyIChoseUAB: The absence of brutal winters drew me in. Warm and welcoming program faculty and the collaborative culture combined with the opportunity to experience early independence through moonlighting sealed the deal. 
Fun Fact: I follow Teddy Roosevelt's advice, "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Except I have three swords. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The anesthesia lounge. And the people. 
Favorite rotation and why: CCU - mix of lines, echos, and physiology. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Meadowbrook- quiet, but close to all of the essentials. Neighbors are the salt of the Earth. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Downtown restaurants, BBQ joints, Vulcan Park.
Favorite spots for a date night: Bistro 218, Breakout Games. 
Favorite places to take guests: Vulcan Park, Botanical Garden, Heardmount Park.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Red Mountain Park. 
Why I like Birmingham: The people are second to none, the food is out of this world, and the weather!
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: You cannot be neutral about Alabama vs. Auburn. 
What I'll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: The people!
Plans for after graduation: Fellowship TBD- Carsiothoracic, Peds, or a love I have yet to find?

Medical School: University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville
Residency Class: 2025 (CA-1)
Hometown: Lynchburg, VA 
#WhyIChoseUAB: UAB's anesthesiology residency program has a great reputation for excellent training, and I felt like I fit in well with the residents I met during interview season. Its location was also appealing to me for raising our family. 
Fun fact: I have a motorcycle! 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: I love how we get five months of anesthesiology department rotations during intern year - something which I found was unique to UAB's program. These rotations have provided early exposure to anesthesiology and perioperative medicine, and I really appreciated the break from internal medicine wards. They strengthened my general clinical skills and knowledge, while also serving as a good foundation for which to build my CA-1 year upon. 
Favorite rotation and why: I enjoy the procedures and the acuity of patient care present in an ICU setting. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Old Cahaba in Helena. You can get more house/yard for your money, but still live in a great school district and safe community. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Buck Creek Festival in Helena, CityWalk in Birmingham 
Favorite spots for a date night: Birmingham Race Course Casino, Seasons 52, AMC theater in Vestavia Hills (it has heated, reclining seats, and they bring your food to your seat!)
Favorite places to take guests: downtown Birmingham, downtown Helena, Oak Mountain State Park
Best things to do with family/kids: Birmingham Zoo and Botanical Gardens, McWane Science Center, Helena Hollow Farm 
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the Scenic Views: Oak Mountain State Park, Red Mountain Park 
Why I like Birmingham: We see patients from diverse backgrounds with rare and common pathologies at UAB. Birmingham has most of the amenities and attractions of a big city without being too urban

Medical School:  VCOM - Auburn
Residency Class: CA-2 (PGY-3)
Hometown: Montgomery, AL
#WhyIChoseUAB: The complexity of cases, clinical autonomy. great work-life balance
Fun Fact: Worked for DoorDash during the pandemic ($$$) and never stole a fry 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The people. Both residents and faculty promote a very positive work environment that minimizes stress and make everyday fun.
Favorite rotation and why: Inpatient Pain Service. I'm a very hands on person and love doing procedures. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Moutain Brook. 10 minute drive to work (with traffic) and it has great outdoor parks and walking trails. It's also home to many great local restaurants and bars. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Avondale, Regions Field, Back Forty Beer Co., can't go wrong with any local restaurants as Birmingham as a nationally ranked food scene
Favorite spots for a date night: Mexico Lindo, my wife's go-to Mexican spot so it's a win every time. Others include Automatic Seafood, Helen, El Barrio, East West
Favorite places to take guests: Avondale, Railroad Park, Back Forty Beer Co., El Barrio, Baron's Games
Best things to do with family/kids: Hanging out with my dog Sa, walking on the local trails, hanging out with other classmates and their families at a local brewery or sporting event
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Jemison Trail, Highland Park Golf Course, Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail
Why I like Birmingham: It has all the amenties of a large metropolitan city without feeling overcrowded. Great small community scene as well so it's the best of both worlds.

