Basic questions about residency

[medicine2006]

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Can someone explain to me what the difference between Internal medicine and internal med-preliminary?

If I wanted to become a gastroenterologist(sp?) is it true I have to do a internal med residency first and then apply for a fellowship?

Are these fellowships in GI hard to get?

Thanks in advance

 

[mojo]

Preliminary spots in medicine or surgery last only one year. Categorical spots last the full duration of the normal residency(3 years for medicine, 5 or 6 for surgery). People do Preliminary medicine usually for residencies that require an initial year such as Radiology, Anesthesiology, some 4year Emergency medicine, Dermatology, etc. Categorical medicine is for people who plan on being internists or internal medicine subspecialists when they finish residency.

 

[Scrubbs]

Internal med vs. prelim basically is a full residency in internal medicine (3 yrs) vs. one "preliminary" year of internal medicine. Some specialties (anesthesia, radiology, PM&R, dermatology, etc.) reqiure a preliminary year before actually starting the specialty program.

If you want to go into GI, then yes, you have to do an internal med residency first. GI is a fellowship that would be done after your residency. I'm going into EM, so I'm not sure how competetive a GI fellowship is to get. Good luck!

 

[neurogeek]

GI is VERY competitive

 

[medicine2006]

Originally posted by neurogeek
GI is VERY competitive

Wow, on one of SDN's link I've just read that Gastroenterology was only mildly to intermediately competitive.

And By the way thanks to everyone for clearing things up for me.

 

[smackdaddy]

if what you say is correct, that link contains outdated information.
gi is tough.