Neurology and Service

[wodina1]

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I am interested in doing service in the future, maybe devote myself full time to it. I thought it might have been better for me to go into infectious disease or opthomology, but I just lOVE neuro so much that I couldn't see myself doing anything else.

Is there anyone who shares this future goal? Any thoughts on which subspecialty might be the best...I was thinking neuro-infectious disease??

Also are there any specific programs that are more suited for that future? I know columbia offers their fellows to get their MPH and pays for it...

thanks...smiles 🙂

 

[neurologist]

I am interested in doing service in the future, maybe devote myself full time to it. I thought it might have been better for me to go into infectious disease or opthomology, but I just lOVE neuro so much that I couldn't see myself doing anything else.

Is there anyone who shares this future goal? Any thoughts on which subspecialty might be the best...I was thinking neuro-infectious disease??

Also are there any specific programs that are more suited for that future? I know columbia offers their fellows to get their MPH and pays for it...

thanks...smiles 🙂

Could you please explain what you mean by "doing service"?
What kind of service?

 

[wodina1]

sorry to not clarify...

I meant working with underserved and low-income areas in the US or different countries, following in Dr.V [aravind eye clinic] and Dr. Paul Farmer's footsteps [Partners In Health Inc.]. Working includes opening up clinics or joining others that already exist.

 

[Nerdoscience]

Um, what are you going to do to help a poor person with Naegleria amoebae eating their brain, or with some untreatable viral encephalitis who can't afford to go to the hospital? On the other hand, there are plenty of people in underserved populations who can't afford to get seizure medications.

 

[neurologist]

Um, what are you going to do to help a poor person with Naegleria amoebae eating their brain, or with some untreatable viral encephalitis who can't afford to go to the hospital? On the other hand, there are plenty of people in underserved populations who can't afford to get seizure medications.

Agreed. Because of the chronic nature of most neurologic diseases, and the increased reliance on high-tech diagnostics and treatment, neuro is not a great specialty for heading off to the hinterlands once a year to save the world. Usually neuro patients need ongoing meds and followup; it's not like, say, a plastic surgery (cleft lip) or ophtho (cataract) procedure where the surgeon can come in for a day, do the one-time procedure, and ride off into the sunset as a hero.

As for medications, sure, you can give someone a crate of cheap phenobarb or levodopa or whatever, but we all know (or should know) that those won't be a one-time or permanent fix for their chronic, possibly progressive, condition. I think if you want to be a "bush neurologist," you need to do it full time, not for a week every couple of years.

 

[MarchMover]

I am not sure why to "do service" someone needs to go abroad.

Stroke and seizures are two of the most common presenting complaints to big city and rural emergency rooms nation-wide and plenty of poor people in our own backyard need neurologists.

A neurologist with an MPH could do what Columbia university did in Northern Manhattan and open a stroke clinic that offers high-level complex stroke care to patients without the means to afford it. Also, centers such as NYU epilepsy center offer "service" to people who have no insurance or just medicaid.

Service can mean getting the word out that a stroke is a medical emergency and that people need to go immediately to the hospital. Or, it can mean working with the Epilepsy Foundation to get the Americans with Disabilities Act passed, like many neurologists did in the late 1980's.

 

[neuroatlarge]

If you're interested in neuro-infectious diseases, try to go somewhere for residency that actually has experts on the subject. Consider Johns-Hopkins, UCSF, or University of Kentucky in Lexingotn, KY. There are other programs, but these are among the best.

 

[tec]

The Univ of Minnesota has a program where their residents can go to Tanzania from 2-6 months to work. I remember them talking about it when I interviewed there last year.

 

[wodina1]

thanks neuroatlarge and tec...I will be interviewing at UCSF and I will make sure to check out their neuro-infectious disease program.

Thanks for everyone's input. I guess I was looking to see if anyone shared my views, and thus could help me in choosing the best residency program.

good luck in the match to everyone participating!!!