Input on Residency Questions - Strengths & Weaknesses

[MTJ Guy]

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Ok, I have a couple of questions regarding what everyone thought about for their residency program. I acknowledge the fact that everyone is different, and has different goals, so I am looking for a broad spectrum of thoughts.

1. What exactly did you look for during residency?

2. What were some of the things that you thought would be useful, but weren't?

3.To go along with that thought, what were some rotations that were very useful in the long run (plastic surgery, vascular, emergency medicine, etc.) just out of curiosity?

4. How about being the only resident/s within a hospital system vs. being at a location that has many different residency programs? I guess I could see the benefit of both, but as a student it is challenging to see what is really important vs. what seems to be important, but isn't in reality.

5. What about being at a program that accepts 1 resident a year or many a year?

6. This might be a difficult question to answer and program specific, but what were some things that you wished you had more of during training?

I understand everyone is looking for something different, but I am looking for ideas to create a list of residency programs of interest, and was not entirely sure what to look for. I thought it might be useful for others that are beginning to look into programs as well.

 

[PeaJay]

I will answer these questions but as you stated the questions need to really be answered by you. My answers will probably be of little help other than narrowing down programs that are a fit for me.

1. What exactly did you look for during residency?
-Strong clinic exposure with multiple attending physicians with different practice types.
-Strong commitment to academics and teaching.
-Significant exposure to complex reconstruction, TAR, charcot, and arthroscopy.
-Attending physicians that DO NOT just hand over the blade and fail to instruct, learning is a give and take.
-Inpatient management.
-Strong off service rotations, where you are expected to perform as an on service resident.
-Research.
-Location that is not in the Ghetto.

2. What were some of the things that you thought would be useful, but weren't?
-Name of program: there are very few programs that everyone in the country knows about.
-Attending physicians that are cowboys/gals: if may seem cool, but I do not want to learn from someone who "wings it".

3. To go along with that thought, what were some rotations that were very useful in the long run (plastic surgery, vascular, emergency medicine, etc.) just out of curiosity?
-To preface this, I have yet to complete off service rotations as a resident. I am just contributing based on my thought process as a student.
-All off service rotations should be solid for the best experience as a resident and all are applicable and should be taken seriously. A strong vascular, ortho, ortho trauma, burn/plastics, and Gen surg rotation will greatly benefit you.

4. How about being the only resident/s within a hospital system vs. being at a location that has many different residency programs? I guess I could see the benefit of both, but as a student it is challenging to see what is really important vs. what seems to be important, but isn't in reality.
-It really depends on how your program has dictated its presence in the hospital. If your service is treated as equal you should have no issue rotating or working with other services. It may be beneficial to not have an ortho residency because you may get more exposure, but that is highly situation dependent. The inter-department dynamics are unique to each hospital/program.

5. What about being at a program that accepts 1 resident a year or many a year?
-This is dependent on personality and program. I like to have a person to bounce ideas off and thus sought a program with a co-resident. I did not want a large program because I feel it loses the benefits of having a small tight knit group. It is my opinion that two residents per year is the best of both worlds, but there is no correct answer. Two residents allows for you to function independently most of the time, yet still have someone that is going through the same thing at the same time to bounce stuff off.

6. This might be a difficult question to answer and program specific, but what were some things that you wished you had more of during training?
-Cannot answer secondary to the level of training I am currently at.

 

[MTJ Guy]

Thank you! That is exactly the type of information I am looking for. Even if it is your personal opinion, I feel that it offers good directions and a different perspective on what to look for. If anyone else has anymore valuable insight into these questions or any other thoughts please post your thoughts!

 

[ldsrmdude]

First off, I think PeaJay gave great answers, so I'll try not to reiterate exactly what he said, but I think he nailed most of your answers. Since he's giving you some input as someone just about to start residency, I'll try to give some view from the other end, as a resident just about to finish.

1. What exactly did you look for during residency?
I think PeaJay answered this nicely. I feel his list of things is the "ideal" residency. I never came across a perfect residency, so you have to take your list of things you think are important and prioritize them. No program is going to be the best at everything, so I looked for a program that had above average surgical exposure (not just total numbers, but quality of cases) with strong clinic experience, quality teaching, plentiful and worthwhile wound care, and good camaraderie with co-residents. I also wanted a program that was well integrated into the hospital and worked well with other residencies.

2. What were some of the things that you thought would be useful, but weren't?
I agree, name doesn't mean all that much. I feel that total surgical numbers matter less than I thought they would (and I realize I may be in the minority with this view).

3.To go along with that thought, what were some rotations that were very useful in the long run (plastic surgery, vascular, emergency medicine, etc)?
I think all off-service rotations can teach you things, but it's usually up to you to gain something from them. Some of the things I think I gained from my off-service rotations weren't things I learned, but I think I always left with more respect for my colleagues, and I think they gained some respect for me and the program and profession as a whole. It was nice to build relationships with other residents and attendings and be part of the "team." Those things will help me interact with other physicians in the future. As far as actual skills or knowledge, plastics and vascular were probably the most beneficial for me.

4. How about being the only resident/s within a hospital system vs. being at a location that has many different residency programs?
I'm at a hospital with several other residency programs, and I like it. There is a lot I have learned from the residents in other programs and we get along great with them. I rotated at hospitals where podiatry was the only program and there are pluses to that as well, but personally I like being in a hospital with several programs.

5. What about being at a program that accepts 1 resident a year or many a year?
I agree with PeaJay, it's nice to have another resident you can bounce ideas off of and go through the same struggles with. Again, there are pluses to being the only resident as well, but I wanted a program that accepts more than 1 a year.

6. This might be a difficult question to answer and program specific, but what were some things that you wished you had more of during training?
To some extent your residency will be what you make of it, and I have tried to make it the best it could be. I'm pretty happy with the experiences I have had and the skills and knowledge I gained. I can say that I think I chose the right program for me and I am happy with where I am now. I feel very prepared for my new job in a few months as an attending.