Meet our Chief Residents 2025 - 2026
Letter from our Chiefs
Welcome to the Tower Health Anesthesiology Residency Program at Reading Hospital! We appreciate your interest in our program and are excited to share relevant information highlighting what it is like to be a resident at Tower Health.
Our 4-year categorical anesthesiology residency program is located in West Reading, Pennsylvania. Reading Hospital is a 697+ bed, level 1 Trauma Center and flagship hospital for the regional health system. We care for a vast and diverse population. This setting allows training in a high-volume, high-acuity environment.
You will begin your training as a PGY-1 rotating through several departments at Reading Hospital. Rotations include Internal Medicine, Acute Care Surgery, Surgical Intensive Care, Neurocritical Care, Pulmonology, Emergency Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics, Chronic Pain, and Ultrasound. The first year is designed to enhance your medical knowledge in each discipline as you learn to manage common presenting medical and surgical conditions. Additionally, it is a great way to learn about the hospital system and meet colleagues with whom you may eventually work in the perioperative setting.
The beginning of the CA-1 year, also known as “boot camp,” is geared toward quickly introducing you to the basics of anesthesiology. During the 8-week introduction program, you will be paired with another CA-1 and various attendings. You will familiarize yourself with the perioperative process and develop the skills necessary to properly and safely care for patients in the operating room. You will also have daily protected time for structured didactics with core faculty during this time. As you solidify your skills and become more comfortable in the OR, you will transition out of boot camp and fully embrace the clinical anesthesia years.
During the remainder of your training, you will be continuously challenged by different surgical cases and patient complexity. You will be part of traumas, births, and life-changing surgeries. You will have the opportunity to work across the drape from friends made during intern year. Periodic one-on-one meetings with the Program Director are held to assess each resident's progress. Additionally, a one-to-one mentorship system allows residents to choose a core faculty mentor to guide them through residency, QI projects, research opportunities, and career planning.
On average, each resident is on call one to two times during the week and one weekend per month, averaging 50 to 60-hour work weeks. This allows residents plenty of time outside of the hospital to study for board exams and explore Berks County and the surrounding areas. There are plenty of outdoor recreational parks, lakes, and trails. Reading and Penn Ave offer plenty of diverse restaurants offering a variety of cuisines to choose from. West Reading is ideally located approximately one hour from Philadelphia and two and a half hours from NYC and the Jersey Shore. We are a tight-knit group of residents who often visit local restaurants together and plan holiday parties, celebrations of meaningful life events, and outdoor activities.
The Anesthesiology Department consists of attendings, CRNAs, residents, anesthesia techs, rotating SRNAs, and medical students. Each member of our team is valuable, and we depend on one another to provide the highest possible quality of care for our community.
We welcome your interest and encourage you to contact us if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Brent Hager, DO
Michaela Gartman, DO