Menu
We’re thrilled to introduce Dr. Sean Dodenhoff, a proud graduate of Trinity School of Medicine. After completing his residency at Wesley Medical Center in Kansas, Dr. Dodenhoff returned to his home state of California, where he now practices as a Family Medicine physician in Fair Oaks. His journey from Bakersfield to medical school and into a rewarding career is a testament to his dedication and passion for medicine.
What’s your academic background?
I grew up in the Central Valley of California in Bakersfield, California. I grew up going to a private school and then went to the University of Nevada in Reno for my undergraduate degree where I majored in Biology and minored in Biochemistry.
What brought you into medicine?
My father growing up was a chiropractor so that was my influence in the medical field, but I always knew I wanted to go to medical school.
Where did you match?
I completed a Family Medicine residency at the University of Kansas Wesley Medical Center in Wichita, Kansas. Wesley Medical Center is a trauma one hospital and also where my son got his name. He was named after his dad’s training hospital, where he was also delivered.
Was Wesley Medical Center your top choice? Why?
Yes! They train full-spectrum family medicine, so we did a lot of OB, a lot of delivering babies, colonoscopies, procedures, and things like that with an emphasis on being able to train family doctors to go out everywhere especially into rural Kansas to be able to provide care to underserved population or to provide care to the rural population where there is limited access to doctors. They wanted you to be prepared to do everything, work in the emergency room, see hospital patients, deliver babies, do everything. That’s why I picked Wesley Medical Center. I interviewed at a lot of residency programs in California as well just because I’m from here and I knew I was interested in ending up back here, but I just felt like things were lacking in some of the training programs in California. I really wanted that full-spectrum training so that I could decide my scope of practice after residency.
What is a typical day like as a Family Medicine resident?
All residency programs are a little different. My experience with a family medicine residency, it’s hard work and it’s a lot of work but it’s rewarding work. I worked in a variety of settings, in the hospital, in the clinic, delivering babies, doing procedures, working with different specialists, and specialty training. My program was more front-loaded so more hospital experience in the first year working night shifts. The nice thing about Wesley Medical Center training was we didn’t have to do any 24-hour call shifts, which was really nice. We did a week of nights so it was like 5 PM to 7 AM Sunday night through Friday morning and having that Friday day off and Saturday off and going back Sunday night so doing two weeks of that. We never worked over 80 hours a week. As we progressed through the residency training the hours became a little less, and you got more seniority, a little more supervising role into younger residents so you have that experience so you’re not working many hours but still working hard.
Why did you choose Trinity and what ultimately helped you make the decision?
After Reno, I took the MCAT and I didn’t score the best but I always knew I wanted to go to medical school. My focus was always science and pre-med straight away when I went to undergrad. I knew that I was definitely going to go to medical school. I was just trying to navigate that. A lot of times as a 16-year-old high school person you don’t know exactly what it means to become a doctor. You have an idea of it but a lot of it you learn as you go. I applied to medical school and didn’t get in. Decided that I was going to take a year off and study for the MCAT and retake it. I knew about international schools as an option as well from friends who had gone in the past. I did a lot of research, talked to different recruiters, and talked to people and determined that Trinity sounded like a good fit. It sounded like a great program so I took a leap of faith and went to St. Vincent to start the medical journey.
What was the transition like from where you moved, compared to living on the island and studying abroad?
I didn’t necessarily know what the island was going to be like. I previously went to the Bahamas one time just for vacation and I pictured it being something like that and in some ways it was and some ways it wasn’t. When I went to Trinity, they didn’t have their nice international airport like they do now, it was a smaller airport. So, initially flying in, there was definitely a little bit of a culture shock. It was different from what I was used to but I think that’s what makes it so special and makes it such an amazing journey. Adapting, learning a new culture, and assimilating into that culture. The people on the island were so friendly, I never felt unsafe, I never felt unwelcomed. It was an amazing experience that has shaped me into the person I am and I don’t think I would’ve had that worldly experience had I not lived there.
What are the clerkships (rotations) like at Trinity?
I went to Baltimore, Maryland for my third year and then bounced around for my fourth year. I did some rotations in Maryland, some in California, and some in Kansas. My fourth year was impacted slightly by Covid-19, but I was able to get through everything. I think Trinity did a good job at finding different specialists for us to work with and to make sure that we were getting the experience that we needed to prepare us for residency.
Did you feel Trinity prepared you for residency?
Yes. Going into residency, I never felt underprepared. The residency program I went to had some other international students added as well. I always feel like international students feel like they have something to prove because either they didn’t get into a U.S. med school or some people look over them just because they went to an international medical school. My experience is that international students are the best trained and the most prepared once residency starts. I think that Trinity also does a good job of providing early clinical experiences on the island and the hospital. So yeah, it was a very positive experience with the rotations that Trinity set up.
Do you have any stand-out memories, stories, or experiences regarding your time at Trinity?
I definitely made a lot of lifelong friends on the island, people that I still stay in touch with today. We would take sailboat or catamaran trips to Bequia. One time, we went out on a trip and the steering broke. We weren’t sure if we were going to get back on the island and there was a storm starting. It was a scary experience, but we survived and made it back in one piece. But yeah, we did multiple trips to Bequia, which is one of my favorite things to do on the island. Just unwinding with friends is one of my favorite memories. Young Island was also very fun, we loved to relax there.
What are you doing for fun these days?
I enjoy being a dad. Being a dad has been such a rewarding experience for me. I also enjoy golfing. So, for hobbies, I try to golf a couple of times per month if time permits. I also like to play poker and things like that. So, I definitely keep hobbies to keep myself entertained outside of work.
What’s the best advice you’d share with a prospective Trinity student?
Make sure you’re prepared. Do your research, and know the commitment that you’re signing up for. I think Trinity has all the resources to make you successful, but you still have to work really hard. You have to be willing to be in it for the long haul. I had such a great experience at Trinity. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn’t change anything. I think that Trinity gave me all the resources I needed to be successful, get into my dream residency program, become a chief resident, and then graduate and get my dream job in California. Trinity is a very viable option for U.S. medical students to be able to get into residency and to be able to practice medicine.
If you’re interested in learning how Trinity can support your dream of becoming a doctor, we invite you to reach out to our admissions team today! Contact us here.
Office of Admissions & Administration
Basic Science Campus, St. Vincent