Medical School: University of Utah
Residency Class: CA-3 (PGY-4)
Hometown: Kamas, Utah
#WhyIChoseUAB: UAB has so many facets that make it a great place to train: It is a big academic program where you learn by doing cases you only read about in textbooks as a medical student, the faculty and staff here are amazing while still being incredibly approachable, Birmingham's reasonable cost of living paired with our moonlighting opportunities allow us to have a life outside of residency, and last but definitely not least my co-residents are some of the smartest and hardworking residents that I have encountered while also being people who you want to hang out with in your free time.  
Favorite rotation and why: One of our rotations we do as CA-3 is called "AA" or acting attending. You oversee two resident rooms helping with inductions, emergence, and teaching the younger residents. It is great practice for what lies ahead of us as attendings, plus you get to interact with your co-residents which is always a nice change in our relatively isolated specialty. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Crestwood. My husband and I LOVE our neighborhood and our amazing neighbors. The houses are older and have a lot of charm and character. There is good diversity in people who live there, and it is almost expected that on nice nights you are out walking your dog or sitting on your porch drinking a beverage of choice. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Pepper place farmers market on Saturday mornings.
Favorite spots for a date night: Anytime alloy thai or pepperoni john (our favorite "secret" Birmingham food pop-ups) are putting out food is cause for date night, but on nights we are feeling fancy (from all those moonlighting hours) Automatic Seafood, Le Fresca, or Ovenbird.
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: As someone who is not from the south I honestly had no idea what to expect, but both my husband and I have been really happy here; however, I am not sure I'll ever get used to the humidity during summer months. 
What I’ll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: My amazing classmates who are moving for jobs/fellowships. I am so grateful that many of us are staying here next year
Plans for after graduation: I am doing a fellowship in Obstetric Anesthesiology here at UAB!!

Medical School:  UTMB Galveston, TX
Residency Class: Ca-2
Hometown: Burke, VA
#WhyIChoseUAB: I wanted a program where I could live in a home in a safe neighborhood within 15 minutes of the hospital that I could afford on one salary. Of the few programs where this is possible, UAB offers the best training, has the best work life balance, and most opportunities to augment learning through moonlighting with the best compensation of any other program.
Fun Fact: I play the euphonium
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The people.
Favorite rotation and why: TBD
My neighborhood and why I like it: Chapel Hills in Fultondale. Many other anesthesia residents with spouses and kids live there. Short commute, safe and good value for the money for newer-built homes.
Favorite spots for a date night: Bottega, El Barrio
Best things to do with family/kids: McWane Science Center, Birmingham Zoo, Botanical gardens, playgrounds and splash pads
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Oak Mountain
Why I like Birmingham: Large enough city where you don't have to travel outside city limits for anything you could want to eat/get/do, short commutes
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: How hilly and beautiful the city and surrounding area are

Medical School: UAB School of Medicine
Residency Class: CA-3
Hometown: Chicago, IL/ Huntsville, AL
#WhyIChoseUAB: Graduating CA-3s were fully competent in every facet of anesthesia and felt like they could handle any task that was thrown their way. 
Fun Fact: I ate dinner with Shaquille O'Neal once and he let me call any celebrity I wanted on his phone. So I called Will Ferrell but unfortunately I got his voicemail. So naturally, I called Megan Fox next and we talked for a few minutes. She told me that she loved me, so pretty much everything has been downhill since then. 
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: The autonomy we get is second to none. This is a program where you learn by doing things and that's what makes the experience so valuable
Favorite rotation and why: Cardiac anesthesia. The ORs are a well-oiled machine, the patients are sick, and every case provides a new and exciting challenge. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Highland Park. It's the best place to live because it's a nice neighborhood with multiple restaurants and dog parks, yet it is still a 5-minute drive from downtown and the hospital. 
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Avondale brewery on a sunny Saturday during college football season. It's pretty tough to beat. 
Favorite spots for a date night: Carrigan's
Favorite places to take guests: A Thursday night Baron's game w/ 50% of the Birmingham population is a glorious way to introduce someone to the city. Sit in the outfield, grab a dog and a $2 drink and soak it all in.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Railroad park is a super nice place to go walk around with friends and toss a frisbee or football for the afternoon. There's plenty of space to sit down and hang out and there are a few nice restaurants and coffee shops too that you can hit up before or after. 
Why I like Birmingham: It's a medium sized city that has plenty of things to do in the way of music, sports, breweries, and outdoor activities and also is small enough to not feel overwhelmed. Also, Tommy Regan (CA-3, Co-Recruitment Chair) lives here and that is more than enough reason to come here. 
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: That there is a 10/10 falafel shop 100 yards from the hospital that would receive roughly 25% of my monthly paychecks. 
What I'll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: Just being surrounded by people who are motivated to be the best people they can be but also people who do not take themselves too seriously. That's something that is hard to find in medicine.  
Plans for after graduation: I am heading out West to do a Cardiothoracic Anesthesia fellowship at UC San Diego. 

