I have completed my peds required elective and loved it. I am interested in residency, so is there anything in particular I should do during elective (ie - another peds or maybe peds in a subspec?) Also are people who do a peds sub-I, doing that instead of a med sub-I? Thanks!
I think all people interested in peds will do a peds AI. The experience is great because you get to experience what it is like to be a peds intern (or as close to it as possible). My experience was phenomenal. I had always known I wanted to go into peds, but my peds AI confirmed it even more. As far as electives, you can do any pediatric electives that you will enjoy. I do not think that there is anything that you should take specifically, but if you are interested in a certain subspecialty or area in peds, then you can explore it during an elective. I am going to do an international peds rotation and I have taken electives in subspecialties I really like. Some are really popular like peds ID, peds heme/onc, peds EM, peds GI, PICU, and NICU. They will foster great experiences and also allow the opportunity to get a letter of recommendation as you will often work with the same attending for 2 weeks (this has been my experience). Also, many people take 4th year as a time to take electives that they would never get exposure to in the rest of their careers. For example, many of my friends going into peds took electives in derm, radiology, adult critical care, and indian health service as well as many international electives. Best of luck in the rest of your 3rd year and 4th year. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.
Interesting electives I have done or will do by the time I'm done are Peds ID, Peds Derm, Child and Adolescent Psych, Peds Ophthalmology
Pediatric ID is a great rotation to do because you go to all areas of the pediatric hospital - ICUs, surgerical, medical. If you are doing an away rotation you get to see all the dirty secrets and get maximal exposure to impress many people.
I definitely enjoyed my Peds ID rotation. I got exposure to the floors mostly, but also was up in the NICU, in the PICU, and in the outpatient clinic where I interacted with a number of the subspecialists. I also would agree with the statement above that said that their Peds AI confirmed the fact that they loved peds. I couldn't agree with that more.
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