4th year rotations for EM

[Dr Fleischman]

I'm currently a 3rd year student at KCUMB, and I've decided I'm definitely going for emergency medicine. Now I'm wondering, as it's that time of year, how to set up my 4th year.

I'm taking boards, USMLE and COMLEX, in August, so I'd like to take a more relaxed July rotation, like Derm or Sports Medicine. Then after that I'm really not sure. To be honest, I was teetering between rads and EM for a long time, really sure I was going rads, but then I started a rads rotation this month at the children's hospital in Kansas City, and it's a great rotation but I'm not sure I can see myself doing this the rest of my life. I've worked in ERs before as a volunteer for several years - that I can still see myself not only doing but loving while I do it. Pardon any run-on sentences, these early hours are not conducive to eloquence.

So I'm wondering the best rotations for someone in my position to do, mainly to bolster my knowledge base and prepare me best for my first year of residency in EM. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys.

P.S. I'm not a fan of the OR, so I'd like to stay away from surgery electives, although I get the feeling orthopaedics would be a good one. Ugh.

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[Rendar5]

I'm currently a 3rd year student at KCUMB, and I've decided I'm definitely going for emergency medicine. Now I'm wondering, as it's that time of year, how to set up my 4th year.

I'm taking boards, USMLE and COMLEX, in August, so I'd like to take a more relaxed July rotation, like Derm or Sports Medicine. Then after that I'm really not sure. To be honest, I was teetering between rads and EM for a long time, really sure I was going rads, but then I started a rads rotation this month at the children's hospital in Kansas City, and it's a great rotation but I'm not sure I can see myself doing this the rest of my life. I've worked in ERs before as a volunteer for several years - that I can still see myself not only doing but loving while I do it. Pardon any run-on sentences, these early hours are not conducive to eloquence.

So I'm wondering the best rotations for someone in my position to do, mainly to bolster my knowledge base and prepare me best for my first year of residency in EM. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys.

P.S. I'm not a fan of the OR, so I'd like to stay away from surgery electives, although I get the feeling orthopaedics would be a good one. Ugh.

Cardiology for EKG practice. Anaesthesia, especially if you get to learn regional nerve blocks. ortho's not a bad idea. toxicology's fun, intensive care, pediatric intensive care even more so (gets you more comfortable wth sick kids). I did emergency psych, but don't know if it was useful to me. I just enjoyed it regardless. Maybe helped me deal with personalities a bit better, maybe not.

 

[Dr Fleischman]

Thanks for the quick reply, Rendar! Anesthesia is a great idea, as is toxicology. My school requires cardiology so I'll be doing that and getting lots of EKG practice, I'm sure. I think intensive care is a good one, too. Ortho I may force myself to do, maybe a 2-weeker or something. Thanks, again.

 

[Rendar5]

Thanks for the quick reply, Rendar! Anesthesia is a great idea, as is toxicology. My school requires cardiology so I'll be doing that and getting lots of EKG practice, I'm sure. I think intensive care is a good one, too. Ortho I may force myself to do, maybe a 2-weeker or something. Thanks, again.

Just rmemeber, when setting up an anaesthesia rotation if you're going that route, make sure you ask for the opportunity to learn/study nerve blocks. The other rotation I forgot (and you seem to have done) is a radiology rotation. I did one with mostly plain film practice.

 

[monkeybutt]

I thought anesthesia was very helpful as was plain films. Derm was okay, but where I did it, I ended up seeing mostly non-acute outpatient. Same with Ortho (I did clinic). At my institution we had a hospitalist sub-I, which was great. It is an internal medicine month, but it's not a team-based approach -- it's just you and the attending. I thought the pace was much more similar to the ED than general internal medicine. I also took an underserved rotation at my institution (where you work at free clinics all month). A lot of autonomy and a lot of the same patients with the same problems that you'll see in the ED.

 

[Richspiders07]

I'm going to do 2 weeks of Infectious Disease to brush up on Abx, etc in addition to anesthesia/rads/cards/psych ED consults that were already mentioned.

I also tried [and failed] to get a month at my school's Student Health medicine clinic. I feel like i have had virtually no exposure to the 17-25 y/o crowd and it might've been useful.

 

[turkeyjerky]

As far as intensive care goes, would you guys recommend MICU or SICU?