Salary 2024-25

PGY-1  $61,008

PGY-2  $64,413

PGY-3  $67,555

PGY-4  $70,911

Resident Benefits

Fiscal benefits

Education Stipend: Residents receive an annual stipend for educational materials that can be used for academic expenditures ranging from a computer, to academic memberships (e.g. EMRA), to question banks (Rosh Review), to books to help with the USMLE Step 3 or the annual In-Training Exam for emergency medicine residents. The education stipend is $1500 per academic year.

Food Stipend: Residents receive an annual stipend of $5500 ($211.54 per paycheck pre-tax) negotiated to offset the cost of food at work and in Chicago.

Moonlighting: Residents may moonlight internally starting during the PGY-2 year. The internal moonlighting rate is $93.75 per hour, and residents typically work 8-hour shifts when moonlighting internally. Additionally, residents may moonlight externally starting during the PGY-4 year.

Conferences

In the PGY-2 and PGY-4 years, the entire residency class will be sent to a leading national emergency medicine conference. In the PGY-2 year, residents attend the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) Scientific Assembly. In the PGY-4 year, residents go to the ACEP Scientific Assembly. The conference costs are subsidized by the program.

For additional conferences that you have research to present or are participating in SIMWars, SonoGames, or similar events, the department has money set aside to assist in sending residents to represent Cook County EM. Annual costs for the Illinois College of Emergency Medicine (ICEP) Spring Symposium are also supplemented by the department.

Vacation

Each academic year, residents request two 2-week blocks of paid vacation. For blocks in the emergency department at Cook County, residents may request specific days to have off during each block.

Parental leave and scheduling

Parental Leave: Residents receive paid maternity and paternity leave to cover periods of pregnancy, newborn childcare, and/or newly adopted childcare. 4 weeks of leave is allowed for non-surgical delivery, and 6 weeks of leave is allowed for surgical delivery. 2 weeks of leave is allowed for the birth of a child to the spouse or domestic partner. 2 weeks of leave is allowed for the adoption of a child.

Parental leave is administered in conjunction with the Family and Medical Leave Act and may be combined with other paid time off (vacation, sick leave, floating holiday etc.). Residents may also elect to take up to 6 months of unpaid leave.

Clinical Scheduling: Pregnant residents are not scheduled to work night shifts or placed on rotations that take call during the first and third trimesters.

IVF Treatments: Given the unpredictable time requirement associated with IVF therapy, residents undergoing IVF will be given the option to activate back-up call in order to complete their full course of treatments. Rather than following the standard payback policy, activated residents are reimbursed at the internal moonlighting rate for any and all required activations.

Breastfeeding: Our program facilitates breastfeeding for parents who return to work by providing the following for up to one year post-partum:

  • A private lactation room (not a bathroom) close to the ED work area that is free from view and intrusion.

  • A refrigerator in the private lactation room to store milk.

  • Two 30-minute pump breaks in an 8-hour shift. The attending physician assumes patient care during that time.

Mental Health

All residents receive access to licensed mental health counselors 24/7 via the ComPsych GuidanceResources program. Additionally, our program director and wellness chiefs work directly with residents to ensure schedules are arranged so that residents can attend any scheduled counseling sessions.

Cook county Wellness

Each year, all 68 residents get off the same 32 hours in September for a residency retreat. This consists of a morning with faculty members to discuss wellness and the residency program, followed by an afternoon and evening of rest, relaxation, and fun.

Additionally, each year, each class gets the same 24 hours off in the winter/spring for a class retreat in Chicago, giving classmates the opportunity to connect outside of work and explore all the fun that Chicago has to offer.

When starting the program, residents receive one pair of monogrammed scrubs, a monogrammed jacket, and two hospital white coats.

Health Insurance

Cook County offers health insurance to all of its employees. PGY-1s get an HMO plan for health, dental, and vision insurance. Starting in the PGY-2 year, residents may keep the HMO plan or change to a PPO plan.