non-malignant competative residencies

[earthgirl101]

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Is this an oxymoron? I would like to do a strong residency program, and one that leaves the option of an MFM fellowship open, but I also want to be in a friendly, supportive environment. I love the field of OB-GYN, but I'm starting to get scared as all the people I talk to tell me how malignant the residents are. Specifically, the two programs I have the most interest in, UCSF and Oregon, have gotten very bad word of mouth....Any suggestions?😕

 

[vegetables]

Is this an oxymoron? I would like to do a strong residency program, and one that leaves the option of an MFM fellowship open, but I also want to be in a friendly, supportive environment. I love the field of OB-GYN, but I'm starting to get scared as all the people I talk to tell me how malignant the residents are. Specifically, the two programs I have the most interest in, UCSF and Oregon, have gotten very bad word of mouth....Any suggestions?😕

OHSU was nothing but wonderful when I visited both for my interview and then my 2nd look, and I certainly asked every resident about this...I haven't heard/seen the malignant thing at all! (And I'll be there next yr, so I know I won't be 😉

I also found Brown and U of Washington to be great too - super smart people in a supportive environment.

My advice on the whole "malignancy" term: Beware who you believe when they say that of an entire program. It could have been one crappy resident who skewed that person's whole perspective, or sometimes med students are annoying/lazy/rude as hell and so they bring on the poor treatment themselves, and then mislead you when they say the whole program is malignant...when it was really them. Good luck!

 

[Happy2BOB]

My advice on the whole "malignancy" term: Beware who you believe when they say that of an entire program. It could have been one crappy resident who skewed that person's whole perspective, or sometimes med students are annoying/lazy/rude as hell and so they bring on the poor treatment themselves, and then mislead you when they say the whole program is malignant...when it was really them. Good luck!

I second that!

You might find that you hear a lot of academic programs called malignant....at least I did. When I went on the interview trail, though, the vast majority of those rumors were untrue.

Best advice is to not take anyone else's word for it. If you're really interested in a program, go see for yourself....either during an away rotation or at the very least at the interview.

 

[AtYourCervix]

HA! before i even read the replies i was gonna post. OHSU rocks. i am an intern here and i third what the two previous posters have said. take a look at us. we are very humane. OBGYN residency is a tough one, but our residency is great. no belittling here; we are the epitome of west coast. fellow residents are very supportive and get along great. attendings are patient and constructive.

AYC

 

[earthgirl101]

Thanks for the replies so far! 🙂 I definately want to head west coast...I wanted to ask about something specific I heard about OR; that of the thrid year class there is only one original resident left and the others have swtiched or dropped out...I know there are a number of reasons to leave a program, many of them personal...I just thought the info sounded a little scary.

Anyone out there from UCSF?

 

[Wednesday]

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[Alician]

I am an intern at UW and very happy. Don't get me wrong residency is hard and I am tired but I love my program!

 

[G2P0112]

I am also an intern at OHSU with AYC. I also went here for med school and there is nothing malignant about this program at all. The faculty are great, the residents rock and you can't beat Portland. I have not had a moment of regret about deciding to stay here. You just need to come and see for yourself.

About the third year class. After their intern year 2 people left, 1 because here husband could not relocate to Portland and she didn't want to be away from him and another wanted to be closer to home. This year one of the residents is switching to EM. I think these decisions were very difficult for all of them. The people that replaced them are fantastic. People leaving programs isn't necessarily a reflection of a "bad" or "malignant" program. It's just about people making a decison about what is right for them. The changes in residents has not affected my experience at all.

 

[formosa06]

Agree w/above posts.
"Malignancy" in OB programs is so subjective...people love to bash ob/gyn for whatever reason, but that really has nothing to do with what a specific program is like.
Talk to the residents where you interview, you'll WILL realize quickly if they are happy or not (dont get me wrong, there are definitely bad programs out there, just like in any specialty). However, I think that most 'competitive'/'top tier' programs while definitely tough are also really great in terms of recruiting top notch residents who work hard but also work well together. Magee-Womens Hospital (U Pitt) is another example: very strong residents, amazing program with great all-around strengths. OB/GYN training is tough physically & emotionally but just from my experience I'm in an amazingly caring & supportive program which compared to med school friends' experiences in fields like surgery, is way more flexible & accomodating in terms of making the residency experience humane and enjoyable. 😀
Hmmm, could this be what happens to medical training when women take over?? just a thought.

 

[formosa06]

PS - we got one of the OHSU residents that left after intern year & she has nothing but good things to say about her former program.

It IS true that people leave programs all the time for very good reasons other than 'malignancy'. Think about how crazy the match is and it is only natural that there is going to be some re-arranging afterwards, even specialty changes. I really think that should not reflect poorly on a program unless it is a recurrent, persistent issue.

 

[ohbee gin]

Agree with above. I'm also a resident at OHSU and after looking specifically for a program that was competitive without being malignant, I can't be more emphatic about how satisfied I am here. Very west coast.