MGH v. BWH v. BIDMC
- Thread starter MD2Be
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Could you PM your thoughts to everyone?
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I am interested as well.
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I didn't interview @ MGH, but it's clearly the most prestigious program name-recognition wise of the three, and probably the best if you're into research/academics. I felt more comfortable at BID than BWH (despite the fact that BWH arguably has a bigger name than BIDMC), mainly because I liked the emphasis on didactics and the fact that residents were treated more humanely (hours at BWH tend to be around 70-80 per week, with more in the ICU) there and had a much more manageable schedule (IMO).
The majority of the residents at BWH that I spoke with were very happy with the program and training and felt that the prestige of the programs is MGH>BWH>>>>BIDMC. It sounds like all 3 Harvard programs are great- just depends on what you're looking for. I'm hoping to do a peds or pain fellowship and hopefully end up in MA some day (family headed out there in a few years). For me, name recognition isn't highest on my list of importance, but still up there- making BI a good fit for me (also still get to rotate through Boston Children's and BI has good pain program). What are your thoughts?
The majority of the residents at BWH that I spoke with were very happy with the program and training and felt that the prestige of the programs is MGH>BWH>>>>BIDMC. It sounds like all 3 Harvard programs are great- just depends on what you're looking for. I'm hoping to do a peds or pain fellowship and hopefully end up in MA some day (family headed out there in a few years). For me, name recognition isn't highest on my list of importance, but still up there- making BI a good fit for me (also still get to rotate through Boston Children's and BI has good pain program). What are your thoughts?
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Thanks!
Great post about the differences. I was extremely impressed by BI, a friend of mine from the class ahead of me matched there, and she was the reason I interviewed. I loved it! It was tough for me to consider Boston being from Cali, but I am still planning on ranking them highly. The comments were consistent with things I've heard from people who have trained at MGH. Have you heard much in terms of their case loads given that MGH and BW are in the same area?
Great post about the differences. I was extremely impressed by BI, a friend of mine from the class ahead of me matched there, and she was the reason I interviewed. I loved it! It was tough for me to consider Boston being from Cali, but I am still planning on ranking them highly. The comments were consistent with things I've heard from people who have trained at MGH. Have you heard much in terms of their case loads given that MGH and BW are in the same area?
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Let me preface this by saying that I only interviewed at MGH. I canceled my interviews at BWH and BIDMC b/c I realized that I didn't want to live in Boston.
I was impressed by my interview at MGH...not for the obvious reasons, but because it was completely opposite of what I thought I was going to see. Although it is a highly academic department, I was surprised (pleasantly) by the lack of focus on resident research. One of the chief residents stated that although there are TONS of research opportunities available, research is not forced upon any of their residents. The residents actually have to seek out opportunities for research. The other pleasantly surprising bit of info was, IMHO, the lack of arrogance amongst the residents. Although members of a well-respected Anesthesiology department, the residents weren't nearly as caught up on the fact that they were training at "MGH" or "Harvard" as other residents I met at other programs.
With all of that said, there are definite down-sides to the program that I found as well. First off, the residents are their workforce (same is true at BWH?). I believe I was told that there are only 12 CRNAs for the 40-50 ORs at MGH...guess who is doing all of the work? Consequently, when asked about moonlighting opportunities, one resident said: "You still have to stay under the 80 hr. work week, so even if you wanted to, most of the time it's difficult to find the time to do it." (factor that into the $1800-2000/month rent in Beacon Hill). Finally, it's been mentioned several times on SDN, but multiple residents commented on the weakness on cardiac and regional anesthesia...apparently steps are being taken to correct both of these (decreased # of cardiac fellows/new community site). but I think it's too early to tell.
Overall, I think MGH is a strong program....if nothing else in name (depending on what you are looking for). I can't personally compare it to any of the other Boston programs, but from everything I hear from classmates of mine, BIDMC is the way to go. Okay, it doesn't have the "name" of MGH or BWH, but it's still Harvard, come on...
