@Animalcules, thank you. That's helpful. Most likely, we'll go with the 3 months of CE in India since that doesn't require me to defer a year, and it sounds like it probably doesn't really matter either way. And that way, at least no one can say he hasn't treated patients as a physician recently.
By "true USCE," you mean actually treating patients in the US, as opposed to just doing glorified shadowing observorships like most IMGs do for USCE, right?
If so, in theory, he could probably get true USCE as a scrub tech assisting surgeries in the US. Alternatively, he might be able to get a position in a lab doing clinical research working with patients, e.g. on recruitment. Do you have a sense of which of those would be more likely to tip the scales in his favor, or if either would?
My concern about the scrub tech option is that, to my limited understanding, he would only be with patients while they're unconscious and being operated on, so there wouldn't be much opportunity for cultural exchanges, or whatever else this criterion is supposed to give him. Also, he'll probably be applying to IM, not surgery. I have no idea if PDs would share these concerns.
The research assistant recruiting patients into RCTs could give him more patient interaction time in reality, but I'm concerned that on paper that won't look to a PD like true USCE. Again, I'm just speculating based on no experience at all with the residency selection process, so please tell me if you think differently. I understand that either way, it would be ideal for him to get US lab-based research experience in too.
I guess another option could be that he could probably get a job as an MA or something like that. I'm not sure if MAs require special licensing or training, but he's definitely over-qualified to be an MA from an objective standpoint. That would be patient-facing in the clinic.
Thoughts?
