Prelim Year/Transitional Programs for Ophthalmology Residents

[eyelander]

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Looking for some input on transitional year vs. preliminary medicine years. I have interviewed at about 5 of each type of program and am trying to form a rank list. I was hoping that the residents/attendings could give input on what is best for ophtho residents, i.e. whether or not the surgical exposure gained from a TY is truly important enough to rank it over a Prelim medicine program that I really liked. Also, if anyone that is currently in their intern year can help, I would really appreciate your help.

Thanks!

 

[MAYOphtho]

I would just pick the program you liked the best...in the end, you get whatever you want out of your internship...whether it's tons of surgical/medical exposure, or the bare minimum required to finish the year without compromising patient care

in the end, you really are the limiting factor for what internship provides for you...all the best in your decision

Looking for some input on transitional year vs. preliminary medicine years. I have interviewed at about 5 of each type of program and am trying to form a rank list. I was hoping that the residents/attendings could give input on what is best for ophtho residents, i.e. whether or not the surgical exposure gained from a TY is truly important enough to rank it over a Prelim medicine program that I really liked. Also, if anyone that is currently in their intern year can help, I would really appreciate your help.

Thanks!

 

[twintiger32]

i say any program that gives you the freedom of multiple elective months...most often these are transitional programs.

 

[eyesore95]

Does it matter where you do your internship (hard/prestigious program vs easy/non-prestigious) with regards to fellowship placement? I see value in both, am torn...

 

[OphthoApp]

According to an ophthalmologist at a very famous ophtho program.... the answer is no it does not matter.

 

[toulouselautrec]

Does it matter where you do your internship (hard/prestigious program vs easy/non-prestigious) with regards to fellowship placement? I see value in both, am torn...

No, it doesn't matter. But I've seen a lot of people who found themselves working a lot harder during their actual ophthalmology residencies (and being unhappy about it) compared to the super-cush internships they did. I was in the opposite situation...did a very un-cush prelim medicine year and then went to a residency where we worked really hard, but it didn't seem harder to me than internship. In retrospect, I'm glad I did it this way. I really learned a lot, and it helped me in ophtho residency. But that's just me. I can't say whether everyone should do it this way.

And, IMO, "hard" does not equal "prestigious." In fact, the more cush they are, the harder they are to get into because everyone else wants them too.

 

[OphthoApp]

I'm going for a program that is not prestigious but it allows you to tailor your education to what you are going into. For ophtho you can take rotations like Neurology, Infectious Disease, Rheumatology, ect. A more prestigious program may not allow you any electives. I think you should do what is best for you and your future career as an ophthalmologist. When it comes to fellowship time it's the reputation of your ophtho program and your research, ect that matters, not where you did your intern year.

 

[90 diopter]

My advice is to pick the easiest, most cush program you can get into. Looking back, it was probably the best decision I made during med school. Yes, it totally sucked when I started ophtho residency because of the sudden increase in work volume, but internship was the best year of my life by a long shot. It's pretty cool working from 7 to noon on wards months, then having the rest of your day to ski or do whatever the hell you want. Go easy. There's no reason whatsoever to work hard during your internship.