Here are a few links that I found helpful. Please add more if you find material not covered below.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=201062 "why i went into med/peds"

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=297735&highlight=med%2Fpeds "how to choose a program; aap med/peds information"

http://www.medpeds.org/ self explanatory

http://www.im.org/AAIM/Pubs/Docs/student_guide03.pdf "student guide to med/peds residency training"

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=276239&highlight=med%2Fpeds "adult cardio vs peds cardio"

http://www.medpeds.org is a great website. Any applicant interested in med-peds should start with that site.

Some things to keep in mind if you need help deciding between various med-peds programs (the differences)

1. Program Director - is there a program director specific to med-peds, or do you fall under the guidance of the medicine PD and the pediatric PD? Is the program director a med-peds trained PD?

2. Continuity Clinic - How is your continuity clinic arranged? Is there a med-peds clinic? Are the med-peds clinics for all 4 years? do you spend some time in the medicine clinic and pediatrics clinics as well? What is the ratio of adult to pediatrics patients in the continuity clinic

3. How long is internship? Some programs have it at 12 months. Others are 14-16 months. A few might be 18 months.

4. Med-Peds faculty and community - Are there med-peds faculty to provide guidance to the residents. Are there med-peds private practices where med-peds residents can train or interact with?

5. Schedule - Does the medicine dept and pediatrics dept follow the same type of schedule (aka 1 month block or 4 week block or something else)? If it doesn't, how does the program handle the resident's transition from medicine to pediatrics (and vice versa)


More to come if I can think of some more

*I'm not saying one method is better than the other, just that these questions can help you find differences between various programs (and ultimately it is up to you to decide what you are looking for in a program)

One thing I recommend looking at is the independence of the Med-Peds program. Stick with a program that makes its own rules. I'm in one that goes at the whim of each separate program, meaning whatever each program requires its residents do applies to us, e.g. board review for Med, board review for Peds - both are required of us. Although it may be helpful in the long run, when you're on a Peds inpatient rotation, the thought of attending a board review series on adult rheumatology is a bit cumbersome.

My advice is to choose a Med-Peds program that works for its own independence as an established program.

Here is another good website:

http://www.aap.org/sections/med-peds/101.htm

I am an HPSP student and very much interested in pursuing MedPeds. Does anyone know how to obtain a MedPeds residency in conjunction with a military career?

From what I have found, there is no formal MedPeds program through the military. I have resorted to contacting IM and Pediatric department heads to see about starting an interdisciplinary program to be accredited as a MedPeds program or finding out how to defer my military residency and go to a civilian program.

This is frustrating since I would assume they would see this as a more diverse training option which creates a physician that is more adaptable and able to be better utilized given their diverse missions/demands.

Any thoughts are welcome as I am running into walls!