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I'm not sure how these programs compare in terms of reputation/quality. Just wondering if anyone could provide some insight. Thanks.
Hopkins vs BIDMC vs Yale
- Thread starter fede
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C'mon. They are all outstanding.
I am a fellow applicant and know Hopkins well, BI reasonably well, and know nothing about Yale. What I know is from first hand experience and what I hear most frequently about the programs.
Repute: Hopkins > BIDMC > Yale
In this list, Hopkins is the sure winner on academic repute and name branding. BIDMC comes a far-ish second on the basis of it being the 'third' Harvard anesthesia program. Yale school of medicine or the program just doesn't carry the same amount of clout that the Harvard/Hopkins name does. For some reason Yale's residency programs are great but not considered in the same academic league as say, Columbia U or UCSF.
Case complexity: Hopkins>BI ?Yale
Hopkins gets all the $hit that has hit the fan in one of the nation's worst neighbourhoods (East Baltimore). Moreover, because of the name, the surgeons get referrals from all over the nation and internationally, so you get to see some very sick/complicated patients. At Hopkins you really are the king of the jungle for all kinds of complicated cases in the DMV area (the other major competitor, U Maryland is a great hospital but the residency progarm is far from great). Folks from BI hate to be called Harvard-lite, but the general concensus is that they live in the shadow of the two academic behemoths, the General and the Brigham and cases get divvied up with such saturation of brand-name institutions (Tufts/NEMC takes its share as well). I don't know much about Yale but being the top dog in the CT region, I am guessing that they'd get some fascinating stuff as well.
Teaching: Hopkins = BI ?Yale
Hopkins has its college days thing going on where you get a day off on Thur to study or attend whatever they want to teach you. The word in Boston is that BI is the least stressful of the three Harvard programs and teaching is good. They present a 'friendly' image of their program where the anesthesiologists and surgeons are buddies etc etc.
Research: Neither Hopkins nor BI has a research oriented Chair or PD (the BI chair is from Hopkins). These institutions do a lot of basic sciences research at faculty level and I expect to get attacked for saying this, but these are not research friendly places at a resident level. That said, I am speaking from my perspective, that of a well-established researcher, and if you are at the stage of 'maybe I am interested in doing some research, I worked in a lab for 2 months between undergrad and med school, so lets find out if someone is doing something with receptors or channels (i.e. flexibility and wanting to explore options), then you will find loads of opportunities at all of these places.
My $2s.
Repute: Hopkins > BIDMC > Yale
In this list, Hopkins is the sure winner on academic repute and name branding. BIDMC comes a far-ish second on the basis of it being the 'third' Harvard anesthesia program. Yale school of medicine or the program just doesn't carry the same amount of clout that the Harvard/Hopkins name does. For some reason Yale's residency programs are great but not considered in the same academic league as say, Columbia U or UCSF.
Case complexity: Hopkins>BI ?Yale
Hopkins gets all the $hit that has hit the fan in one of the nation's worst neighbourhoods (East Baltimore). Moreover, because of the name, the surgeons get referrals from all over the nation and internationally, so you get to see some very sick/complicated patients. At Hopkins you really are the king of the jungle for all kinds of complicated cases in the DMV area (the other major competitor, U Maryland is a great hospital but the residency progarm is far from great). Folks from BI hate to be called Harvard-lite, but the general concensus is that they live in the shadow of the two academic behemoths, the General and the Brigham and cases get divvied up with such saturation of brand-name institutions (Tufts/NEMC takes its share as well). I don't know much about Yale but being the top dog in the CT region, I am guessing that they'd get some fascinating stuff as well.
Teaching: Hopkins = BI ?Yale
Hopkins has its college days thing going on where you get a day off on Thur to study or attend whatever they want to teach you. The word in Boston is that BI is the least stressful of the three Harvard programs and teaching is good. They present a 'friendly' image of their program where the anesthesiologists and surgeons are buddies etc etc.
Research: Neither Hopkins nor BI has a research oriented Chair or PD (the BI chair is from Hopkins). These institutions do a lot of basic sciences research at faculty level and I expect to get attacked for saying this, but these are not research friendly places at a resident level. That said, I am speaking from my perspective, that of a well-established researcher, and if you are at the stage of 'maybe I am interested in doing some research, I worked in a lab for 2 months between undergrad and med school, so lets find out if someone is doing something with receptors or channels (i.e. flexibility and wanting to explore options), then you will find loads of opportunities at all of these places.
My $2s.
I was actually really impressed by Yale from my interview there. My quick impression is that it's a very strong program. They have great case loads and complexity (btw yale just bought out another big hospital nearby making it one of the largest hospitals in the country). The faculties are strong and very well connected (the chair is the main editor for Stoelting's anesthesia, which is a commonly used book and they have Dr. Baresh, which probably is the 2nd most well known anesthesiologist after Dr. Miller), so no problem with fellowship match. For research, they're one of the few programs in the country with T32 NIH research scholar program, so lots of opportunities for research. Residents are very collegial...they try to do get together every week (during my dinner, they said they had ski trip, NYC trip, casino trip planned out). Chair and PD are also very nice and approachable. I feel like the only weakness is their ICU
I guess I am not sure where you're getting your info from. I have interviewed at all three programs in the past, and can speak on the behalf of BI as one the residents.
With regards to BI, I dont know how it is perceived as a shadow of the other harvard programs. if you look into it, BIDMC got a full 5 year cycle without any citations.. unlike the other harvard programs (if you look into the most recent data and information). I do encourage all applicants interviewing anywhere to take the ACGME accreditation cycle length very seriously when comparing programs. You will see for yourself why that is important - once you're a resident there and dealing with those issues that may be holding a program back from getting the full cycle accreditation.