Medical School: UAMS
Residency Class:  CA-3
Hometown: Little Rock, AR
#WhyIChoseUAB: My number one criteria for choosing residency was a program that would assure I was capable in the practice I joined when I was done. At UAB, we care for the sickest patients in the state and surrounding areas with a level of autonomy unmatched in other programs I interviewed with.
Fun Fact: My brother Ross and I got matching tattoos in Italy last spring. Subject matter: a fork. swords, pasta.
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: Hanging out in the lounge, sharing stories with coresidents.
Favorite rotation and why: CV anesthesia. The cardiac attendings are great, the surgeons are awesome to work with, and the anesthesia is more involved.
My neighborhood and why I like it: Northside downtown. Great walkable bars and restaurants and also a short walk to the hospital to get the blood flowing at 0530.
Best places for soaking up the local culture: The Essential's patio with friends and drinks on a Sunday morning.
Favorite spots for a date night: Queen's Park 
Favorite places to take guests: Bocca, Automatic, Highlands, Cafe Dupont.
Best things to do with family/kids: Make sure everyone is fed at all times, also applies to anesthesia providers.
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Railroad Park. Birmingham has great sunsets from all the iron dust in the sky.
Why I like Birmingham: Made some great friends, close to Tuscaloosa for football games, easy drive to New Orleans to see the Pelicans win the Finals next year.
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: Get some golf lessons during 4th year of med school, you'll have plenty of time to continue working on your game.
What I’ll miss the most about UAB/Birmingham: The Essential's patio with friends and drinks on a Sunday morning.
Plans for after graduation: Pain fellowship pending match results.

Medical School: University of Cincinnati (AKA the Nasti Nati, really though the locals actually call it that)
Residency Class: 2025, CA1
Hometown: Fresno CA (Fres-Yes to the locals) it’s in Central California.
#WhyIChoseUAB: Dr Black and Tubinis were the most impressive interviewers. They asked me about my life and knew details about me that could only have come from my personal statement, nobody else seemed to know me so well. They projected so much strength and confidence but I could also immediately somehow tell that they cared. And they loved the pictures of my kids and wife, they were more interested in my family than in me.
Fun Fact: I am a well rounded nerd, trained in all the classical arts of nerdom. My current favorite pastime is D&D.
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: there are many impressive people here, and everyone is caring and respectful . They have taught me many things about being a father, being a doctor, and being an adult. I also really like the snacks in the lounge. #popcorn
Favorite rotation and why: OB - I enjoy seeing the immediate relief of epidurals and spinals. Especially after my wife’s hard labor, I appreciate what I’m doing for my patients, and I love babies. 
My neighborhood and why I like it: Gardendale - it's affordable, has a huge park with a splash pad, a nice preschool that my daughter loves, and I hope to send my next daughter too. #bougiebutworthit
Best places for soaking up the local culture:  My family loves the zoo, the parks, and driving to Destin, FL on the weekends for the beach!
Favorite places to take guests: Zoo, Vulcan Park, Destin
Best things to do with family/kids: Zoo, McWane science center
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Vulcan park, Birmingham Botanical Gardens
Why I like Birmingham: cheap, good commute no matter where you live, my coworkers
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: this place is pretty great! (They did, but as someone from VERY far away from the south, I didn’t quite believe them)

