Army Ortho questions!!!

[runninkyle17]

So I think I want to do Ortho, but like every other MS III I have a ton of questions.

1. I have heard a few rumors that Army Ortho only has around 8-10 spots per year. This sounded really weird to me since Ortho is offered as a residency at 5 different MEDCEN's. So how competitive is Ortho to get into?

2. Also, everyone knows the military and especially the Army has only filled at most 75% of its scholarships for the past 3 years. How does this affect the amount of residency spots that are offered and the competition for each spot?

3. How important is it to do your away rotations at the hospitals you want to match to and in the specific specialty you want to match in? I am on the brink of setting up my away rotations for next year and I want to do them early in the year. However, I am not sure if I will change my mind in between now and then. I think the real problem is that I have not done my Medicine or Surgery rotations yet. They are my last two rotations and I actually start medicine on Monday (tomorrow).

4. If I don't rotate at a certain hospital, how hard is it to match to a place where they really don't know you? I would still try to visit a few extra days if I wanted to match somewhere, but with only two real ADT rotations I know I will miss something. There are certain rotations that I have enjoyed (i.e. Family Medicine and Neurology), but I still think I should do surgery because I know I like surgery.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

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[colbgw02]

1. That number sounds too low. The program at my hospital takes 3/year.

2. The only year group that really matters is your own. Ortho is a competitive specialty, so even with dwindling numbers I would expect people to get shut out.

3/4. Very important, especially for ortho. I wouldn't expect to match anywhere at which you have not done a rotation.

 

[edmadison]

So I think I want to do Ortho, but like every other MS III I have a ton of questions.

1. I have heard a few rumors that Army Ortho only has around 8-10 spots per year. This sounded really weird to me since Ortho is offered as a residency at 5 different MEDCEN's. So how competitive is Ortho to get into?

2. Also, everyone knows the military and especially the Army has only filled at most 75% of its scholarships for the past 3 years. How does this affect the amount of residency spots that are offered and the competition for each spot?

3. How important is it to do your away rotations at the hospitals you want to match to and in the specific specialty you want to match in? I am on the brink of setting up my away rotations for next year and I want to do them early in the year. However, I am not sure if I will change my mind in between now and then. I think the real problem is that I have not done my Medicine or Surgery rotations yet. They are my last two rotations and I actually start medicine on Monday (tomorrow).

4. If I don't rotate at a certain hospital, how hard is it to match to a place where they really don't know you? I would still try to visit a few extra days if I wanted to match somewhere, but with only two real ADT rotations I know I will miss something. There are certain rotations that I have enjoyed (i.e. Family Medicine and Neurology), but I still think I should do surgery because I know I like surgery.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

I was exactly in your shoes five years ago, although I ultimately decided to do Pediatrics. When I was looking, there were six programs: Magidan, Tripler, Brook, Beaumont, Eisenhower and Reed. I'm not sure if they have eliminated a program. I thought there were more like 18 slots at that time, but who knows now. Ortho is fairly competitive you really want to rotate at the programs you are interested in -- especially if your numbers are week for ortho. One thing you should think about doing is paying your own way to rotate at Beaumont, no one ever rotates there, so they are really happy about anyone interested in their program. "Back in the day" they provided lodging in the hospital for med studs who weren't on a paid ADT.

Ed

 

[runninkyle17]

I was exactly in your shoes five years ago, although I ultimately decided to do Pediatrics. When I was looking, there were six programs: Magidan, Tripler, Brook, Beaumont, Eisenhower and Reed. I'm not sure if they have eliminated a program. I thought there were more like 18 slots at that time, but who knows now. Ortho is fairly competitive you really want to rotate at the programs you are interested in -- especially if your numbers are week for ortho. One thing you should think about doing is paying your own way to rotate at Beaumont, no one ever rotates there, so they are really happy about anyone interested in their program. "Back in the day" they provided lodging in the hospital for med studs who weren't on a paid ADT.

Ed

I am actually really interested in the Beaumont residency because they have no fellows at that hospital. Plus I currently live in Oklahoma and El Paso wouldn't be a bad fit for me and my wife. I had planned on rotating at Beaumont for one of my ADT's, but I will drop them an email and see if I can come visit this summer and schedule a rotation later in the year. That way I could use my ADT at another hospital.

My scores are not the greatest for Step 1, but I plan on taking Step 2 early and my scores should go up significantly (not trying to be cocky, I have just learned more in 3rd year).

I am really torn, because I really enjoy surgery, but I can also see myself doing something like Family Practice.