Have completed half neurology residency but unable to continue

[bondi]

I have been under considerable stress for something i could never believe could happen. Having been at the top of my school doing well in med school and completed internship and part of my residency, i am stuck. I never expected to have this situation occur as I was heading for a career in neurology with neurointerventional/ stroke or cognitive fellowship. In the middle of my residency i somethings that were symptoms of an unknown undiagnosable findings (they had no bloody idea)which they felt they needed to watch. now i am stuck as i can't continue to finish my residency and am now thinking of what i can do. everything i look at requests for a residency. to do a phd now is ridiculous. what can i do? i am already a licensed physican but without your board certificate and completed residency it leaves zero options. Guys need help from legitimate people.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Promethean]

I have been under considerable stress for something i could never believe could happen. Having been at the top of my school doing well in med school and completed internship and part of my residency, i am stuck. I never expected to have this situation occur as I was heading for a career in neurology with neurointerventional/ stroke or cognitive fellowship. In the middle of my residency i somethings that were symptoms of an unknown undiagnosable findings (they had no bloody idea)which they felt they needed to watch. now i am stuck as i can't continue to finish my residency and am now thinking of what i can do. everything i look at requests for a residency. to do a phd now is ridiculous. what can i do? i am already a licensed physican but without your board certificate and completed residency it leaves zero options. Guys need help from legitimate people.

If you left your residency under good terms, because of a personal health crisis, that puts you in a good position to re-enter a residency program later. There are often openings in programs as other residents leave for reasons of their own, or are let go. Are you still on good terms with your program director? If so, stay in touch and get their support for seeking a seat, either there or at another program.

A licensed physician without board certification does not have zero options. If you aren't ready to or able to get back into a residency somewhere, but still need an income, you may be able to work in an urgent care or do family med in a place so short on physicians that they don't really care about your board cert. How do you feel about the military? They need doctors enough to pour money into supporting medical education. Someone who is licensed and just needs a bit more residency might find them very willing to help complete their training.

There are also opportunities outside clinical medicine that you can pursue while working on getting back into a residency somewhere.

Your situation isn't great, but it isn't hopeless. Take care of yourself. Ask for help if you need it. You've made it this far, through so much. Don't give up.

 

[Promethean]

Looking back at your posting history, this is something you have been dealing with for a long time, not a recent problem. Most people here aren't going to be familiar with how to get back into a program, because it isn't a common experience. I have a friend who was in a very similar situation who finally reapplied to the match, having tried a couple of other routes back in. It is a tough road, but I do think it is possible.

I don't know if that is an option for you, with two PGY years under your belt. If not, the other thing my friend did was to contact the program directors of every single program that they would remotely consider going to, enclosing a CV, personal statement, and brief letter. Ask them to keep you in mind if a seat should open up there. Write them again every 3 months. If a spot does open, having your name already in a file might make all the difference. Or not. But it only costs a few dollars for postage and supplies, and doesn't hurt anything if you don't have other prospects.

You may have to go some place you aren't excited about for a few years, but you can find a way in. I've seen it done successfully.

Just don't give up on yourself. I saw a dear friend driven to despair by a situation like this, but they were able to overcome it. Hold on. Work it out. Take care of yourself.

 

[Raryn]

a few yrs ago i was in your spot. i am an australian graduate usmle step 1 91 and step2 92. at that time i wanted radiology as i was in rads in sydney(moved here bc i married someone from US).

I had one prob i was a foreign grad. so i decided to get my prelim year over and done with, i applied 2 yrs back to back for rads got interviews but never matched. so i said ok i want to be a neuroradiologist...so lets go through another door. so i chose neurology. i am in my 2nd yr or pgy3. neurology is very very painful. i think i hate it. but there is this neurointerventional fellowship available to neuro residents.
i decided to start a book now publishing in mri and brain disorders.

i am now looking again for rad positions.....but i'm in california in a UC hospital. and am sortoff stuck here, because of family.

here is my advise don't settle it won't work....u have to be happy in what your doing to give all the best to your patients and yourself.

Neurology is very easy to get into...i made my decision 1 mth prior to starting the residency. i was scramblng and calling PD's etc sending emails out and my CV for radiology spots right to the very last day. but it is hard to get in. In my neuro residency i at times touched bases with the rads dept.

anyway what i'm saying is that i'm still looking at rads...and wont give up. but because i have been so busy with this residency that i have stopped pursuing it.

so stick with rads research if ur good and work hard make buds with radiology attendings....they will notice.

This is one of the OPs posts in 2009. Much different story than here.

 

[BoardingDoc]

Adding to Raryn's post,
OP's post history shows that he/she was a PGY-3 neuro resident in 2009 looking for a residency swap.

i am a pgy 3 ready to get out of current neuro residency....done prelim int med, in cal??? is there r pssibility re posn...
bondi, Jan 16, 2009
- See more at: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...ion-opening-in-cleveland.482846/#post-7607510

OP was then a PGY-2 IM resident in 2010 according to another post looking for a swap.

where r u located?

i am pgy2 int med looking for a swap.
bondi, Nov 25, 2010
- See more at: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...ition-internal-medicine.740312/#post-10334811

OP is now having some sort of inarticulately defined problem halfway through a neuro residency (I thought OP was already at least a PGY-3 back in '09?)...