Medical School: UAB
Residency Class: CA1
Hometown: Arab, Alabama 
#WhyIChoseUAB: UAB has such a diverse patient population with very sick patients. I knew I’d get great training dealing with sick patients and feel comfortable wherever I end up following residency. Also the people are just awesome
Fun Fact: I am a captain in the Air Force, also have a wonderful wife, 10 month old daughter and 2 labradoodles
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about it: Super cliche, but the residents. I made great relationships on multiple med student rotations and couldn’t see myself anywhere else
Favorite rotation and why: Hard to say, but anything that’s in the OR after intern year
My neighborhood and why I like it: Oxmoor Glen, it’s about 15 minutes away from the hospital in a quiet location that’s close to lots of different restaurants
Best places for soaking up the local culture: Back 40 or Cahaba brewery
Favorite spots for a date night: Pizzeria GM or East West
Favorite places to take guests: Barons games, various breweries
Best things to do with family/kids: love to visit all the parks around town. 
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Patriot park in Homewood or Overton park in cahaba heights
Why I like Birmingham: great local restaurants, incredible community and not terrible traffic haha
What I wish someone had told me before I moved here: that I wouldn’t leave for 12 years haha.

#WhyIChoseUAB: I loved the camaraderie among the residents here. I could tell right away everyone was supportive of each other, and the group really seemed like a family. 
Fun Fact: When I was born my dad wanted to name me "Shelby Schroder" and my brothers wanted to name me either "Mufasa" or "Chip Bag." Thank god my mom vetoed and I got the name "Paige."
Favorite part of the program/UAB or something you love about the program: We really are a family! I was looking for a residency program where my class would be my second family and I would feel supported by my co-residents and faculty, and I have definitely found that at UAB. I wanted residency to not only be a top-notch educational and training experience, but also fun and allow me to enjoy my personal life too. My class is 21 residents from 20 different medical schools, so we came from all over and most of us didn't know anyone in Birmingham when we first moved here. This helped us bring us all together pretty quickly and we've had a blast exploring and getting to know Birmingham and each other over the last 3 years. I moved here from Ohio with my now husband and we went from knowing no one to having a solid support system in a matter of weeks. I love that our spouses are included in our resident family. My husband has made some of his best friends in my class and he loves to bake homemade chocolate chip cookies for me to bring into work, which everyone loves. The cookies are sooo good... ask anyone. 
I also love that the faculty at UAB are here to support us. They create a comfortable learning environment and make work fun. They really care about us and make changes based on our feedback. I know I could go to anyone in the department if I needed help and I would get it. We are a big program, which was my one worry about choosing UAB, but I really do not feel lost in the crowd. I feel like the whole department knows me, and I really feel at home.
My neighborhood and why I like it: Crestline- lots of young families, very walkable with parks and trails, great neighborhood restaurants, and a quick 10 min drive to the hospital.  
Favorite spots for a date night: Bettola, El Barrio, Bamboo, Blueprint on Third, Le Fresca, Collins Bar and many others! We also love to go to Birmingham Barron's baseball games in the summer. 
Best park, trail, or golf course/Where I take in the scenic views: Ruffner Mountain State Park, Oak Mountain State Park, Jemison Park, Irondale Furnace Trail
Why I like Birmingham: I love the outdoors, and there are tons of great hiking spots in Birmingham. I take my goldendoodle Leo on adventures whenever I can! Also, the restaurants are amazing. Birmingham really surprised me with its food scene, and I still have a lot of places I can't wait to try. There are some great local breweries too. Trim Tab is hands down the best beer I've ever had.