I was impressed by my interview at MGH...not for the obvious reasons, but because it was completely opposite of what I thought I was going to see. Although it is a highly academic department, I was surprised (pleasantly) by the lack of focus on resident research. One of the chief residents stated that although there are TONS of research opportunities available, research is not forced upon any of their residents. The residents actually have to seek out opportunities for research. The other pleasantly surprising bit of info was, IMHO, the lack of arrogance amongst the residents. Although members of a well-respected Anesthesiology department, the residents weren't nearly as caught up on the fact that they were training at "MGH" or "Harvard" as other residents I met at other programs.
With all of that said, there are definite down-sides to the program that I found as well. First off, the residents are their workforce (same is true at BWH?). I believe I was told that there are only 12 CRNAs for the 40-50 ORs at MGH...guess who is doing all of the work? Consequently, when asked about moonlighting opportunities, one resident said: "You still have to stay under the 80 hr. work week, so even if you wanted to, most of the time it's difficult to find the time to do it." (factor that into the $1800-2000/month rent in Beacon Hill). Finally, it's been mentioned several times on SDN, but multiple residents commented on the weakness on cardiac and regional anesthesia...apparently steps are being taken to correct both of these (decreased # of cardiac fellows/new community site). but I think it's too early to tell.
Overall, I think MGH is a strong program....if nothing else in name (depending on what you are looking for). I can't personally compare it to any of the other Boston programs, but from everything I hear from classmates of mine, BIDMC is the way to go. Okay, it doesn't have the "name" of MGH or BWH, but it's still Harvard, come on...
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I am a CA1 at MGH and I'm pretty happy where I ended up. I find most of my co-residents are reasonably happy as well. As a CA1, I'm at the hospital about 60-65 hours a week including time doing preops and postops at the end of the day (arrive around 6:30am, leave anywhere between 5-6:30pm on average of 5 days a week).
I'm doing 3-4 calls a month in the main OR with usually only one of these on a weekend (sometimes two, if you get call Friday and Sunday on the same weekend for example). SICU call, OB call, PACU call, cardiac call etc however are a different group of residents doing the rotation than the main OR.
My hours and my calls are somewhat less than those of a CA2 or CA3. That's because more senior residents are out of the main OR call pool doing other rotations with separate call (thoracic, vascular, cardiac, etc) so there are fewer people to go around.
We do work hard but I have a feeling all residents say they work hard whether they work 40 hours, 60 hours (me) or 80 hours a week. We do have to work to meet our regional anesthesia requirements. The cardiac rotation is nobody's favorite. But every program has its strengths and its weaknesses (regional and cardiac are not unusual weaknesses at many programs) and at the end, we graduate.
Residents are indeed the main workforce of the program as we do have relatively few CRNAs compared to the number of residents. The CRNAs are generally very friendly and because of the big difference in numbers, I don't think we're like other programs where residents find themselves doing scut to help out CRNAs. Our system doesn't (in my opinion) generate a lot of tension between residents and CRNAs, and we get plenty of cases to go around. If you are looking for a CRNA heavy program, MGH is not it.
MGH doesn't have the reputation of a warm and fuzzy program, but I think it's a lot friendlier than people think.
I'm doing 3-4 calls a month in the main OR with usually only one of these on a weekend (sometimes two, if you get call Friday and Sunday on the same weekend for example). SICU call, OB call, PACU call, cardiac call etc however are a different group of residents doing the rotation than the main OR.
My hours and my calls are somewhat less than those of a CA2 or CA3. That's because more senior residents are out of the main OR call pool doing other rotations with separate call (thoracic, vascular, cardiac, etc) so there are fewer people to go around.
We do work hard but I have a feeling all residents say they work hard whether they work 40 hours, 60 hours (me) or 80 hours a week. We do have to work to meet our regional anesthesia requirements. The cardiac rotation is nobody's favorite. But every program has its strengths and its weaknesses (regional and cardiac are not unusual weaknesses at many programs) and at the end, we graduate.
Residents are indeed the main workforce of the program as we do have relatively few CRNAs compared to the number of residents. The CRNAs are generally very friendly and because of the big difference in numbers, I don't think we're like other programs where residents find themselves doing scut to help out CRNAs. Our system doesn't (in my opinion) generate a lot of tension between residents and CRNAs, and we get plenty of cases to go around. If you are looking for a CRNA heavy program, MGH is not it.
MGH doesn't have the reputation of a warm and fuzzy program, but I think it's a lot friendlier than people think.
