Primary Care in IM (nyc programs)

[6ft3dr2b]

I'm interested in practicing primary care medicine (preferably in the nyc area). I just have a couple questions:

1. What are the top programs? (not in research though. It seems like reputation is based on how much $$ they profit. I don't care about that though)

2. Is it better to learn at a teaching/academic hospital or community based hospital? (i'm not sure of the difference)

3. How do you find a "job" after residency? Do you just look for people who are hiring drs (like any other job)? Do you look for a practice to join?

4. Should I go to a residency program that offers night float?

5. How many hours do interns work?

6. What are the patient populations like? NYC has different areas. I'm interested in serving indigent populations.

Thanks

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[dragonfly99]

Medicine interns are not supposed to work >80 hours/week and are supposed to have an average of 1 day off in 7. Occasionally these work hours rules are not adhered to strictly, but generally they are adhered to, particularly in New York (from what I hear).

Nobody but you can decide whether you want a "night float" program vs. not. In programs with no night float you will likely work more hours on other days (i.e. be there until afternoon or evening some days even when you are not on call) as the admissions/work has to get done and with night float the hours just get shifted around. However, the advantage of night float is you don't have to keep taking admissions all night after you've already been up 18-22 hours. It's just something you have to decide for yourself.

I can't tell you a lot about New York medicine programs, although I think I heard that Mt Sinai and maybe Albert Einstein are fairly pro-primary care? If you want to work with indigent populations you'll be doing that at a lot of/most teaching hospitals, particularly in your personal "resident" internal medicine clinic. I think Einstein probably sees a lot of indigent patients, though...from what I've heard. Any New Yorkers want to chime in?

 

[6ft3dr2b]

bump!

 

[likewoh]

I'm interested in practicing primary care medicine (preferably in the nyc area). I just have a couple questions:

1. What are the top programs? (not in research though. It seems like reputation is based on how much $$ they profit. I don't care about that though)

2. Is it better to learn at a teaching/academic hospital or community based hospital? (i'm not sure of the difference)

3. How do you find a "job" after residency? Do you just look for people who are hiring drs (like any other job)? Do you look for a practice to join?

4. Should I go to a residency program that offers night float?

5. How many hours do interns work?

6. What are the patient populations like? NYC has different areas. I'm interested in serving indigent populations.

Thanks

Disclaimer: I'm just another fourth year student, so I'm not an expert on any of these things, this is just my opinion!

1. The Social Medicine program at Montefiore is supposed to be one of the top programs. If you google around, you'll find other social medicine programs across the country. NYU also has a primary care program, which is also supposed to be pretty good...but it's on the East side of Manhattan, which isn't exactly "indigent" but I guess that's a matter of debate. Mt. Sinai doesn't have a Primary Care program (at least I don't think it does).

2. As for Academic vs. Community...well, have you done rotations in both? In my experience, you have a more laid back, more benign experience at a Community program. But it's less rigorous, and in my experience, less based in Evidence Based Medicine. It depends what kind of environment you do well in, and what kind of doctor you want to be.

3. Not really sure. I think there are usually recruiting events. Doctors (esp PCPs) are in demand.

4. Yes

5. Like the above poster mentioned, it seemed like the Academic programs in NYC are a little less compliant with the 80 hr work rule. The community programs seem in line though.

6. Manhattan has pockets of indigent populations, but the real underserved communities are out in the boroughs.