Fighting for cases doesn't ever occur at BI.. there is a reason the fellowships are small in size - even more cases for the residents! In addition the residency class itself is smaller than the other nearby programs, and that helps them get to do many major cardiac, vascular, thoracic cases, etc. I heard that Brigham actually has to cut their size this year as they are having trouble meeting their case numbers - BI residents tend to have the bulk of their numbers during CA2 year (largely bc of the way CA1 year is setup at BIDMC). Plus as a CA3, residents have the opportunity to rotate at the VA where they see major open vascular and thoracic procedures that are hardly done as much any more in all other programs. The fact that the residents dont ever have a problem attaining their numbers, is one of the reasons why it is possible to have a fully elective CA-3 year. There are not any SRNAs at BI, and the limited number of CRNAs who work there are able to cover the routine bread and butter cases.
With regards to the research issue, I would like to comment that it is simply not true that BI isn't research friendly. In fact, when the chair of BI came 3 years ago, he encouraged the research culture of the program even further amongst residents. He has supported the formal research tract that is available to residents with a research course that can be built into the CA-2 year, (which many research interested residents prefer over the T32.) All in all, if you take a look at the number of publications from BI residents and compare it to the number from other residencies - it will speak for itself.
With regards to BI, I dont know how it is perceived as a shadow of the other harvard programs. if you look into it, BIDMC got a full 5 year cycle without any citations.. unlike the other harvard programs (if you look into the most recent data and information). I do encourage all applicants interviewing anywhere to take the ACGME accreditation cycle length very seriously when comparing programs. You will see for yourself why that is important - once you're a resident there and dealing with those issues that may be holding a program back from getting the full cycle accreditation.
Fighting for cases doesn't ever occur at BI.. there is a reason the fellowships are small in size - even more cases for the residents! In addition the residency class itself is smaller than the other nearby programs, and that helps them get to do many major cardiac, vascular, thoracic cases, etc. I heard that Brigham actually has to cut their size this year as they are having trouble meeting their case numbers - BI residents tend to have the bulk of their numbers during CA2 year (largely bc of the way CA1 year is setup at BIDMC). Plus as a CA3, residents have the opportunity to rotate at the VA where they see major open vascular and thoracic procedures that are hardly done as much any more in all other programs. The fact that the residents dont ever have a problem attaining their numbers, is one of the reasons why it is possible to have a fully elective CA-3 year. There are not any SRNAs at BI, and the limited number of CRNAs who work there are able to cover the routine bread and butter cases.
With regards to the research issue, I would like to comment that it is simply not true that BI isn't research friendly. In fact, when the chair of BI came 3 years ago, he encouraged the research culture of the program even further amongst residents. He has supported the formal research tract that is available to residents with a research course that can be built into the CA-2 year, (which many research interested residents prefer over the T32.) All in all, if you take a look at the number of publications from BI residents and compare it to the number from other residencies - it will speak for itself.
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I am a resident at Hopkins and absolutely love it! I am having a great time and think that it is an exceptional place to be.
I had offers (taken outside of the match - no longer allowed) from many other programs but picked Hopkins because the residents felt happy there.
Having been here, I am so glad I made this decision. The main thing that I love is the people throughout the hospital. In every other hospital I have been (many now) I have felt a need to compete to be #1. At Hopkins there is not a competitive feeling. People are very collaborative and friendly... and there is so much to do that it would be impossible to not be involved.
Good luck wherever you pick! You've got some fantastic options it sounds like!
I had offers (taken outside of the match - no longer allowed) from many other programs but picked Hopkins because the residents felt happy there.
Having been here, I am so glad I made this decision. The main thing that I love is the people throughout the hospital. In every other hospital I have been (many now) I have felt a need to compete to be #1. At Hopkins there is not a competitive feeling. People are very collaborative and friendly... and there is so much to do that it would be impossible to not be involved.
Good luck wherever you pick! You've got some fantastic options it sounds like!
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Thanks so much for this information - it is great to hear from residents as to why they chose their program and what they love about it! I know all 3 programs are great, but each one has its own style and personality -- just hoping to find the right match for me. It is also really encouraging to hear that in places like Hopkins, the atmosphere is friendly and not competitive. I was really hoping so.
Question for XRanger - why do you think the ICU is weak at Yale? Just wondering.
Question for XRanger - why do you think the ICU is weak at Yale? Just wondering.
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I'm also wondering about what people think of the differences in didactics between the 3 programs. I know Hopkins has the college days every other Thursday, while Yale seems to only have one hour of lecture per week?
Also about the ICU - how bad are those 4 months in the ICU (q3 I assume) at Hopkins?
Also about the ICU - how bad are those 4 months in the ICU (q3 I assume) at Hopkins?
D
deleted171991
Maybe it's just me (I read a few times more in an hour than anybody can teach me), but I feel these "college days" and lectures should go the way of the 20th century. Unless one is teaching me something that cannot be read in a book, or presented in a way that makes it much more digestible than any book, or has a practical aspect (anatomy lab, simulation, mock exam), lectures are a waste of resident time. I couldn't stand my compulsory noon conferences in internship; I can't remember one thing I was taught either there or during my anesthesia residency lectures. However, I can remember all the practical things that I have been taught, even by whom and where, or some of the questions from my mock orals.
There should be protected time for reading anesthesia book chapters, with structured learning/testing, not sitting there while an academic monkey reads Powerpoint slides for resume enrichment. This is graduate-level medical education, for professional adults, so it should be at a doctoral, not student++ level, both in content and presentation.
This being said, among the three programs, I would choose the one with the best regional training (because you will probably get a good training in everything else regardless of choice, just because of how sick their patients are). I would say that Hopkins has a better name recognition than the other two.
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