Q for PD and residents: Tell programs of hypothyroidism?

[PirateHotel]

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[Quizzical]

I have a friend applying in the match this year to some competitive specialties who has recently been diagnosed as hypothyroid. He had been feeling tired, gaining some weight, and feeling generally worn out for the past year. In fact he thought he was getting burnt out. This affected his academic performance and board scores. Since being diagnosed, he started replacement therapy and feels his old self again: for the first 2 years of med school he aced all the subjects etc.

The question is: should he notify programs he's already applied to about the cause of his recent performance?

Some of you will question the timing, but he's applying to Canada where they haven't given out interviews yet.

Thanks

friend eh?

regardless, I think you've left out key information. You're letting us assume that he did poorly recently... but how recent is recent? did your "friend" fail all clinical clerkships or just not honor them all? And as for board scores... how low is low? just missed 270?

 

[PirateHotel]

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[Quizzical]

Thanks for the post, but I don't appreciate your tone. This is a serious question. Not that it matters, but I'm applying for internal medicine in the States, he's applying in Canada.

He hasn't failed any subjects, but I'd prefer not to give too many details about his application to preserve his anonymity. Boards aren't bad enough to exclude him but do not stand out.

The question is simply: do you tell programs about a medical condition (non psychiatric) that obviously affected performance (decreased energy level / mood) but that has since been 'corrected'?

Thanks

Your question can not be answered in generalities. The answer is highly specific to each situation. I believe you need to provide more info on "affected performance." That could mean a whole lot of things ranging from trivial (got high pass instead of honors in IM) to severe (MSPE states that he lacks motivation, etc etc).

It's all a trade off. If the "affected performance" is minimal, then I wouldn't bring it up unless the interviewer does. If the "affected performance" is glaring, then I might bring it up. However, it's a touch call either way and needs to be tailored to HIS specific situation.

Lastly, if they gave him an interview, typically it means they think he's good enough and the need to know if he's a sane capable individual. Board scores tend not to matter much at that point.